10 Ways to Earn 1 Million USD a Year
1. Love Your Customers
Tim Nguyen, co-founder and CEO of BeSmartee: "Everything you do should focus on your customers. Want to take a vacation? Ask yourself how that affects your customers...Are you thinking about reevaluating employee incentive programs? Consider how that impacts customers. Don’t worry about discounts, and don’t focus on money. Focus on your customers."
2. Strengthen Your Foundation
Margot Micallef, founder and CEO of Gabriella’s Kitchen: "A good foundation includes a network of investors…or a strong relationship with a banker or lending institution…Any time I’ve made a significant profit, it’s been based on a foundation built many years prior."
3. Focus on Culture
Steve Starr of StarrDesign: "If you get the right culture, the money will come. After compensating our partners, our design firm has spent the last 2 years transforming our approach, processes, and company characteristics. We’ve increased total revenue while still growing net revenue by 15% to over 2 million USD...In any business, it’s important to identify and stay close to what inspires your team. Almost every team starts from passion, and maintaining that passion is a key factor in success."
4. Focus on Product and Metrics
Simon Slade, CEO and co-founder of Affilorama: "My best advice for joining the million-dollar income club is to create a great product and then keep developing it. Choose a simple metric, like sales or revenue, and set a goal to surpass the previous day every day. This growth strategy is both sustainable and manageable."
5. Understand Stakeholder Fears
Ted Leonhardt, career and negotiation expert: "Yes, I’ve earned a million USD or more in a year...I achieved that by understanding the communication issues that drive all social groups, helping my clients alleviate their fears, and helping people achieve their goals. My advice is to understand that fear often accompanies spending a large amount of money, and know how to help customers alleviate their fears."
6. Be Persistent
Ajay Prasad of GMR Transcription: "Success in business will be harder, more expensive, and take longer than you expect. My advice for success is to be persistent."
7. Hustle
Heidi Burkhart, President of Dane Consulting Group Professional: "At 21, I entered the real estate brokerage industry in New York...The first three years, I hustled, working nearly 24/7 and surviving on very little money. In the last quarter of my third year, I started closing deals. Since then, my income has risen to six figures, and I’ve earned over 1 million USD in a year...I attribute all of this to the hustle, but that initial hustle will always leave a mark on me."
8. Organic Growth
Romy Taormina, CEO and co-founder of Psi Bands: "There’s no overnight success here. I’ve led the company organically, and that has allowed us to earn over 1 million USD. Specifically: The Psi Bands team approached our first retailer with a sample product. We received approval from this customer - the 400-store chain Long's Drugs and secured the coveted 'O Pick' position in Oprah's O magazine. The credibility helped me land a great opening customer, and from there I gained many new customers."
9. Build Personal Relationships
Andrew Royce Bauer, CEO of Royce: "Royce can earn 6 million USD a year by maintaining personal relationships with clients. We are a company built on interaction with end consumers...just a small number of really good customers treated like family rather than trying to be a business that serves everyone."
10. Focus on the End Goal
Zach Halmstad, co-founder of Jamf Software: "My best advice is to focus on the destination you want, not the mistakes that may happen along the way...99% of the things you worry about will never happen. While the things you don’t worry about actually do."
Turning 100 USD into 1 Million USD with 6 Tips to Help "Money Make Money" from Self-Made Millionaires: The 3rd Way Can Be Applied Even When You’re Broke Saving 100 USD is not a difficult task, and most people can do it.
But how we use that money to earn more is not something everyone knows. Below, 6 self-made millionaires share their ideas on how to turn 100 USD into 1 million USD. You can also learn to get rich:
1. Invest in What You’re Passionate About
Bethenny Frankel is an entrepreneur, television producer, podcaster, founder of the Skinnygirl brand, star of “The Real Housewives of New York City,” New York Times bestselling author, and guest judge on “Shark Tank.” In an interview with CNBC, the self-made millionaire shared her experience: “Becoming wealthy is not easy. You have to diligently save, earn a lot of money from business or investments. Building a solid financial foundation really requires saving more than you think. Continuing to grow a business after achieving success is also very costly. That’s why I want to invest. Find a solid team you trust and combine your 100 USD with their 100 USD, and make a calculated, solid, and truly positive investment. Invest in an area you understand and have a vision for. You can even invest emotionally. For example, with real estate, I always choose a place I would live if things went south. Whatever approach you choose, pick something you love. I believe that if you love something, you will excel at it.”
2. Buy and Resell Small Items
Self-made millionaire Gary Vaynerchuk, founder and CEO of VaynerX, and author of the New York Times bestseller “Crushing It!” shares the idea of profiting from inexpensive items. First, go to thrift stores, garage sales, and look for undervalued items like action figures or stuffed animals. Then check the ‘sold’ listings on eBay to see their value. If there’s a significant price difference, buy them and resell them on eBay for a profit. At the same time, use the remaining 100 USD to cover shipping costs. Many might think that doing this won’t earn you 1 million USD. They might be right. But with enough effort, you could earn at least 100,000 USD. Then comes the hard part. You have to keep what you have. In his 20s, Gary Vaynerchuk didn’t travel or buy expensive things. Instead, he saved money. And by his 30s, Gary had hundreds of thousands of dollars. He then invested and earned millions. All you need is patience.
3. Buy a Million-Dollar Business with Other People’s Money
Moran Pober, founder and CEO of Acquisitions.com and former partner of Wekix.com and ABD Assets, believes: “You don’t even need 100 USD if you’re willing to buy an established business. Many baby boomers (born between 1946-1964) are looking for a reliable person to take over their multi-million dollar business so they can retire. Often, negotiating a deal where you only pay 30% of the purchase price at closing is not uncommon. Financial institutions specializing in acquisitions will lend you the down payment regardless of your credit score because they can use the business assets as collateral. So, you can acquire a business without putting down any money and pay the remaining 70% over time using the income from the business. You don’t even need relevant experience; just find a business that has been operating for 5 or 10 years. The owner will mentor you throughout the transition, and you can even hire experts to manage the business for you.
4. Improve and Invest in Yourself
Grant Cardone, the sales expert behind a 750 million USD real estate empire and New York Times bestselling author, shares: “Of course, there are people who know how to seize opportunities and invest at the right time to make a lot of money. In 2010, if you had invested 100 USD in Bitcoin, you would have done very well. But for me, that’s like playing the lottery. A more reliable way to get rich with just 100 USD is to invest in a course, book, podcast, or event that will help you improve yourself. Spend that money to develop new skills, gather knowledge, and create strong connections. When you invest in yourself, you will never lose.”
5. Learn a High-Income Skill
Dan Lok is a global educator, author of the bestselling book “Unlock It!” and founder of Closers.com, highlighting the importance of skills in wealth creation. The millionaire shares: “If you don’t have money to start a business, then don’t start one. Instead, spend your 100 USD on books and training courses to learn a skill that can earn you 10,000 USD a month or more.” Choose a high-paying skill that helps organizations generate revenue, such as copywriting, marketing, or sales. You can learn these skills relatively quickly and apply them across various industries. Once you earn enough money, you can turn your “side hustle” into a full-time job. Then, scale up and invest your profits. This is how to build real wealth. If you are persistent and excel in your field, success will come. But that success doesn’t come overnight, so take it step by step.
6. Build a Personal Brand
Torben Platzer, founder and CEO of personal branding company TPA Media GmbH, founder of the business education program SELFMADE, and host of the German podcast “SELFMADE.” This self-made millionaire values the method of investing in personal branding. Torben states: “Starting a business is an attractive field that everyone wants to get into today. You can earn millions by building your own brand as an influencer or business. However, anyone can become famous through social media, so it’s not easy to attract attention. With so many brands pushing for online growth, building a trustworthy brand is the key to success. To do this, you need a clear statement defining your mission and how that mission helps others. Ideally, these should be your stories. People will only follow you if they understand the reason behind your story and identify with your mission. Record a video explaining your story, then invest 100 USD in Facebook ads to reach people like you who can understand your situation.