What would you say about someone who goes from too broke to even buy a burrito to becoming a millionaire in just 5 years? To me, the two things that come to mind are that he has grit and a lot of discipline with money.

Meet Grant Sabatier – the guy who lived this miracle to tell his tale of how he vowed to and got to become a millionaire by the age of 30. He realized he knows more than the average joe about money and can help out other millennials, which was the idea behind Millennial Money.

Grant and his advice about how to be better with your money is something which is widely available through his multiple interviews. To me, this one got the pulse spot on where Grant lists down 4 vital things to do – Start early in life to make the most of compounding, diversify your income with at least one side hustle (somewhat less common in India), Save more and more, keep frugal by not giving in to the temptation of lifestyle inflation.

What I love about it

Unlike a lot of blogs in the Personal Finance blogosphere which document their journey to financial independence, Millennial Money was started by Grant Sabatier in 2015 after becoming a millionaire. As the name suggests, the site caters to the need and mindset, specifically of Millennials.

The main areas which the site focuses on for Millennials are – saving more money, making more money, investing intelligently, fast-track financial independence and early retirement.

Millennials definitely think very differently from the previous generations and a blog catering to and answering their specific needs is always welcome.

One big post

Are we millennials living on the edge?

Off late, I am beginning to realize, I am quite the research junkie. This shows in my favorite post of Millennial Money too – Are Millennials F*cked?

While the report referred to is slightly dated, going by the recent version of the report from an advocacy group – Young Invincibles, not much seems to have changed.

The first most startling finding is that Millennials have a net worth less than the Baby Boomer or their parents’ generation. I, for one, think this might just be even more true for Indians. Our previous generation was far more adept at saving and thinking about the future and had fewer consumption temptations as well.

The second finding that the report points out is that millennials are earning lesser wages than their parents. Here, instinctively I believe that India portrays a different story. Opportunities have most definitely increased and our earning potential is higher. More and more women are joining the workforce and earning better than the parents.

The third finding that I need to point is how student loan negates the impact of education to some extent as repayment eats a large chunk of the first few years of earnings. Student Loans are now a subject of huge debate in the US. In India, the need to opt for a student loan even for domestic education is increasing. However, saving for their child’s education is still a big goal for most parents, which thankfully means an easier foundation for us Indian millennials. Will this remain the trend for the next generation? Only time will tell.

The report also talks about a wide chasm in the earnings and savings between Africans and Latinos viz-a-viz Young Americans. In my mind, India is far more fragmented when you look at race. What I would be more interested in is seeing the gender gap in earnings and savings in India. Do more Indians educate their daughters? Are more families happy to see their daughter-in-law go out in the world to work at a paying job? Those would be the real markers of progress for India and it’s millennials.

Two other posts

  1. Money and happiness
  2. How Much Money is Enough?

You can contact Grant and Millennial Money at the blog, email, Twitter and Facebook.