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Delmaine Donson \/ iStock\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
Just as the journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step, the pathway to your first million dollars could begin with a few small money moves.<\/p>\n
For You: Here\u2019s the Minimum Net Worth To Be Considered Upper Class by 2027<\/a><\/p>\n Learn More: 8 Subtly Genius Moves All\u00a0Wealthy People Make With Their Money<\/a><\/p>\n Though you may fret that your money decisions wouldn\u2019t even be a blip on the radar of someone like Warren Buffett<\/a>, these small choices could have a huge impact on whether you become wealthy in your own right.<\/p>\n GOBankingRates turned to financial experts to get their take on the small, yet smart, money moves that could make a million-dollar difference in your financial future<\/a>.<\/p>\n 1. Develop Good Savings Habits<\/p>\n To D\u2019Andre Clayton, co-founder of Clayton Financial Solutions<\/a>, one of the best things you can do to build long-term wealth is also one of the simplest: Learn how to save money wisely<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cContrary to popular belief, your ability to save is the number one indicator of good discipline, which is required to be successful long term,\u201d he said. \u201cIt makes room for good investing habits<\/a> because of having safety and not being hyperdependent on returns. Saving is about control.\u201d<\/p>\n The way Clayton sees it, learning how to save money teaches you respect for money. That respect empowers you to get smart about your cash flow and behave more strategically with your spending choices.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you can\u2019t tell me where your last two paychecks went, chances are you\u2019re not building wealth; you\u2019re recycling income,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Read Next: 3 Ways Billionaires Like Mark Cuban Protect\u00a0Wealth\u00a0in Any Market<\/a><\/p>\n 2. Make Automation Your Best Friend<\/p>\n Even if you\u2019ve got a lot of friends in your life, Clayton would like you to make room for one more \u2014 the automation of your personal finances. He calls automation \u201cyour best friend\u201d in building wealth<\/a>, whether you\u2019re investing or paying down debt, for good reason.<\/p>\n \u201cThis helps you look at what\u2019s left for your lifestyle money, not all of what you make,\u201d he said. \u201cAutomation eliminates the biggest point of failure in a financial plan \u2014 human error. Because of sentiment, we tend to make the worst mistakes with money at the worst times.\u201d<\/p>\n Automation makes core financial processes nearly foolproof. You don\u2019t need to worry about skipping a payment or forgetting to invest. The system does the work for you.<\/p>\n 3. Prioritize Paying Down High-Interest Debt<\/p>\n Paying down debt<\/a> may not be the most glamorous use of your money, but it\u2019s one of the most important things you can do to protect yourself financially and free up more money to build wealth over time.<\/p>\n For Christy Bachmeyer, EVP, director of consumer banking management and sales at Frost Bank<\/a>, focusing on high-interest debt like credit cards and personal loans is a small yet mighty move because this kind of debt costs you much more in interest than other types of debt.<\/p>\n \u201cAim to pay more than the minimum required payment if you are able,\u201d she said. \u201cPaying this debt down quickly can help you avoid paying hundreds to thousands of dollars in interest in the long run.\u201d<\/p>\n 4. Teach Good Financial Habits Within the Family<\/p>\n The difference between enjoying a flash-in-the-pan financial boon and building generational wealth often comes down to teaching all members of the family how to manage money \u2014 especially teenagers.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve been putting off conversations about finances out of concern they\u2019ll be awkward, remember that you\u2019re parenting in the digital age. You can use digital tools and apps like Cash App\u2019s \u201cFamilies\u201d feature<\/a> to connect with your kids and make learning about money more interactive and engaging.<\/p>\n With these kinds of apps, teens can get hands-on experience managing money, from saving to spending to receiving direct deposits \u2014 all with parental oversight. It\u2019s a practical way to normalize money conversations early, so wealth-building becomes a shared family value, not just something parents manage behind the scenes.<\/p>\n 5. Plug Those Spending Leaks<\/p>\n You can have the biggest, most impressive-looking ship at sea, but if it has hidden leaks, it\u2019s going to sink. There\u2019s a similar principle at play with your finances, according to Dan Sudit, partner at Crewe Advisors<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the few dollars here and the few dollars there that add up,\u201d he said. \u201cThe $8 cup of coffee or the online food delivery service because you chose not to meal prep adds up quickly. It\u2019s the subscriptions you don\u2019t even realize you pay for \u2014 ones you don\u2019t need or won\u2019t take the time to review for better rates.\u201d<\/p>\n You know what you need to do: it\u2019s time to conduct an inventory of your regular expenses<\/a> to see if they\u2019re actually necessary. Or, as Sudit says, \u201clet the trivial spending stop [and] the intentional savings begin.\u201d<\/p>\n The Bottom Line<\/p>\n Small financial decisions can add up in a big way over time. By building smart habits now, from saving consistently to cutting unnecessary expenses, you can dramatically improve your odds of reaching long-term wealth and financial security.<\/p>\n More From GOBankingRates<\/p>\n This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com<\/a>: 5 Small Money Decisions That Can Add Up to a Million-Dollar Difference<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Delmaine Donson \/ iStock\/Getty Images Just as the journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":516863,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[48648,84,96052,96051,4176,26100,40408,180330,167658,4174,4175,56,54,55,5465],"class_list":{"0":"post-516862","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-building-wealth","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-clayton","11":"tag-clayton-financial-solutions","12":"tag-finance","13":"tag-financial-future","14":"tag-how-to-save-money","15":"tag-million-dollars","16":"tag-money-moves","17":"tag-personal-finance","18":"tag-personalfinance","19":"tag-uk","20":"tag-united-kingdom","21":"tag-unitedkingdom","22":"tag-warren-buffett"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516862","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=516862"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516862\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/516863"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=516862"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=516862"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=516862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}