Kevin O’Leary has little patience for rationalizations. In a 2020 conversation with CNBC, the Shark Tank star laid down a hard rule. Save and invest ten percent of every dollar you receive.
He made it clear that income is income, no matter where it comes from. Your paycheck counts. Birthday cash counts. Money from a weekend gig counts too. If it lands in your pocket, ten percent should be working for you somewhere else.
The thinking behind it is practical. Most people try to invest what is left after spending. That leftover amount usually turns out to be nothing. O’Leary flips the order. Investing comes first, spending comes second.
Money only grows when you force it to. Excuses feel harmless, and they quietly keep you stuck.
Kevin O’Leary’s No Excuses Wealth Rule
As we all know, Kevin O’Leary talks about money in a very straightforward way.
Mr. Wonderful points to the advantage of youth. His view is that age gives you a real edge. If you begin in your late teens or early twenties and put away ten percent of what you earn, you are already ahead. Keep doing that every time you get paid. Over the years, that steady habit adds up to a large sum by the time you retire.
Kevin also follows that with a blunt reminder. He says that no one else is tracking your future for you. Jobs change and support systems shift. If you do not plan ahead, no one will step in later to fix it.
Kevin O’Leary’s Take on Convenience Spending
Kevin O’Leary tends to look at everyday spending through a long-term lens. Especially the small stuff people barely think about. In a past interview with CNBC, he mentioned that he never buys coffee out.
His reasoning was rooted in the fact that something costs a few cents to make at home; paying several dollars for it is uncalled for. The interview in question happened years ago. Prices have only gone up since then. Finding cheap coffee today is harder. That does not change the underlying idea. Regular convenience spending quietly drains money.
Skip what you can make yourself. Hold on to that money. Use it in ways that matter more down the road rather than letting it disappear on routine convenience.
Mr. Wonderful on Cutting Clothing Costs Without Sacrifice
Kevin O’Leary applies the same thinking beyond coffee and into how he dresses.
He has said he trimmed his wardrobe down on purpose on the same logic. No constant shopping. No impulse buys. Just a simple setup of black suits, white shirts, and black ties. Enough to cover every situation without extra decisions or spending.
The goal is not style or minimalism for its own sake. It is about cutting out mindless purchases. Fewer clothes mean fewer reasons to spend money without thinking.
Where Kevin O’Leary Says Beginners Should Put Their Money
And to make use of the savings, Kevin O’Leary tends to favor simple setups when it comes to investing, especially for people who are just getting started.
He often says putting all your money into one stock is asking for trouble. If that company runs into issues, your savings go with it. Spreading money across many companies lowers that kind of risk. That is why he points to exchange-traded funds. With one purchase, you get exposure to a wide mix of businesses and industries. One does not need to track every headline or guess which stock will take off next.
The idea is to keep investing boring and steadily. Something you can stick with without stress or constant second-guessing.
The Shared Investing Philosophy of Kevin O’Leary and Warren Buffett
Kevin O’Leary is not the only one who leans this way on investing. Plenty of well-known investors share the same mindset. Warren Buffett has said for years that low-cost S&P 500 index funds make sense for most people.
During his years leading Berkshire Hathaway, he often repeated the idea that most people are better off owning the market rather than trying to beat it. Once you have that base in place, the door opens to other options.
With enough experience and stability, some investors branch out beyond public stocks. That step comes later. The first priority is building a solid foundation you can rely on.
Why Kevin O’Leary Believes Money Should Always Be Working
Don’t get it twisted, Kevin O’Leary is not telling people to strip life of every small pleasure or live on the bare minimum. Most people lose money quietly. It slips away through habits they barely notice. He wants that slow drain to stop. His answer is to redirect a steady ten percent toward something that grows over time instead of fading out on daily spending.
Kevin has famously said that he wants his money working even when he is not. That idea sits at the apex of his advice. Money should not sit still. It should earn its keep.
You do not need to dress like him or copy his routines. You just need to take control. No matter where your money comes from, it will not grow by luck. It grows when you choose to put it to work.
