How Not To Be Broke Forever

How Not to Stay Broke Forever: A Wake-Up Call for Anyone Tired of Struggling

There comes a point when you get sick of it.
Sick of watching your paycheck vanish two days after payday.
Sick of saying, “next month will be different.”

Sick of feeling like you’re working hard, but never actually moving forward.

Suppose that’s where you are good, because that moment of frustration is where real change begins.

1. Start by Facing the Truth

Most people stay broke because they don’t look at the numbers.
They avoid their bank app, skip budgeting, and live in a fog of “I think I’m fine.”
But the truth is: you can’t fix what you won’t face.

Open the app. Look at the damage. It might sting — but that’s the first step toward control.

Awareness hurts at first, but it’s the pain that leads to freedom.

2. Decide You’re Done Being Average

Being broke isn’t always about laziness; it’s about patterns —same spending habits.

The same “I’ll save later.” The same excuses.
At some point, you have to say: enough.

Decide that your future will not look like your past.
The moment you make that decision —genuinely and profoundly —everything changes.

3. Create Space Between What You Earn and What You Spend

Wealth isn’t built from big leaps; it’s built in small gaps.
That $50 you save today might not seem like much, but it’s the first brick in your financial foundation.
You don’t have to be rich to save. You have to be disciplined.

My father always encouraged saving. I still have the same bank account he took me to open when I was eleven. At eighteen, I bought a six-month-old car outright, and at twenty, I put a 25% deposit down on my first house. Every newspaper, bottle of milk I delivered, every shelf I restocked, every time I walked instead of catching the bus, contributed to my future.

4. Build Your Emergency Cushion

Life will punch you in the face: flat tyres, broken phones, medical bills, and layoffs.
If you have savings, those moments sting.
If you don’t, they destroy you.

Start small. $500. Then $1,000. Then, a few months’ worth of peace of mind.
That’s not just money, that’s power.

5. Kill Debt Before It Kills You

Debt is a thief. It steals your paycheck, your energy, and your dreams.


Every interest payment is a reminder that your past decisions are still charging you rent.

Make it your mission to be free. You’ll breathe easier, sleep more deeply, and walk taller when you don’t owe anyone a penny.

My view is that debt interest is modern-day slavery.

6. Learn How Money Works

Most people were never taught how to handle money; that’s not your fault.
But staying ignorant is a choice.


Read books, watch videos, and listen to podcasts to deepen your understanding of investing, budgeting, and compound growth. Once you grasp the fundamentals, you can begin to play to win. Before you start, be sure to read the blogs on this site; they are designed to stimulate your thinking and help you understand how everything is connected.

7. Stop Trading All Your Time for Money

If your income stops the moment you stop working, you’re stuck.
Start building something that grows while you sleep: investments, side hustles, digital products, or businesses.
Your goal isn’t just to make money, it’s to buy back your time.

8. Upgrade Your Skills and Value

The world pays for value, not effort.
If you want to earn more, become more valuable.
Learn skills that make you irreplaceable: communication, leadership, creativity, tech, and sales.
Every new skill is a door to higher income and greater freedom.

Two of my friends are builders, both very skilled. One is wealthy, the other earns a good wage. Why? Reread point seven: one sells his time; the other buys other people's time, and resells their value-based skills.

9. Don’t Let Lifestyle Creep Rob You

When you start earning more, the temptation hits: a better car, a bigger apartment, nicer clothes.
But every time you give in, you push freedom further away.
Keep your lifestyle simple while your wealth grows quietly behind the scenes.
That’s how the smart ones get rich while everyone else looks rich.

10. Think Long-Term

The broke think in days. The wealthy think in decades.
Every penny you save, every skill you learn, every wise choice you make, they all add up.


Wealth isn’t built in a week; it’s built brick by brick, year by year.

And one day, you’ll look back and realise: you didn’t just escape being broke, you built a life of abundance, freedom, and peace.

Final Thought

You don’t have to be born rich, lucky, or gifted to change your financial story.
You have to decide that you’re done living on the edge and start taking small, consistent steps toward control.

My wealthy friends all have skills that generate income and, in some cases, capital. People pay for your skills, and if you lose your money and your home. The skills you have will help you regain your wealth.

Money doesn’t respect wishes.
It respects discipline.

Start today and never look back.

To gain contrast, see the blog How To Stay Broke Forever.