30 Money Truths by 30s
Lessons on Wealth, Freedom, and Living Well
When I hit my 30s, I realized money isn’t just about numbers. It’s about choices, freedom, and how you live your life.
These are lessons I’ve learned from building my career, starting multiple businesses, making mistakes, and trying to live well. They’re not rules—just truths that shaped my journey.
- To earn more, add more value. Your income is the value of the problems you help solve. Three ways to make more: 1) solve a bigger problem, 2) solve a problem for more people, and 3) find someone willing to pay more for the problem you solve.
- Productivity drives income. When you produce more than you earn, you have untapped potential. When you earn more than you produce, your income will eventually fall. Don’t overspend. And put in the work to match output with paycheck.
- Money is energy. The more energy you put into the world, the more income you can attract. Low energy, low results—it’s that simple. One of the best advice I heard from Vinh Giang: Be generous with your energy.
- Money is credit. Most money today is just credit created from thin air. Understand this, and you’ll see why debt fuels economies. It also shows why financial systems are fragile.
- Diversify your income streams. Depending on a single income is like walking on a thin thread. Having multiple income streams protects you from single points of failure.
- Don’t do work you hate. Yes, you should learn to love the work you do. But working on a job you hate for the sake of money is a different story. The energy tax wasn’t worth the return. Money earned in misery costs more than it pays.
- There are levels to money. Each level unlocks leverage you never thought possible. First, you trade time for money. Then skills. Then products, capital, and audience. Each level needs new thinking. Mastering one stage prepares you for the next.
- Wealth comes in leaps. Wealthy people make nothing for a long time, then a big lump sum all at once. Most of us will never get there because we can't live without a linear, consistent, and certain income.
- Income is your lever when you're young. Investing makes you rich, but only when you're old. When you're young, what changes your life is a high income. Focus on building earning power first.
- Get to 100k fast. The first $100k feels impossible, but the next 100k comes easier. Same with your first million. Momentum builds wealth.
- Income levels change stress. At $10k, money stress fades. At $20–30k, you stop checking prices. But at $30–50k, big purchases creep in—beware of the traps. It's what separates people who look rich from people who are actually wealthy.
- Know your freedom floor. It's your CoastFI number plus 1-2 years of cash. The freedom floor gives you options—the freedom to take big leaps with virtually zero risks.
- Don’t move the goalpost. I thought I wouldn't, but I did. I wanted a bigger house, a better car, a nicer vacation—you name it. The trick is to do it slower than your wealth growth.
- Wealth hides in silence. Flashy cars and houses are often debt (see #4 Money is credit). Quiet savings are the real flex. The richest people often look ordinary.
- Your first house is your biggest purchase. It’s not always a win. Run the numbers before you pull the trigger. Emotion blinds logic when it comes to property, especially when you're the one living in it.
- Build your runway. Three months of savings is risky, six months is the minimum, and having 12 to 24 months is ideal. A fat buffer is cheap insurance for peace of mind. With it, you take bold steps without fear of bills. Without it, dreams die as soon as reality hits.
- Cash is fuel. In business, money isn’t the goal—it keeps you moving toward the goal. It's the same with life. Treat cash like oxygen, not a trophy.
- Compound growth is the 8th wonder. $100k compounded at 8% for 30 years becomes $1 million. Start early and let time do the heavy lifting. Slow and steady wins.
- Time in the market beats timing the market. The market rewards time, not clever tricks. That’s why I invest in boring index funds. Most people lose money trying to outsmart it.
- Think barbell. This is from the book Antifragile by Nassim Taleb. Keep most of your money safe, and place small bets that could change everything. Balance safety with smart risks.
- Building a business is hard. First, it takes money. But that's not the hardest part. It's hard because it takes patience and courage to face uncertainty. Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart.
- True wealth is ownership. Own assets that generate income outside of your skills or time. Ownership is leverage that compounds forever.
- Net worth changes reality. Two people can earn and spend the same, yet live totally different lives depending on the savings or debt they have. Wealth builds confidence and options.
- Watch what they do, not what they say. Experts and influencers often say one thing and do another. Always think for yourself instead of blindly copying the wrong playbook. Flashy financial successes are often the survivorship bias at play.
- Money is only one dimension. If you spend decades only chasing it, you’ll struggle to use it to build a real life. Learn to live outside the spreadsheet.
- Where you live and who you marry matter most. These two decisions shape your entire financial future. They are the upstream choices that change everything down the road. Choose wisely—they compound more than any stock.
- Getting wealthy is often getting lucky. Don’t just grind for linear growth. Instead, allocate 99% of your effort to expanding your surface area for luck. You only need to get lucky once.
- Generalist or specialist? Both. Stay obsessed with one project, but learn the skills to play multiple roles in it. Breadth gives resilience, depth gives power.
- Don’t die with a pile of cash. If you die with $1 million in the bank, you wasted it. Aim to die with zero. Money unused is life unlived.
- True wealth is more than money. Health is the foundation. Relationships are the essence. These make life meaningful. Without them, money is empty.
