Introduction 1
Three Stages of Wealth Creation 2
Part I The First $25,000 Is the Hardest 5
Chapter 1 Building The First $25,000 through Frugality 7
Why Wealth Creation Begins with Frugality 8
The Psychology of Frugality 12
Conclusion 19
Chapter 2 How to Live an Efficient Lifestyle 21
An Overview of the Average American's Spending Habits 22
Tackling Major Life Expenditures in Order of Significance 24
Conclusion 36
Chapter 3 What to Do with Money as You Save It 39
"Bad" Debt vs. "Good" Debt 40
Credit 45
The First Three Milestones in the Journey to Financial Freedom 45
Conclusion 50
Part II From $25,000 to $100,000 through Housing and Income Generation 51
Chapter 4 Turning Your Largest Expense into an Income Producing Asset 53
Average Joe's Housing Dilemma 53
Conclusion 62
Chapter 5 The Financial Impact of Housing Decisions 63
Five Ways to Buy a First Property and Their Financial Consequences 63
Questions to Ask Before Buying a House Hack 74
Conclusion 78
Chapter 6 How to Make More Money 81
What Is the Point of Earning More Money? 83
Changes Necessary to Increase One's Income 90
Conclusion 105
Chapter 7 Scaling a Scalable Career 107
Five Tactics To Help You Earn More Money 108
Conclusion 117
Part III Moving from $100,000 to Financial Freedom 119
Chapter 8 An Exploration of Financial Freedom 121
Who Are the Financially Free? 126
The Four Levels of Finance 129
How to Go About Pursuing Financial Freedom 133
The Components to the Financial Independence Equation 134
Conclusion 146
Chapter 9 An Introduction to Investing for Early Financial Freedom 147
The Seven Core Tenets of Investing 149
Five Concepts for the Savvy Investor 158
Conclusion 171
Chapter 10 Investing in the Stock Market 173
Do Not Attempt to Pick Individual Stocks 174
Conclusion 180
Chapter 11 Real Estate Investing 183
Five Reasons to Invest in Real Estate 183
How to Invest in Real Estate 189
Conclusion 190
Chapter 12 Tracking Your Progress 193
Tracking Your Money 193
The First Financial Metric: Net Worth 194
The Second Financial Metric: Spending 200
The Third Financial Metric: Income 202
The Fourth Financial Metric: Time 204
How to Track Your Time 206
Conclusion 208
Chapter 13 Habits and Their Impact on Financial Freedom 211
Cut These Ten Habits Out of Your Life 212
Conclusion 218
Chapter 14 Conclusion 219
Appendix: Retirement Accounts 223