Life Lessons for Aspiring Millionaires

Waste it now or have it later: I exploded when my daughter ran up over $100 in text messages to her friend. My wife and I cut her off from text messaging and made her pay for the text messages. She learned quickly. My kids wonder how their parents can own two houses or why we bought a boat last summer, yet I get in their face about wasting money. I explain to them in very simple terms as I have done here that you can decide -- waste it now or have it later.

When my kids receive their bar or bat mitzvah gift, we allow them one luxury item like a computer, and the rest gets invested. The bat mitzvah portfolios now have Apple(AAPL), Google (GOOG), McDonald's(MCD) and Sears Holdings(SHLD). Goldman Sachs(GS) would be the next to be added.

So, if you want to take that road to becoming a millionaire, think about what you can do today to be one step closer to that goal. The decision between buying that new flat-panel TV or investing in a good mutual fund should be an easy one to make. In 25 years you will have either a nice money-making investment or memories of watching Deal or No Deal.

Key Points:

• Becoming a millionaire requires a plan and long-term discipline.
• Think twice before making short-term consumer decisions and weigh them against long-term investment opportunities -- you can't deposit memories into the bank.
• Develop savings and investment habits early in life. Teach them to you children.

Some Homework:

• Read The Millionaire Next Door by Stanley and Danko.

• Perform a personal audit of your cash flows, income and expenses and balance sheet at least once a year. Tax time is an optimal point in the calendar to do so.
• Look to turn expenses into savings.
• Bring your children and grandchildren into the investing conversation.

To learn more about the topics in this article, click here to view Gregg Greenberg's video interview with Scott Rothbort.

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