Ex-Banker Explains: How To Become a Millionaire on a 9-5 Salary

Cult Insight

In this video, I show you how to use your 9-to-5 job to build real wealth and gain financial freedom.  DISCLAIMERS & DISCLOSURES  This content is for educational and entertainment purposes only. I does not provide tax or investment advice. The information is being presented without consideration of the investment objectives, risk tolerance, or financial circumstances of any specific investor and might not be suitable for all investors. Past performance is not indicative of future results. All investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.   Thank you for your support!  *T&C's apply

Transcript

00:00If you think your nine-to-five is stopping you from getting rich, I'm going to completely

00:04flip that idea on its head because the truth is your salary might be the most powerful wealth

00:10building tool you'll ever have if you use it the right way. I'm Nisha and if it wasn't for

00:16my nine-to-five in banking, I might not be where I am today with a six-figure stock portfolio and

00:20a financial education business. But it wasn't an overnight thing. There were a specific set

00:25of steps that I took and that's what I'm going to share with you in this video. Starting with

00:28step one, getting the absolute most out of your current job. Here's what most people

00:33don't realize. Let's say you live in the UK and you started your job in 2020 on a salary

00:39of 40,000. You've been doing well, maybe even taking on more responsibility, but you haven't

00:44had a pay rise since then. So I just checked the Bank of England's inflation calculator

00:49and your 40,000 from 2020 would need to be around 51,109 today just to have the same spending

00:58power. And this isn't just a UK thing. It's a similar story all over the world. This US

01:03inflation calculator shows that a 20,000 salary in January 2020 would need to have risen to

01:09nearly 25,000 to have the same buying power today. So if your salary hasn't budged in the

01:14last five years, you've effectively taken a pay cut. Which means if you're trying to build

01:19wealth from your nine to five, you can't just earn a set amount of money year on year. You have

01:24to protect it from inflation too. There are a few ways you can do just that and I'll explore

01:29them in this video. But one of the most consistent and effective ways, probably the easiest way as

01:35well as by negotiating a pay rise. Now, one of the mistakes a lot of people make here is that

01:39they use rising house prices and the cost of living as a reason that they deserve a raise.

01:44While I do think in a perfect world, employers would increase workers' pay automatically, at least

01:48to keep up with inflation, at least when all of our living costs are going to go up, it's just the

01:52right thing to do. The reality is very different. Your boss probably doesn't care because their

01:57priority is protecting their business and making a profit. And so if you want to get a pay rise,

02:02you need to emphasize the benefits that you bring to the company. Start with keeping a running list

02:07of your wins, projects that you've completed, revenue that you've generated, problems that you've

02:12solved. When I worked in banking, I had a specific folder in my emails where I also saved any positive

02:17feedback from other teams. Sounds simple, but makes a huge difference because six months later,

02:21when your review time came around, I wasn't just sitting there trying to remember what I'd done.

02:25That way, you've got actual data to back up your requests, not just, oh, I've been working really

02:30hard. Next, find out how much people are earning in similar roles at other companies with tools like

02:35Glassdoor, Indeed, LinkedIn. If you find that you're underpaid, that gives you even more leverage in a

02:41negotiation. But whatever you do, don't give your boss an ultimatum unless you're genuinely ready to see

02:47it through and to leave. Threatening to quit if they don't give you a raise rarely ends well. And

02:52if you say it but don't follow through, you've just torpedoed any credibility you had. So if you're

02:57going to play that card, you need to be prepared to actually walk out the door. Asking for a raise

03:01is scary, I know, but it's worth it and you can do it. Even a 5% to 10% increase can dramatically

03:07speed up your wealth building because as I'll explain later, every pound, dollar, euro you get out of

03:13your 95 today makes it so much easier to get rich in the future. It's more to invest, more to compound,

03:19more to buy back your freedom later. But before you negotiate your pay and get comfortable with

03:23your current job, there's something else you need to know. And it's something that could cost you

03:28thousands over the course of your career. And that leads me to step two, switch for a better salary.

03:33Not many people like to hear this, but you might think that loyalty pays. But in reality,

03:37people who switch jobs tend to have a much higher wage growth than people who stay in the same

03:43position. And this is something that researchers have confirmed again and again. The Atlantis Federal

03:49Reserve's wage growth tracker compares the percentage wage growth of job switchers versus job stayers and

03:56shows that in almost all months since 1998, people who switch jobs have a higher wage growth than people

04:02who stay in the same position. As this Nasdaq article explains, the only significant exceptions have

04:08been in the wake of recessions, which tend to create a short term preference for stability. And what's

04:13really interesting is that job switchers or wage growth can compound over time. Nasdaq explains a worker

04:19who changes jobs and receives a 5% raise has increased their earning power. By changing jobs later on,

04:26they might receive another 5% raise and another after that, ending up 15.7% ahead of where they start

04:32each raise. Each raise compounds the value of the last one. In this way, changing jobs can increase

04:38a worker's lifetime income considerably. And if you still don't believe this, I have a specific video

04:43where I share exactly what I made year by year across my nine years in banking. I talk about where

04:49the biggest pay jumps were and how switching jobs was one of the best decisions I could have made over

04:54my career. All of that is in this video here. So let's imagine you switch jobs for a better salary

04:58straight away. That'll make it a little bit easier to get rich from your 9 to 5. But you can

05:02make even more progress and get rich faster by thinking about more than just your salary.

05:07There are so many other things that you can negotiate. Take your pension, for example.

05:11Many employers will match your own pension contributions up to a certain point. Some

05:15will go even further and contribute 7, 8, 10% of your salary or even more, even if your own

05:21contributions are lower than this. This can make a huge difference to your ability to build wealth for

05:26the future. So if you're going for a job interview, it's a really good idea to ask about the workplace

05:31pension and take this into account before accepting the job. You might also want to ask

05:35about healthcare. This is particularly important in the US, but even in the UK and other parts of

05:40the world, there are plenty of employers who offer private healthcare packages that can not only improve

05:46your health, but also save you money over the course of your career. Another wealth building tool

05:51to ask about during the interview process is stock options, which is when your employer gives you the

05:55chance to buy shares in the company, often at a discounted price. If the business performs well,

06:01those shares can grow significantly in value over time, turning part of your compensation into a

06:06pretty big investment. Some companies even offer profit sharing schemes where a percentage of the

06:11company's profits are distributed among employees each year as well. So just don't underestimate how

06:16valuable all of these can be. These perks can quietly add tens of thousands to your long-term benefits

06:22and your long-term wealth. But before you take the leap and accept an exciting new job with an

06:27amazing salary, there is something else you need to think about. And I know what I'm about to say

06:32might sound like a massive contradiction, but in some cases, these benefits can be more of a curse

06:39than a blessing. And that leads me to step three, escape the golden handcuffs. We all know how easy it is

06:45to become trapped in a low-paying job and feel like it's just difficult to get out. But not many people

06:51realize until it's too late, that it's also possible to become trapped in a high-paying job

06:56as well. There's even a name for it. It's called the golden handcuffs. It's when a job pays you so

07:01well or gives you so many perks that it becomes really hard to leave, even if you hate it. Maybe

07:06you've got a six-figure salary, a generous annual bonus, private healthcare, or a final salary pension.

07:13At first, taking this kind of job feels amazing. You've made it. It's everything you wanted. But over time,

07:20the comfort you get from the higher income can turn into immense pressure. What often happens is that

07:26as your income rises, the expectations rise too. You start working longer hours, taking on more

07:31responsibility, telling yourself it's worth it because of the money. But before you know it,

07:36you could end up stuck in a job that you absolutely hate and you're scared to leave because of the

07:40potential knock on your financial security or the lifestyle that you've built. It's a trap that so

07:46many high achievers fall into. And it's not just because of the money itself. It's a lifestyle

07:51that comes with it. You upgrade everything around you from your home, your car, your holidays, your

07:55social circle, everything changes. And soon your whole identity is built around maintaining that

08:02level of success. So even if you're miserable, the idea of quitting just feels impossible. And in fact,

08:08an interview with the BBC, One Canary Wolf Banker said,

08:10I got sucked into the prestige and that it made me sound impressive to others. And I'd become so

08:16used to the type of numbers people made in banking being normal that I assumed that was just how much

08:21you needed to be financially okay. It sounds familiar. That's the bad news. The good news is that there

08:27are ways to loosen the golden handcuffs grip because unlike the trap of low paid work, high paid work

08:32gives you everything you need to build financial independence. So here are three steps to protect

08:37yourself if you find yourself in this position. First, pay yourself first. Don't make the mistake

08:42of saving what's left after spending. Instead, spend what's left after saving. Automate your savings and

08:48investments so that a set percentage of every paycheck is sensibly tucked away before you even

08:53think about touching it. Second, avoid lifestyle inflation. It can be tempting to upgrade almost

08:58everything you have from your car to your holidays with every single pay rise. And this is exactly what

09:04keeps you trapped. When your income goes up, instead, try to keep your spending roughly the same

09:08and then just save and invest most of the difference. You don't have to do this forever.

09:12It's just until you've bought enough of a buffer to be able to leave your job if you are seriously

09:17unhappy. Third, build an exit plan. Even if you love your job right now, sell aside a safety net.

09:22That could be an emergency fund, investments that generate passive income, or a small side project that

09:27can grow into something bigger later. Because true wealth isn't about having the biggest paycheck.

09:33It is about having options. And that's exactly what the next section is about.

09:38Section four, starting your own business on the side. Millions of people around the world are

09:43desperate to quit their jobs and do their own thing. And according to one US survey, nearly 8 in 10

09:48employees said they wanted to start their own business. 13% of Gen Z and 11% of millennials plan to

09:55leave their jobs within 12 months. A UK-based survey found similar results with more than 70%

10:01of 18 to 24-year-olds and 56% of 35 to 44-year-olds wanting to become entrepreneurs.

10:08If this sounds familiar, but you can't afford to go all in on your business idea,

10:12why not treat your 9 to 5 as a help, not as a hindrance? And this is exactly what I did,

10:18because starting your own business is risky. You might need to put in a lot of money into it to

10:22get things off the ground. But by keeping your day job and then building your business on the side,

10:26you can fund it without the stress and massively also reduce the risk. The biggest obstacle usually

10:33isn't money, it's actually time. Because it's hard to make progress on your business if you're

10:38constantly coming home from work, burnt out from your day job. So how do you get around this? In

10:43some cases, it can make sense to work in a reasonably well-paid but low effort 9 to 5. That doesn't leave

10:49you exhausted at the end of the day to do your own thing. You might want to look at, for instance,

10:52something that you're already really good at, for example. Or maybe it's a work from home role that

10:57won't require a lot of meetings or travel, giving you more time to work on something in the mornings,

11:02in your lunchtimes, in the evenings, or between meetings. And so the goal here isn't to escape

11:07your 9 to 5 overnight, it's to give yourself the time and breathing space to focus on yourself.

11:12After years of helping your employer or clients get rich, it's time to take that same energy and do it

11:17for yourself without all the risk that comes from quitting stable employment. To actually build wealth,

11:22there's one more step that you need to take. And to be completely honest, it is absolutely essential

11:27if you want to reach financial freedom. Because otherwise, you'll constantly be on the hamster

11:31wheel working harder and harder to make an income and pay your bills. But before I get into that,

11:35every entrepreneur knows the holidays are make or break season. Product drops, gift bundles,

11:41last minute launches, it's exciting and it's a bit chaotic. That's why so many people, myself included,

11:47turn to Shopify, today's sponsor, to keep things running smoothly. Shopify powers 10% of all US

11:54e-commerce and millions of businesses worldwide. And it's the best place to start and grow your

11:59business, whether you're selling locally or globally. Instead of juggling multiple platforms

12:03for payment, shipping, design, and marketing, Shopify lets you handle everything in one place.

12:08It basically operates as a back office, replacing the need for full staff to oversee your operations so

12:14that you can stay focused on the things that matter. I launched my very first online business

12:19on Shopify and went from idea to live store in minutes. By day one, I had a very professional

12:24shop ready to take payments and run itself with 24-7 support backing me up. So whether you're just

12:30wanting to test an idea out or you're getting serious about launching your own brand, it's never

12:34been easier to get started on Shopify.com forward slash Nisha. Section five, investing. No matter how much

12:42you earn from your job, your side business or anywhere else, you need to find a way to protect

12:47and grow those earnings because saving alone won't make you rich. And once again, inflation is to

12:53blame because not only will it eat away at the spending power of your income, it'll also eat away

12:58at your savings too, even if you're getting the top savings rate on the market right now. Let's say

13:04you've got 10,000 sitting in a savings account earning 3% interest. If inflation is at 5%, your money

13:10is actually shrinking by 2% a year on spending power. It feels safe, but over time, you're slowly

13:16getting poorer. Now, this is where the stock market comes in. If you've never invested before,

13:21the thought of trading your hard-earned cash for stocks might seem terrifying. And it's true that

13:26stock market returns can be very, very unpredictable from one year to the next. Short-term investors often

13:32lose money, especially if they don't have an emergency fund. They invest more than they could afford

13:36and they panic sell at the first sign of uncertainty. But the truth is that most dips tend to recover

13:42quite quickly. For example, in 2008, the S&P 500 index crashed by over 36%, but it bounced back with a

13:5022.6% gain in 2009, just a year later. A decade later, in 2018, it dipped again by 6.02%, only to surge

13:58upwards by 28% in 2019, followed by 16% in 2020 and 20% in 2021. Despite these short-term fluctuations,

14:09over the last 10 years, the average annual return on the US stock market has been 11%. Over the last 20

14:16years, it's been 8.87%. And over the last 30 years, it's been 9.3%. And so if you want to get rich from

14:23your 9 to 5, it really pays to be a part of this. If you invested just 300 a month and earned an

14:29average annual return of 10%, you'd have around 623,787 after 30 years. Increase your monthly

14:37investment to 500 a month and you'd have over a million. So now you can see how your 9 to 5 can

14:42lead to real wealth over time. Have a play around with investment calculator like the one that I've

14:47got on the screen. And imagine if you increased your monthly investments each time you got a pay rise

14:52or a new job. Invest $850 a month and you'll be a millionaire within 25 years, despite only

14:57contributing $255,000 yourself. If you're not sure where to start, one of the simplest options is an

15:03index fund. It's basically a basket of hundreds of even thousands of companies bundled into one

15:08investment. It's low cost, well diversified and designed to track the market rather than beat it,

15:14which ironically is what helps it outperform most active investors. And once you've opened an

15:18investment account and made your first investment, automate your monthly investments. Have a portion

15:23of your paycheck go straight to your investment account every month, just like you would your

15:26savings. Because the less you think about your investments, the more time you have to focus on

15:30your 9 to 5 or business and the easier it will be to get rich. So now you've learned how to use your

15:359 to 5 to build real wealth from negotiating pay rises to starting a business and investing what you

15:41earn. But even if you follow all of these tips, you could actually end up losing money if you invest

15:46the wrong way. To make sure that doesn't happen, you can watch this video right here where I explain

15:50how to invest as a beginner. It walks you through exactly where to start, how to invest and what you

15:56need to do if it all goes wrong. Thank you so much for watching. Don't forget to subscribe if you

16:00haven't already and I'll see you in that video.

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