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Ever wondered what millionaires do to become so successful? A techie thinks he knows the answer — but it’s probably not what you think.
“It has nothing to do with how much money they have in their bank,” said Taylor Conroy, who goes by @taylormoney.co, in a video that has garnered nearly 3 million views on TikTok (1).
According to Conroy, the difference between the mindset of the average middle class and millionaires is in one word – expansion.
Instead of spending your money on material improvements or paying bills, he believes that the true purpose of money is to use it to create more money. According to him, this is “the one thing that makes rich people completely different.”
Thus, he challenged conventional wealth wisdom by ditching the usual strategy of spending money on “big houses, big boats, big cars” and then stashing the rest away in a savings account.
“It’s only when you see money for what it really is, a method of expansion … then opportunities to make more money or expand begin to present themselves for you to take,” he explained.
In other words, it’s about mindset.
If you find Conroy’s advice compelling, here’s a look at why he might be onto something and how you can put his income-generating mindset into action.
If you’re looking for confirmation of Conroy’s advice, look no further than billionaire Mark Cuban.
In an interview with Spanx founder Sara Blakely, Cuban expressed himself in the same way, explaining how he lived “like a student” to invest his money to grow, with the hope of retiring by 35 (2).
“I was determined to save money. I was determined to retire. It wasn’t like I thought, ‘Well, I’m going to be very rich,'” he told Blakely. “I value time more than anything else. I wanted enough money to be able to travel, have fun and party like a rock star but still live like a student. That was my motivation.”
Cubans also believe in staying away from buying luxury cars and fancy houses to build wealth. He told Blakely about driving “the worst possible car” with a hole in the floorboard, subsisting on mac and cheese and living with five roommates.
“You have to be disciplined about how you spend your money.”
And once you’ve developed that mindset, that’s when you can start growing your money.
Read more: I’m almost 50 and have no retirement savings. Is it too late to catch up?
Read more: Non-millionaires can now invest in this $1B private real estate fund starting at just $10
One of the tried and true ways to expand your wealth is through real estate.
Traditionally, one of the most common strategies is to buy a home to live in, let it appreciate in value over decades and then rely on that equity for retirement.
And while that may bring some long-term growth, it doesn’t take real estate leverage to expand your wealth the way Conroy thinks it should.
In fact, some experts like real estate mogul Grant Cardone think that buying a home to live in is the opposite of a good strategy. In a video posted on his TikTok account, he suggested that Americans rent out their homes and use the money they would have put toward a mortgage to invest in income-generating real estate (3).
“I’m not saying don’t own real estate,” he explained. “I say live in the house and pay the rent. Take all the money you would have spent on that house and invest it in real estate that has cash flow—that pays you every month.”
But buying real estate is not always possible for everyone. It is an expensive investment.
However, even if buying a rental property isn’t the right move for you, you still have ways to invest in real estate to generate passive income and diversify your portfolio.
If you’re looking to invest in properties in a way that doesn’t require you to be a landlord or already have millions in the bank, Reach might be the right choice for you.
Backed by global investors including Jeff Bezos, Arrival lets you buy fractional shares of vacation and residential rental properties without the hassle of having tenants.
To get started, you can browse a selection of ready-made homes, evaluated for their appreciation and income potential. Once you find a property that meets your criteria, you can select the number of shares you want to buy and start investing with just $100.
If diversification into multifamily rentals appeals to you, you may also consider investing with Lightstone DIRECT, the new investment platform from Lightstone Group, one of the largest private real estate companies in the country with over 25,000 multifamily units in its portfolio.
Since they cut out the middlemen – brokers and money laundering intermediaries – accredited investors with a minimum investment of $100,000 can get direct access to basic quality multi-family opportunities. This streamlined model can help reduce fees while increasing transparency and control.
And with Lightstone DIRECT, you invest in single-asset multi-family deals alongside Lightstone – a true partner – as Lightstone puts at least 20% of its capital into each offering. All Lightstone investment opportunities undergo a rigorous, multi-step review before being approved by Lightstone principals, including founder David Lichtenstein.
How it works is simple: just sign up with your email, and you can call a capital formation specialist to evaluate investment opportunities. From here, all you have to do is verify your details to start investing.
Founded in 1986, Lightstone has a proven track record of strong risk-adjusted returns over market cycles with a historical net IRR of 27.6% and historical net equity of 2.54x since 2004. All told, Lightstone has $12 billion in assets involved in industrial management.
As such, even if multifamily rentals don’t appeal to you, Lightstone can serve you well as an investment vehicle for other real estate verticals.
Get started today with Lightstone DIRECT and invest in gaming with experienced skin experts.
Of course, one of the worst things you can do for your money is let it sit in your checking account. With high inflation, money loses its value quickly – and the average checking account offers an interest rate of just 0.07% (4).
While assets like real estate are traditionally seen as a hedge against inflation, there are other ways to beat it.
For example, as he encouraged his followers to use money to grow, Conroy advocated investments known to earn high annual percentage yields (APYs).
Following in his footsteps, a good way to combat your dollar shortage is to earn real interest with a high-yield account. That’s because the average APY on traditional savings accounts has reached about 0.40% by the end of 2025, while high-yield alternative rates are projected to be above 4%, according to Experience (5).
These savings accounts offer real growth, but with the peace of mind that your money is liquid and you can access it anytime.
One way you can access the potential of a high-yield account is with a Wealthfront Cash Account, which can help you build an investment base through a combination of high interest rates and ease of access.
Wealthfront’s Cash Account can provide a base variable APY of 3.30%, but new customers can earn a 0.75% boost in their first three months on up to $150,000 for a 4.05% APY. That’s ten times the national savings rate, according to the FDIC’s January report.
With no minimum balance or account fees, as well as 24/7 withdrawals and free domestic wire transfers, you can be sure your funds remain accessible at all times. Additionally, Wealthfront cash account balances up to $8 million are FDIC-insured through program banks.
The beauty of ETF investing is its accessibility – anyone, regardless of wealth, can benefit.
But you can also think about expanding your money possibilities by broadening your view of what makes a good asset to invest in and building your investment portfolio.
For example, you might think of art as just a little canvas to make your living room look nicer, but this asset has been quietly outgrowing other asset classes for years.
Having a low correlation with stocks also makes art a useful hedge against market volatility, but with the same growth potential.
In 1999, the S&P 500 peaked, and it took 14 years to fully recover.
to date? Goldman Sachs predicts annual returns of just 3% from 2024 to 2034. That sounds bleak but not surprising: The S&P is trading at its highest price-to-earnings ratio since the dot-com boom. Vanguard isn’t far off, estimating around 5%.
In fact, almost everything feels close to an all-time high — equities, gold, crypto, you name it.
That’s why billionaires have built a chunk of their portfolios in an asset class with long-term low market correlation and strong return potential: post-war and contemporary art.
It may come as a surprise, but more than 70,000 investors have followed it since 2019 – through Masterworks. Now you can own partial shares of works by Banksy, Basquiat, Picasso and others.
Masterworks has sold 25 artworks to date, giving net annual returns of 14.6%, 17.6% and 17.8%.*
Readers with money can get priority access to Diversify with Art: Leave the waiting list here.
*Past performance is not indicative of future returns. Investments are risky. See Important Provisions in Disclosure AMasterworks.com/cd
If you still want to invest in more traditional stocks but are looking for a less traditional way to do it, you can also consider using Acorns.
With apps like Acorns, even small amounts can grow over time with your spare change investment.
Signing up for Acorns takes just minutes: Link your cards and Acorns will withdraw every purchase to the nearest dollar, investing the difference – your spare change – in a diversified portfolio.
Using Acorns, you can invest in a stock ETF with as little as $5 – and if you sign up today, Acorns will add a $20 bonus to help you start your investment journey.
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