Six decisions to go from broke to millionaire before 30

Executive overview

Most advice for young people defaults to the safe path — college, job, slow build. That path is optimised for the wrong era. Every decision a founder makes early on compounds or destroys equity, speed, and leverage.

Six binary choices determine whether you reach a million before 30. At each fork, a third option usually beats both defaults.

The fastest path to wealth is to pick a niche, find a partner (not a co-founder), pre-sell to customers, and hire a mentor early.

College or no college

• College teaches you how to learn and gives access to mentors who refer top students to CEOs.
• Graduates earn more if they stay in a credentialed lane — but most founders don't.
• Cost of college has risen 5-7x; pay has not kept pace.
• AI now provides PhD-level knowledge on demand, narrowing college's information advantage.
• Skip college: four years of runway and zero debt beats a degree for most business paths.

Job or business

• A job provides built-in mentors, structured skill-building across functions, and low financial risk.
• Working for someone else locks you into their vehicle instead of building your own.
• Starting now is uniquely viable: tools, customers, and learning resources have never been more accessible.
• Choose your own thing — the window to start has never been wider.

Co-founder or solo

• A co-founder adds accountability, fills skill gaps, and signals credibility to investors.
• Giving up 50% equity early is expensive; people are committed until it hurts.
• Going solo is faster, cheaper, and keeps full ownership — but removes a check on bad decisions.
• Best option: find a partner (not co-founder) with a small equity stake, structured with vesting over time.
• Vesting gives accountability without surrendering control; most lawyers can set this up.

Bootstrap or raise money

• Raising capital enables fast scale, opens investor networks, and validates the business concept.
• Early equity is the most expensive equity you'll ever give away; investors set the pace.
• Bootstrapping keeps full ownership and vision — but can be slow without capital.
• Best option: customer financing — pre-sell to customers so they fund the business without taking equity.
• Pre-selling also validates the market before you spend on product.

Niche or broad

• Broad markets are easier to enter: customers are everywhere, no deep domain expertise required.
• A niche lowers acquisition costs — ad platforms target precisely, spend drops.
• Specialists close faster: buyers pay more when you solve their specific pain.
• Word-of-mouth accelerates in a niche; specialisation makes referrals automatic.
• Niche down as early as possible. Trying to serve everyone produces nothing for anyone.

Coach or go it alone

• Doing it yourself preserves cash and keeps the vision unfiltered.
• A mentor brings the map — compressed experience that saves years, not months.
• Paid coaching creates accountability: when you pay, you pay attention.
• Get a mentor. Treat education as an unlimited budget line.

Scale or exit

• Selling provides liquidity, reduces single-company risk, and creates capital to reinvest in bigger deals.
• Monthly cash flow from a growing business can fund an exceptional lifestyle without an exit.
• Keeping the business gives more upside: a $10M offer today may become $50M in three years.
• Sell when growth plateaus or passion fades — not when you're burnt out (buyers gain the advantage).
• Exit at the height, like an athlete retiring at peak rather than after a knockout loss.