Simple Steps to Build Wealth
Sooner or later, everyone thinks about how to make more money or build wealth from the ground up. The internet offers endless ideas, but if you strip away the noise, there are really only four ways people make money. Whether you want to earn a better living, save for your dream home, or simply get ahead, understanding these four ways puts you in control.
Before you spend the next few years chasing shortcuts, learn the basics of how money moves. In this post, I’ll break down the four proven ways that everyone uses to earn a living, from entry-level workers to investors who let their money work for them. Take a few minutes to figure out which one you use now, and which you could start building next.
Understanding the Four Fundamental Ways to Make Money
Almost everyone who’s ever earned a paycheck, launched a business, or collected rent has used one of four methods to make money. While there are many jobs and business models out there, they all fit neatly into one of these categories:
- Working: Trading your time for money, as an employee or self-employed person.
- Selling: Earning income by selling goods or services, where the payoff depends more on skill and product value than hours worked.
- Owning: Making money from assets you own, such as businesses or investment properties, where you receive profits over time.
- Lending: Earning interest by letting someone else use your money; think banks, loans, or investing.
These categories are timeless. The specific job title or business you choose will always fall into one of these groups. Grasping these gives you a clear roadmap for how to boost your income or build a different source of wealth.
Quick Reference: The Four Ways to Make Money
- Working – Paid for your time.
- Selling – Paid for making deals.
- Owning – Paid for having assets.
- Lending – Paid for providing capital.
Everyone, from the corner store clerk to top CEOs and wealthy investors, relies on combinations of these. The sooner you learn which stage you’re at, the sooner you can move towards greater financial freedom.
1. Making Money by Working
Most people start here. Working is simple: you trade time and effort for money. You might work as an employee at a company, clocking in and out each day. Or maybe you’re self-employed, running your own small business or working freelance gigs.
Even high-income earners like lawyers, doctors, or consultants fall into this group. They may charge more per job due to their skill set or school credentials, but they’re still trading hours for pay.
There are only two ways to make more money as a worker:
- Work more hours: Take on overtime, side jobs, or second shifts.
- Develop new skills: Grow your expertise to take better jobs, charge higher rates, or move into management.
For example:
Joe works as a technician at a factory. He goes back to school, earns a management degree, then lands a job managing the team. He now earns more, not by working longer but by working smarter and bringing more to the table.
Here’s a list of common roles that fit in this category:
- Salaried employees
- Hourly wage workers
- Freelancers and gig workers
- Consultants
- Tradespeople (electricians, plumbers)
- Healthcare professionals (doctors, nurses)
- Independent contractors
What’s the catch? Your biggest limit is time. There are only so many hours in a day, and you can only work so hard. Even at a high hourly rate, you hit a ceiling. Real wealth; big jumps in financial progress; rarely come from working harder alone.
If you want to boost your skills or income as a worker, start by building high-value skills.
2. Making Money by Selling
Selling is more than just working a retail job. At its heart, it’s about earning money by moving products, services, or ideas. Here, your income is not always tied to clocking in hours. You get paid for your results, not just your effort.
That could mean closing sales as a high-ticket closer, writing copy that drives product sales, or working in digital marketing where your paycheck comes from deals, not time tracked.
Your income as a seller depends on three key factors:
- How good you are at closing deals
- The size of your commission
- The price of the product or service you’re selling
Imagine you’re a sales closer. You could spend eight hours calling leads and earn nothing if you don’t close a deal. But with the right skills and product, you might close a five-figure deal in ten minutes.
Here’s a breakdown:
1. Skill at Closing You get better at selling with practice, training, and feedback. Top closers and skilled salespeople can earn much more with fewer clients.
2. Size of Commission The bigger your commission percentage, the larger your payday per deal. Selling high-ticket items (like real estate or consulting packages) often comes with big commission payouts.
3. Price of Items Sold Moving a high-value product often means fewer sales needed to hit your income goals. Instead of making 100 small sales, focus on landing a few big ones.
Let’s put this into a simple chart:
- High skill + large commission + high-priced item = Highest income potential
- Low skill + small commission + low-priced item = Struggle for every dollar
This is where the “blue ocean” concept comes in—selling in a market with little competition, focusing on high-value, big-ticket items. Less grind, bigger leaps.
Examples in this category:
- Real estate agents
- Business development reps
- Copywriters who write sales pages
- Digital marketers paid by performance
- High-ticket closers and consultants
If you’re tired of trading hours for dollars, selling is the fastest path to jumpstart your income.
3. Making Money by Owning Assets
Owning things moves you out of the world of trading time, and into the pool of people who profit steadily over time. This is the step where you start building long-term security.
When you own an income-producing asset—like rental property, a profitable business, or even stocks—you’re not just making a wage, you’re building profits.
For example: You buy a house and rent it out. The tenant’s monthly payments give you income, while the home itself gains value. Or, you build a business, hire others to help run it, and collect profit as the owner.
Key differences between working/selling vs. owning:
| Working/Selling | Owning Assets | |
|---|---|---|
| Money earned | Wages, commission, or fees | Profit, dividends, rental income |
| Input needed | Your time/skill (often daily) | Initial setup, leadership/oversight |
| Duration | Paid for each hour/task | Ongoing payout, often passive |
| Wealth scale | Can increase only so much (time limit) | Scalable, limited mainly by capital |
You make money by owning assets in several ways:
- Owning rental properties (gathering rental income)
- Owning businesses (taking profits, not just wages)
- Holding stocks or shares that pay dividends
- Collecting royalties from intellectual property
The move from worker or seller to owner is huge. At this stage, your assets are making money for you; even as you sleep or take time off. Building a business requires leadership and the ability to motivate and manage a team, but the rewards can be life-changing.
Active ownership means running a business, managing real estate, or steering a team to profit.
Passive ownership is more hands-off; like collecting rent or setting up automated business income.
If working longer isn’t getting you closer to your goals, explore ways you can start owning; first on a small scale, then by growing your assets over time.
4. Making Money by Lending
The top rung of the wealth ladder is lending; making money using your capital, not your labor or skills. You lend money to others and earn interest. Now, your money works for you, not the other way around.
At its simplest, you might see this as the interest from a savings account. But real wealth comes when you do this at scale: banks, private equity, venture capital, or angel investing. These groups loan money in big amounts for bigger returns.
The critical point: Lending is pure passive income. You don’t need to work hard, manage people, or upgrade your skills each year. Instead, having capital lets you charge interest to those eager to borrow.
Simple example: You loan ₦1,000,000 at 7% interest. You don’t lift a finger, but at the end of the year, you collect ₦70,000; in addition to your original ₦1,000,000.
Examples of lenders at scale:
- Banks lending to homeowners and businesses
- Private equity groups funding new companies
- Venture capitalists investing in startups
- Angel investors supporting entrepreneurs
This is the closest most people ever get to being their own bank. The risk is higher, but so are the rewards.
Visualize the flow of money:
You, the lender → Provide money → Someone else uses it → They pay you back with interest.
Lending is often seen as the final move once you’ve built capital by working, selling, or owning. This is how fortunes are built and handed down.
Transitioning Through the Four Ways: From Worker to Lender
Building wealth isn’t about staying stuck at the same level. The real plan is to move through these four methods as you grow, unlocking more options along the way.
Here’s a typical path:
- Start as a Worker: Build basic skills, earn your first paychecks, and learn how money flows.
- Become a Seller: Pick up sales skills, learn to make deals, and grow your income by results, not hours.
- Start Owning Assets: Use your income to buy businesses, stocks, or real estate. Profit comes from what you own, not just what you do.
- Graduate to Lending: As your wealth grows, put money to work for you. Collect passive income, and operate like your own bank.
Every move up the ladder brings more freedom, but also new challenges and lessons. Building wealth is about mindset, skills, and financial habits. At every step, education matters.
- Invest in learning high-value skills.
- Save and build capital for future ownership or lending.
- Seek out leaders and events where you can pick up new strategies.
Take a moment and ask: Where am I right now? Where do I want to be in five years? Chart your next move.
Summary of the Four Ways and Their Key Characteristics
Here’s a quick recap of the four proven paths to making money:
- Working:
- Trade time for money
- Dependent on your skill and hours worked
- Income hits a ceiling based on time
- Selling:
- Earn by making deals and closing sales
- Dependent on sales skill, commission size, and product price
- Income can grow quickly with expertise and high-ticket offers
- Owning:
- Receive profit by owning assets
- Needs leadership and strategic thinking
- Income scales with value and number of assets
- Lending:
- Make money from interest on loans
- Requires built-up capital
- Offers passive, often scalable, income
If you picture a pyramid, working forms the base with most people. As you build skills and assets, you move up to owning and finally lending, where freedom and income potential are highest.
The central lesson: Creating wealth is much simpler than most think. Focus on moving up the ladder, one step at a time, and your wealth will grow.
Conclusion
You don’t need 100 side hustles or years of luck to build lasting wealth. With just four ways to make money; working, selling, owning, and lending; you can map out a path that fits your goals and dreams. Start where you are, sharpen your skills, and look for ways to climb higher.
When you see money and wealth-building as a series of clear steps, new opportunities appear. Stay focused. Build one level at a time, and soon you’ll be the one collecting profits while others are still trading hours for dollars.
