Financial Pros Provide a Beginner's Guide to Building Wealth in 10 Years

When most people hear about building wealth, their thoughts often turn to billionaires, mansions or viral success stories.

A select few imagine themselves beating the market and chasing risky investments, while others think that living like a monk for 10 or so years is the right approach.

In reality, building wealth is none of these things. At its core, building wealth means increasing your net worth (your assets minus your debts) over time and doing it in a way that gives you freedom, stability and options.

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Financial prosperity is not something someone stumbles upon on a lucky day. Instead, it's a consistent exercise of developing habits, using smart tools and making decisions that push you in the right direction.

The Kiplinger Building Wealth program handpicks financial advisers and business owners from around the world to share retirement, estate planning and tax strategies to preserve and grow your wealth. These experts, who never pay for inclusion on the site, include professional wealth managers, fiduciary financial planners, CPAs and lawyers. Most of them have certifications including CFP®, ChFC®, IAR, AIF®, CDFA® and more, and their stellar records can be checked through the SEC or FINRA.

And here's the good news: If you've got 10 years, you've got time.

Today, I'm here to help you create a blueprint for achieving real financial progress in the decade to come. For deeper insight, I've also consulted with a few industry experts, so buckle up and let's get you started on the path to building wealth.

Set a clear financial baseline and direction

Before you can build wealth, you need to know where you're starting from.

Start by answering these five questions:

• How much do I earn each month (after taxes)?
• What are my expenses (fixed and variable)?
• Do I have any high-interest debt?
• What do I currently have saved, and where is it?
• What's my credit score?

A clear view of these financial aspects helps you identify strengths and weak spots in your financial strategy.

"Most people keep disorganized records and have no real sense of their income, expenses or liabilities," says Ian Gardner, the director of Sales and Business Development at Sigma Tax Pro.

"What I've learned after working with countless tax professionals over the years is this: Understanding your financial baseline is the first step to building wealth."

Get comfortable with budgeting

Once you know where you stand, it's time to build the plan for where you want to go. Here is where a well-designed budget comes in.

Oftentimes, we associate budgeting with restricting spending, but you can change the meaning. Don't look at it as cutting expenses, but as giving your money direction.

You can establish whatever budgeting rules work for your needs, but for beginners, I recommend two easy-to-follow rules:

1. The 50/30/20 rule. This is a simple yet effective way to break down your after-tax income:

• 50% for needs (housing, groceries, bills)
• 30% for wants (dining out, entertainment, travel)
• 20% for savings and debt repayment

It's not a rigid formula, which makes it a great starting point. Once you get into the habit, you can tweak your ratios to match your goals, like shifting more into savings as your income grows or wants decrease.

2. The "pay yourself first" rule. This rule teaches you to treat savings and investments as non-negotiable bills. Automate them if you have to.

"Too many people wait to save 'what's left over,'" says Gary Hemming, Owner & Finance Director at ABC Finance, "and there's rarely anything left.

"Experience has taught me that those who consistently grow their wealth aren't necessarily the highest earners. The ones who pay themselves first are. It's a simple habit, but it builds financial discipline and long-term security."

Savings and investments are some of the most powerful wealth-building tools you have. And yet, we often treat them as optional.

For instance, even if about 60% of Americans have some retirement savings, only 30% are confident they've managed to save enough, according to Gallup.

For automation, I strongly recommend ditching any manual methods you're using to track your cash flow. Budgeting apps like YNAB (You Need a Budget) and Empower make it easy to link your accounts, track spending and visualize where your money's really going.

Break the debt cycle

Before you can grow your wealth, you have to identify and stop the financial bleeding, and high-interest debt is often the biggest wound.

Credit cards are the usual culprits here, with average APRs hovering around 20% to 25%, which far outpace what most investments could earn.

If you carry a $5,000 balance at 24% interest and make only minimum payments, you could end up paying more than $7,000 in interest and still owe money years later.

According to an Experian study, Americans carry an average of $6,730 in credit card debt, and more than 40% of cardholders carry a balance month to month. That kind of debt doesn't just hold you back — it quietly erodes your future wealth.

Jason Pack, chief revenue officer at Freedom Debt Relief, puts it well when he says, "High-interest debt seeps into your entire life. We often see clients who delay major life milestones, like buying a home or starting a family, because debt is dictating their decisions.

"Compounding interest and minimum payments can turn a manageable balance into an out-of-control financial spiral before you even know it."

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In short, the best thing you can do to start building wealth is to focus on paying off your debt as fast as possible. If you don't know how, consider consulting with a fiduciary financial adviser.

Earn more, learn more: Your wealth grows as you do

If you're serious about building wealth in 10 years, you can't rely solely on managing spending and reducing debt. These are essential first steps, but you also need to adopt a growth mindset when it comes to income and financial literacy.

This is a lesson you can learn from any successful individual, regardless of their field of interest and goals. Michael Melen, co-founder of SmartSites, emphasizes the importance of having a growth mindset: "This has been one of the most important drivers of success for us. Like most beginners, we didn't have all the answers, but our commitment to learning, improving and staying adaptable helped us move forward. A growth mindset creates momentum."

The same goes for your wealth-building journey. Your commitment to expanding your income capacity and knowledge will be your driver.

Whether you're working a traditional 9-to-5 job, freelancing or building a business, always look for opportunities to increase your earning potential.

That might mean:

• Asking for a raise based on performance and market value
• Learning high-value, in-demand skills (like coding, digital marketing or data analysis)
• Starting a profitable side hustle or freelance gig
• Turning a hobby into a small business

Even modest income boosts, such as an extra $300 to 500 a month, can fast-track savings, debt payoff and investing when used wisely.

Financial literacy is a force multiplier

The difference between building wealth with the extra income you earn and blowing it on things that lose value the moment you take them off the shelf lies in knowing how to grow your money.

"Most people don't realize how limited their financial literacy is until it starts costing them," Shawn Plummer, CEO of The Annuity Expert, notes. "I've seen smart, capable individuals miss out on thousands simply because they didn't understand basic financial tools.

"But once they become aware, there's often a mindset shift. They get curious, take control, and that's when real progress begins. In my view, financial literacy empowers anyone at any age."

Learn how compound interest works. Understand risk and reward in investing. Get clear on taxes and how to legally minimize them. The more you learn, the more confident (and profitable) your choices become.

You don't have to go back to school for this, but you should consider looking into reliable courses, certifications and talking to personal finance experts. Sure, one hour with a financial consultant is more expensive than listening to respected podcasts, but these are high-return investments in yourself.

The $500 you spend today may give you the knowledge and confidence to earn $5,000 more next year.

At the end of the day, wealth-building isn't just about what you do with your money — it's about who you become in the process.

Assess your current situation. Cut off debt. Level up your income. Level up your knowledge. And watch how quickly your financial future transforms.

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