How To Make a Million Dollars in 7 Steps

Host of Middle Class Money Podcast

Making a million dollars is no easy task. To be honest, it’s one that shouldn’t even be thought about unless you are okay with being more disciplined than a navy seal for at least three years. Flirting with the idea will get you nowhere, starting the idea will get you frustrated, and going half-ass will just leave you more frustrated than when you started.

So, if you are ready to commit to discipline, laser focus, and more ups and downs than a roller coaster at Disney World, then let’s get it.

1. Pick a Niche

This is by far the most important of the entire process on how to make a million dollars. This niche must meet some crucial criteria.

Let’s go over some of these requirements:

It must have no cap for income.
It has to be something that can be scaled at a high level.
You must be an expert in this field (or willing to become one).

I am personally writing this under the assumption that you will be doing this full time or be able to dedicate 30+ hours a week to this hustle.

Here are some ideas:

Private Label Products on Amazon
Dropshipping on Shopify
Affiliate Marketing
High-End Consulting
Flipping Homes
Sell your skills on Fiverr
Sell an online course

There are tons of avenues to making a million dollars, but it has to be one that can be scaled at an enormous level. We must think big—bigger than you ever thought. Think so big that people would make fun of you if you told them how big you wanted to be. Every great entrepreneur started with these thoughts.

Remember, someone once had the idea to bottle water and sell it. Can you imagine the reaction when they first told someone?

2. Commit

Very few, if any, millionaires ever did so without a strategic time commitment and strategy. The best way to do this is to look at your schedule and see where you can make up some hours. You will need to work on this idea at least 5 days a week.

To give you an idea, my hours are 4:30 am to 7 am every morning before my 3 and 5-year-old wake-up. Does it suck some mornings? You bet. But to me, it’s worth every sacrifice.

Making a million dollars is a lofty goal, and if you think I will lie to you and say you can do it without working harder than you ever had, you are reading the wrong article.

3. Become an Expert

Before you jump right in, let me give you a piece of advice. This is one of the places I failed miserably when I first started. Learn and then learn some more. But isn’t it okay to learn as you go? You bet!

The thing is, you must have more knowledge than the average joe. Passion, unfortunately, does not mean expertise. People can smell a fake from a mile away, and your expertise will be no different.

The best way to become an expert is to find a mentor who has been successful in your niche. I am a huge believer in investing in yourself and so, don’t be afraid to attend paid conferences, seminars, or even paying for a mastermind.

Knowledge truly is power and when you are trying to make a million dollars, you need all the power you can get.

4. Launch

Spreading your wings is the scariest part.

What if I fail? What if my friends make fun of me? What if…?

Self-confidence and strategy are the keys here. Talk to any entrepreneur who has made a million dollars—there is no one out there who can say that they didn’t have times where they wanted to quit.

There were times when they cried, became frustrated, wanted to wave the white flag. Bet they didn’t because they believed in themselves and had a strategy. You must TRUST THE PROCESS.

Here are some 7 solid launch strategies to give yourself confidence and a definite boost in sales—and accelerate your path to a million dollars.

Obtain 100 reviews before you ever launch.
Obtain 5 video testimonials that speak to you or your product.
Have 3 influencers commit to sharing your product or service on launch day.
Capture every email address you can and email them bi-monthly.
Give away a set amount of products/services in return for social media shares.
Run a paid advertising campaign for your launch- (FB and Google are the best bang for your buck).
Once you complete step 6, start back at step 1 and repeat.

5. The Dream Customer

From my experience, this is where most people hang their hats up. We were just on top of the world and more excited than a kid on Christmas Eve. We have launched, worked for months, and we finally put our product/service out to the world only to hear crickets.

This is where we separate the “boys from men”—as they would say. Most likely you have a good product/service, but it’s not reaching your dream customer. Let me explain.

Imagine you are selling makeup. It’s the prettiest make-up anyone has ever set their sights on. It’s priced right, its packaging is stellar, and its logo is the bee knees.

You launch and you even follow the launch steps. but you fail to identify your dream customer aka “who buys makeup.” So, instead of 18 -35-year-old women seeing your product, it is scattered with demographics that have no interest in makeup. This results in you thinking your product is flawed and having to go back to square 1 when really, you have a marketing issue, not a product issue.

Once you have reviews and testimonials, it is imperative that you now target your product/service to what many would call “your dream customer.”

Here are some ways you can get in front of your dream customer:

Learn Pinterest by taking Pinterest Academy.
Take Twitter flight school.
Take classes on Google Garage.
Learn Fb ads via Facebook Blueprint.
Find Instagram/TikTok influencers to promote your brand that already has your dream customers as followers.

6. Manage Your Money well

The entire American dream can go to hell in a handbasket real quick if you don’t manage your profits well. We have seen many before us who spent their profits without any structure. There is a difference between making a million dollars and structuring your funds to become a millionaire.

If you have come to this step, then you are above the curve and have a great problem to solve.

How will you structure your profits? What percentage will you save? How much will you pay yourself? How much will you put into marketing?

There are a plethora of questions you must sort through. The good thing is you now have a problem that most people would die to have. You have an abundance of income and need to know how to structure it.

I would strongly recommend paying yourself a set salary regardless of your profits. You can always give yourself an end of year bonus. I would also advise seeking out a CPA and making sure you are taking advantage of your tax advantage investments to their fullest potential.

7. Find Balance

The entire site and its premise are called Lifehack. Lifehack does not stand for “work 100 hours per week and be un-happy.” From my understanding, it is the exact opposite. It is a mindset of winning at life by being efficient and successful in all areas of life.

Obtaining a million dollars will not give the deep satisfaction that you have always longed for. The journey, however, can and will fill that satisfaction if you can find your passion along the way.

Many people find fulfillment in the journey, but very few will ever find fulfillment in the money.

To expand on this point further, let me put it this way. I know many millionaires that could afford to stop working today and live more comfortable lives than many of us would ever dream of.

So, why don’t they? Here’s why.

It’s never truly about the money—it’s about the journey, it’s about the hustle, it’s about being a winner. The money just comes with those things. Unfortunately, this is why very few ever accomplish this feat. They don’t enjoy the grind. They don’t endure the roller coaster of emotions it takes to make a million dollars.

Bottom Line

Many entrepreneurs will attempt to make a million dollars, and many will succeed. Following this framework will not be a silver bullet, but it will be a great place to start in your journey of financial freedom and entrepreneurship.

I wish you the best of luck! Cheers.