Many millennials today can’t remember a time without Prime two-day delivery. However, as elder millennials have aged along with online shopping and corresponding credit card bills, one titan of industry seems to have profited off of creating convenience more than most.
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Jeff Bezos is no stranger to entrepreneurship and wealth building. With a current estimated net worth of $241.9 billion, he puts pretty much all other American’s savings accounts to shame. From starting Amazon in a garage to becoming one of the wealthiest individuals in the world, Bezos’ journey offers helpful lessons for anyone looking to become wealthy.
Millennials, a generation facing unique financial challenges including everything from skyrocketing student loans to housing shortages, can glean much from his insights. Here are eight pieces of Bezos’ advice for a younger generation of people who want to get rich.
One of the keys to Bezos’ success with Amazon is his unwavering long-term vision. Instead of getting bogged down by short-term hiccups or quarterly pressures, Bezos consistently emphasizes thinking several years into the future.
For millennials, this means having patience. Wealth rarely comes overnight. Whether you’re starting a business, investing, or climbing the corporate ladder, focus on where you want to be in 10, 15 or even 20 years. Then, backtrack to create a roadmap to get there. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
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In a letter to Amazon shareholders, Bezos once wrote, “If you know in advance that it’s going to work, it’s not an experiment.”
He credits many of Amazon’s successes to his willingness to experiment, even if that means failing now and then. He supports everyone operating from a regret minimization framework or mindset.
He prefers to simplify complex choices by focusing on the potential for future regret. In other words, he often asks himself, “In X number of years, will I regret not doing this?” The regret minimization framework operates by going through the following steps:
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Step 1: Imagine yourself in the future
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Step 2: Look back at your current decision
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Step 3: Ask yourself which option would cause you the least regret
Millennials should follow this advice by stepping outside their comfort zones. Risk is an inherent part of growth, whether it’s trying a new business idea, switching careers or making an unconventional investment on Wall Street. Every failure is a step toward success.
The trick to a risk minimization mindset is to not only increase your risk tolerance, but to also only pursue what makes you happy — that is more sustainable. If it is something you want to stick with because you love it, then you’ve already enhanced your earning potential.
Bezos advises young people to choose careers they’re passionate about. He believes this is one of the secrets to success. “Do what you’re very passionate about and don’t try to chase what is the hot passion of the day,” he said during a news interview.
During a speech Bezos gave at The Museum of Flight’s Apollo exhibit, he highlighted the importance of working hard and making good life choices.
“We all have adversity in our lives,” said Bezos. “That’s good because it teaches us to get back up. You fall down, and you get back up.”
“You get certain gifts in life, and you want to take advantage of those,” Bezos continued. “My advice on adversity and success [is] to be proud not of your gifts, but of your hard work and your choices.”
According to Bezos, it’s important to make the most of your gifts, and he especially advises young people to use their talents to make a difference. This can only happen, he said, through hard work.
“[For example], you might be really good at math; it might be easy for you. That’s a kind of gift,” said Bezos. “But practicing that math and taking it to the next step, that could be challenging and hard, and take a lot of sweat.
“You can’t really be proud of your gifts because they were given to you. You can be grateful for them and thankful for them, but your choices [matter]. You choose to work hard. You choose to do hard things. Those are choices you can be proud of.”
If you run your own business, it may be tempting to lean into the keeping-up-with-the-Joneses tendency of fixating on outdoing competitors. However, Bezos champions a relentless focus on your customer base instead. Amazon’s growth can largely be attributed to its ability to anticipate and meet customer needs efficiently.
For the millennial aiming to build wealth, replace the word “customer” with “value.” Whether in business or personal endeavors, concentrate on providing immense value, be it to employers, clients or the market at large. When you consistently deliver value, financial growth follows.
The tech landscape is not only constantly evolving, but business is booming. Bezos’ ability to pivot and adapt to market changes has been crucial.
From being an online bookstore to becoming a global e-commerce and cloud computing giant, Amazon’s journey is a testament to adaptability. This is a tactic anyone who is looking to become rich should consider modeling.
The world is changing rapidly for millennials, who are a generation who seem to be always waiting for the other financial shoe to drop. However, you can still prepare for the worst and plan for all the best possibilities. This is where flexibility, continual learning and staying updated are necessities in pursuing wealth.
Bezos says it’s crucial to invest in yourself. While he was fortunate to have access to resources, he continually invested in his learning, skills, and personal growth.
Behind Amazon’s success is not just Bezos but a team of dedicated individuals sharing his vision. Recognizing, nurturing, networking with and retaining talent is integral to the company’s growth.
Surrounding yourself with motivated, skilled, and positive individuals can exponentially increase your chances of success. As the adage goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
The bottom line is that Bezos’ journey from a startup in a garage to leading one of the most influential companies in the world is filled with lessons hungry millennials should heed. While his advice can resonate with anyone, this generation is in a unique position to harness these insights after growing up with a mixture of analog and tech.
In a world filled with trendy advice from financial influencers, the principles of vision, value, adaptability and humility remain timeless.
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