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Top 10 Rules to Achieve Financial Freedom by 40
Sep 26, 2025
Want to take control of your finances and live life on your own terms? In this video, we share the top 10 rules for achieving financial freedom by the age of 40. These tips are practical, easy to follow, and designed to help you make smart money decisions, save consistently, and invest wisely. Whether you’re just starting your financial journey or looking to accelerate your path to independence, these simple yet powerful rules can help you build wealth and secure your future. ✅ Like, share, and subscribe for more insights on money management, investing, and strategies to live financially free. Start your journey toward financial freedom today!
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0:00
Hello and welcome to our channel, Top
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10s You Should Know. Let me ask you
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something. Have you ever dreamed of
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reaching financial freedom by the time
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you hit 40? So, today we're breaking
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down the top 10 rules for financial
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freedom by 40. And trust me, each of
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these rules can completely change the
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way you handle money decisions and your
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future. Let's get started. One, live
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below your means, no matter what. The
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first and most powerful rule is simple,
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but often ignored. Live below your
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means. Too many people get caught in the
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trap of lifestyle inflation. The moment
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they get a raise, they upgrade their
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car, move into a bigger house, or start
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eating out more often. But here's the
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hard truth. If your spending always
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rises with your income, you'll never
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build wealth. Financial freedom requires
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intentional restraint. You don't have to
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live like a monk, but you must create a
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gap between what you earn and what you
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spend. That gap becomes your fuel for
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investments, savings, and opportunities.
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Think about it this way. Every
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unnecessary dollar spent today is a
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dollar that could have been invested to
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multiply tomorrow. Those who become
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financially free by 40 master this
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discipline early. They see wealth not as
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what they own, but as what they keep and
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grow.
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Number two, invest early and
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consistently.
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The second rule is understanding that
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time in the market beats timing the
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market. Too many people wait until their
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30s or even 40s to start investing, and
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by then they've lost the most valuable
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resource, time. Compounding is magical,
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but it only works if you start early.
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Even small amounts invested regularly
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can snowball into a fortune by 40. The
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difference between starting at 25 versus
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starting at 35 is staggering. It could
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mean hundreds of thousands of dollars in
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lost growth. The key isn't how much you
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start with, but how consistent you are.
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Automate your investments. Set it and
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forget it. Index funds, ETFs, retirement
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accounts. These are your allies. Stop
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over complicating it. Stop waiting for
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the perfect moment and just start.
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Because every year you delay, you're
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pushing financial freedom further away.
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Remember, wealth isn't built overnight.
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It's built over time. Brick by brick,
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dollar by dollar. Three, prioritize high
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income skills. Let's be honest, you can
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only save so much. If you want to reach
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financial freedom by 40, you need to
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play offense, too. And that means
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increasing your income. The difference
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between someone earning $50 and $150 is
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not just lifestyle. It's speed to
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freedom. And the way to bridge that gap
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isn't through working harder. It's
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through building high income skills.
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Skills like coding, digital marketing,
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sales, public speaking, consulting, or
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even entrepreneurship.
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These skills have no income ceiling and
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are always in demand. Financially free
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people focus on learning skills that
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increase their value, not just putting
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in more hours. Think of it this way.
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Your income is a reflection of the
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problems you can solve. The bigger the
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problems, the bigger the paycheck.
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The four, eliminate debt ruthlessly.
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Debt is the silent killer of financial
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freedom. Every dollar you owe in high
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interest debt is a chain keeping you
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tied to your job. The truth is, you
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can't build wealth while paying 20%
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interest on credit cards. It's financial
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quicksand. People who reach freedom by
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40 don't carry unnecessary debt. They
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attack it relentlessly.
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Make it your mission to pay down credit
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cards, car loans, and personal loans as
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quickly as possible. If you have student
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loans, create an aggressive plan to
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eliminate them. Debt not only drains
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your wallet, it drains your mental
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energy. Every payment is a reminder that
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your money belongs to someone else.
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Imagine how much freer you'll feel when
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your paycheck isn't already spoken for.
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Five, build multiple streams of income.
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One of the golden rules of financial
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freedom is this. Never rely on one
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source of income. Because if that one
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source disappears, so does your
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security. Wealthy people build multiple
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streams. Investments, businesses, side
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hustles, royalties, rentals. You don't
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need 10, but you do need at least two or
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three. For example, your job might be
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your main income, but you can add rental
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property, dividend paying stocks, or a
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scalable online business. The earlier
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you start building, the faster those
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streams grow. Think of each stream like
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a safety net. If one fails, the others
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hold you up. Financial freedom by 40
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requires resilience. And resilience
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comes from diversification, not just in
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investing, but in earning. Don't wait
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for the perfect idea. Start small. Start
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messy. But start now. Six. Save
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aggressively, not just casually. Here's
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a tough pill. Saving 5% of your income
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won't make you financially free by 40.
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You need to save aggressively. 20%, 30%,
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even 50% if possible. That doesn't mean
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depriving yourself of joy, but it does
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mean making conscious choices. The
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reality is the more you save and invest
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now, the more options you'll have later.
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People underestimate how freeing it is
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to have money in the bank, investments
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growing, and a cushion to fall back on.
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Aggressive savers see money as a tool,
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not something to be spent the second it
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arrives. They delay some gratification
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today to enjoy exponential freedom
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tomorrow. The rule is simple. If you
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want extraordinary results, you can't
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take ordinary actions.
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Seven, surround yourself with
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financially smart people.
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Your environment shapes your future more
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than you think. If you're surrounded by
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people who spend recklessly, complain
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about money, and live for the weekend,
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guess what? You'll absorb their habits.
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But if you surround yourself with people
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who talk about investing, business,
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growth, and strategies, you'll start
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thinking differently.
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Wealth is contagious, but so is poverty.
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One of the fastest ways to elevate your
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financial life is to elevate your
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circle. Financially free people seek
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mentors, friends, and networks that
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inspire smarter money choices. You can't
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afford to take advice from people who
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aren't where you want to be. If you want
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to be free by 40, spend time with people
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who already are or who are on the same
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path. Energy, habits, and beliefs rub
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off. You get to choose which ones.
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Eight, master the art of saying no.
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Financial freedom isn't just about what
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you do. It's about what you don't do.
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That means saying no to things that
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drain your wallet and your future.
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Saying no to unnecessary subscriptions,
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to luxury upgrades, to social pressure.
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It means declining invitations that
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don't align with your goals, or
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resisting the urge to keep up with the
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Joneses. Every yes costs you money,
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energy, and time. So, so choose
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carefully. People who reach financial
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independence by 40 know how to protect
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their priorities, even if it makes them
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unpopular sometimes. Remember, every no
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to short-term pleasure is a yes to
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long-term freedom. Learning to say no is
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one of the most underrated financial
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skills in the world. Nine, automate
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everything. One of the biggest secrets
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of financially free people is that they
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take willpower out of the equation. They
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don't rely on discipline every day. They
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rely on systems. Automation ensures you
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save and invest before you spend every
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single time. Set up automatic transfers
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to savings accounts, automatic
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investments into index funds, and
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automatic bill payments. This removes
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human error, forgetfulness, and the
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temptation to skip. Think about it. If
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money leaves your account the second
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you're paid, you'll never even miss it.
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By automating, you're protecting your
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goals from your impulses. That's how
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freedom by 40 is achieved, not through
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wishful thinking, but through smart
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systems that work quietly in the
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background. 10. Define freedom for
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yourself. Finally, the most important
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rule of all, financial freedom is
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personal. For some, it means retiring
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early on a beach. For others, it means
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working part-time while traveling the
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world. And for some, it's simply having
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enough to never stress about bills. The
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problem is, most people chase someone
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else's version of freedom. They think
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they need millions when maybe all they
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need is a paidoff home, some
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investments, and low expenses. Define
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your number, define your vision, and
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align your money decisions around that.
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Without a clear picture of what freedom
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looks like for you, you'll chase
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endlessly without ever feeling
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satisfied. Remember, wealth is not just
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money. It's peace, time, and choice. And
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defining that is the key to reaching it.
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And there you have it. The top 10 rules
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for financial freedom by 40. Each one of
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these rules isn't about luck or magic,
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but about choices and discipline that
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compound over time. Which of these rules
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do you think you need to work on most
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right now? Let us know in the comments.
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We'd love to hear your journey. And as
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always, thank you for watching Top 10s
9:04
You Should Know.
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