Here is some money advice I would give to my younger self that I have distilled after a decade of learnings. I will use it as a compass to guide me for remaining years. I hope it can be of help to you too in your own wealth journey.

#1: Become financially educated

Our schools and society don’t teach us much about money, so you must learn it yourself early on. Learn to earn, spend, manage, invest, and grow wealth. Personal finance is neither complex nor boring, so don’t outsource it. It only takes a bit of effort to master a few key ideas and practices. This little effort will massively reduce stress about money in your life.

#2: Have a vision for yourself

Plans don’t always work out the way we imagine, but being intentional helps. Visualize how your life would be like years and decades out. Your future image should come from a place deep inside of you where there is peace, not from your ego that’s restless. Don’t think of grandiose ideas about how big you will be one day. Instead, aim to be financially independent early so you can do things that add meaning to your life.

#3: Choose right work

Choose a profession where you can enjoy the work even when results are not visible in short-term. If you don’t know what that is, just follow your intuition. It’s your best guide. Don’t choose a role because it feels prestigious or offers little more money. It will take a long time to become at good at anything, so choose work that gives you energy. Getting this right is way more important than accumulating lot of wealth.

#4: Maximize your earnings

Once you have chosen your craft, think about how you can maximize your earnings over time. Invest in yourself and over-index on learning new skills. Try to become a more valuable person each passing year. Most importantly, be in the right environment. There are certain markets — like different industries and geographies — that will compensate you much better for your skills. For instance, job in the Bay Area would pay a lot more for same engineering skills than most parts of the world. Make all effort to transition to the environment that’s best for you. The will compound your earnings, connections, and happiness in the long-term.

#5: Spend way less than you earn

There is no shame in living frugally, especially in early part of your career. Aim for savings rate north of 20–30%. If you do that, you will keep more and need less to be financially independent. Deeply ingrain the idea that happiness does not have a lot to do with money. Precious things in life are free anyways, be it spending time with loved ones or losing yourself in your craft.

#6: Invest in fast growing assets

You will become wealthy when you own assets that can grow fast in value, like real estate or stocks. Stocks are volatile, but easier to manage. Real estate is more stable, but requires oversight. If you don’t want to manage individual stocks, buy diversified index funds. The key is to buy and hold for the long-term and let the growth compound. Things that don’t generate cash, like gold and bitcoin, are speculative. Play around with it if you want, but don’t make it the centerpiece of your investing strategy.

#7: Aim for a few big hits

There are a few asymmetrical bets that can have massive payoff. You can start a company or a join an early-stage startup with equity. You can start a side business or become a creator to share useful content with the world. You can even invest in undervalued stocks or real estate. These bets can take many forms. The odds of success of any one is low, but you can try as many times as you want. All you need is one big hit to change your life.

#8: Know what you are chasing

Play your own game. Do not compare with others because someone will always be in a better spot. Know when and what is enough for you. Don’t obsessively chase a target net worth number. Instead, know how much you need so can design a life you want to live. You will get lasting happiness only when you travel on your own path. One that this universe has crafted just for you.