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In the years that I’ve been asked to give people tips on how to be rich and how to control their money, the first two things that I always say are:

1. Always ignore ‘get rich quick schemes’. They will always make you poor.
2. The way to get rich without too much effort is to take it slowly, get a bit of knowledge and get some regular money-saving and money-making habits.

In fact, that’s what being a true ‘Money Magpie’ is all about. You just need to put a little thought into it, change habits of spending on anything to spending below your means and then invest what’s left over (however small) every month. Over time you’ll be surprised how your little investments will grow.

My three rules for getting rich long-term are:

3. Spend less
4. Save more
5. Invest for the long-term

That’s pretty much it! So why do so many people try to make it so complicated? Well, because it’s in the interests of financial companies to blind you with science so that you take out financial products with them that make money for them but not for you.

The real secret to becoming rich in the long-term is much simpler - and is within your control.

It’s all about balance. We all know that we should be spending less - that’s a given although it’s not so easy when you’ve been used to splashing your cash for years. It’s certainly true that you’ll never get rich if you keep wasting your money on stuff that you don’t even want, let alone need. So it’s always helpful to get into the habit of thinking about what you’re spending on, why you’re spending it and asking yourself whether you could get it cheaper, or even free, elsewhere.

It’s also about making more cash. Even if you have a full-time job there are always ways of making extra money, often without much effort on your part. For example:

• Use your space. Rent out your spare room, rent out your driveway or garage, even rent out your garden if you’re in a city with few allotments.
• Use the computer. There are loads of ways of making money online now. There are online surveys that pay between 50p and £50 per survey. There are search engines that will pay you to surf the net and you can even get paid to read emails.
• Use your hobbies. Can you bake? Make extra cakes, biscuits and sweets every now and then and sell them at work or at the local car-boot sale.

There are many, many new ways of saving your hard-earned cash, too, and not letting shops and other businesses over-charge you. It’s not hard, thanks to the internet, and with just a few different ways of shopping you can find yourself with a lot more money in your wallet at the end of each week.

Money Magpie - the website that gives you a richer life