The Money Muse

I’ve been a long-time follower of Brian Preston’s YouTube channel, The Money Guy Show. The content he and his team produce on personal finance has been some of the most valuable I’ve found online – and it’s totally free! When he announced he was releasing a book, The Millionaire Mission, I knew I had to read it. I was already well-acquainted with his Financial Order of Operations (affectionately called the FOO), but I wanted to take a deeper dive into his money philosophy, and this book was the perfect opportunity to do that.

Here are my biggest takeaways from The Millionaire Mission:

• Compounding growth is a powerful wealth-building tool. With the incredible power of compounding growth, anyone can become a millionaire. If you’re consistent and start early enough, just $100 a month can make you a millionaire by the time you retire. The three ingredients of wealth creation are discipline, money, and time – and time is the most critical component in building wealth. The sooner you start, the more time your money has to grow. This principle is a game-changer in personal finance and makes it clear that small, regular investments can have a massive impact over the long term.
• Make good habits easy and bad habits hard. To succeed, you need a game plan and must always know what your next step is. Brian emphasizes the importance of always being a buyer, no matter what chaos is happening around you. Automated, monthly investing can make wealth-building inevitable, no matter what the world or life throws at you. With discipline, you can establish good habits like automatic monthly investments, and you will understand that every dollar you make has a purpose. It’s about making it easy for yourself to do the right thing with your money and making it harder to fall into the trap of bad habits that can derail your financial goals.
• Consumption can leave you feeling helpless and purposeless. Don’t fall into the consumption goal trap. It’s easy to get caught up in the pursuit of material things that promise happiness but deliver little in the long run. Find contentment by paying attention to what truly matters to you and understanding your “why.” Spending $200 a month on unnecessary purchases instead of investing in your employer-sponsored 401(k) plan could cost you $4 million at retirement. Understanding this concept helps you make more mindful spending decisions and prioritize long-term goals over short-term gratification.
• There has never been a better time in history to build wealth. Innovation, competition, and technology have transformed the financial industry. Where investors in the past had to go through traditional brokers and gatekeepers, today, we can buy zero-commission index funds directly. More innovations are coming, and this should be cause for excitement. Optimistic people tend to be more successful than pessimists, so embracing new opportunities and staying positive about the future can make a huge difference in your financial journey.

Reading The Millionaire Mission by Brian Preston has been an enlightening experience that reinforced my understanding of personal finance and investing. The book’s insights on the power of compounding growth, the importance of good financial habits, the pitfalls of consumption, and the exciting potential of modern financial innovations have all left a lasting impact on me. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to take control of their financial future and build wealth over time. If you have read the book or have thoughts on these ideas, I’d love to hear about your experiences in the comments. Let’s learn from each other and support one another on this journey to financial freedom!