A million dollars doesn’t go as far as it used to but it’s still a nice chunk of change. I’m always fascinated by media articles and blogs that feature wunderkind who achieve seemingly unreachable financial goals by a very young age. So I pulled a few pieces to share with you in the hope that something may resonate and help you to exit the rat race sooner rather than later.

In The 10 Most Common Millionaire Habits, Jessica Kane writing for the Financial independence Hub says most of the people who have achieved the status of millionaires engage in daily rituals that help them meet their goals. Some of her suggestions are: be an early bird; read about current events; learn something new every day, and sleep less than 8 hours each night.

Grant Sabatier, the founder of The Millennial Millionaire went from $2.26 to $1 million in 5 years, reaching financial independence at age 30. He also shares A Few Not-So-Easy Steps.  Several of my favourites are:

• Get paid what you are worth. Negotiate a raise or look for a higher paid career track.
•  Save at least 20% of your after tax pay cheque before spending anything.
• Find a side hustle and invest the profit.

Kyle from Young and Thrifty offers 6 Non-Traditional Steps to Becoming a Canadian Millionaire In Today’s Market that will certainly raise some eyebrows. He says there are many paths to prosperity and only some of them lead through university. One alternative is to take shop or industrial arts so you can start your education in the trades while you are still in high school. Then you can start making money right away when you graduate. Also, don’t be afraid to move where the jobs are.

Millennial Revolution is a FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) site started by two computer engineers/children’s authors, FIRECracker & Wanderer, who retired at 31 to travel the world with a seven figure portfolio.

They primarily attribute their ability to save and invest scads of money to renting instead of buying in the pricey Toronto housing market. But they have also published a detailed and highly entertaining series on their blog about “how they got there.”

How We Got Here, Part 1: God, We Were Spendy Back Then
How We Got Here, Part 2: PANIC
How We Got Here, Part 3: After the Crash
How We Got Here, Part 4: The Bearded One
How We Got Here, Epilogue: The Real Cost of Traveling the World

And finally, Alexis Assadi is an entrepreneur and he believes that getting rich in Canada is easier than you think. In fact he has written about it extensively in his book Rich At 26 . He says rather than having to work for money, financial independence occurs when the revenue from your business and investment holdings surpasses your cost of living. He recommends that readers:

• Invest in income producing assets.
• Take advantage of TFSAs.
• Contribute to RRSPs,
• Start a business.
• Learn about and use tax incentives.

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Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere?” Share the information on http://wp.me/P1YR2T-JR and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.

Written by Sheryl Smolkin
	Sheryl Smolkin LLB., LLM is a retired pension lawyer and President of Sheryl Smolkin & Associates Ltd. For over a decade, she has enjoyed a successful encore career as a freelance writer specializing in retirement, employee benefits and workplace issues. Sheryl and her husband Joel are empty-nesters, residing in Toronto with their cockapoo Rufus.

By Sheryl Smolkin

RRSP season is almost over for another year so remember to make your Saskatchewan Pension Plan contribution by Monday, March 3, 2014 in order to get a tax deduction on your 2013 income tax return.  But the need to spend carefully and save regularly is an important part of everyday living.

On retirehappy.ca, Jim Yih reports that 7 Causes of Financial Stress including high debt levels, low savings rates and increasingly complex financial markets are keeping many people up at night.

In The Insanity of “RRSP Season” Young and Thrifty blogger Kyle says anyone with a basic handle on grade 9 math ought to know that making periodic contributions to a registered plan (either a TFSA or an RRSP) is a better choice than procrastinating until the last minute and then trying to scratch together the money to fit in under an arbitrary deadline.

Blogger Krystal Yee on givemebackmyfivebucks.com says she will have to dip into her emergency fund and suspend TFSA and RRSP payments for some time because she was recently laid off. But 44 comments from her fans leave no doubt that she will land another great gig before long.

The pros and cons of withdrawing RRSP contributions are explored once again by Tom Drake on the Canadian Finance Blog. While the lost opportunity cost of taking out money and losing RRSP room are important, he acknowledges that in some emergencies RRSP withdrawals may be unavoidable. The good news is that if you need money because you lost your job, you will pay taxes on the money at a lower rate.

Many of you may be aiming for early retirement as early as age 55. However Dave Dineen on Brighter Life reminds readers that some sources of retirement income don’t kick in for another five years or more so you need to have a plan to bridge the gap or early retirement could be a financial nightmare.

And on Boomer & Echo Robb Engen identifies 6 Fees Worth Paying and notes that trying to avoid fees can sometimes be false economy. For example, the return on investment if you buy a Costco card, use an annual fee credit card or join the CAA can easily exceed the initial amount you have to pay.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere. Share the information with us on http://wp.me/P1YR2T-JR and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.