Wanna be successful?
Copy from successful people.
Might be lazy, but it works.
Starting work as a young man (or woman)?
Instead of wasting money on wine, women, and song...and overseas and lavish local vacations...save the money, and as soon as possible buy an apartment, home, no matter how modest...to live in at retirement.
Get a loan, rent it out, use the rent money to pay off the loan.
Live at home as long as you can, save as much as you can.
If you must marry, make sure you "marry well"...and get an airtight prenup signed.
Then if/when the marriage ends and you get divorced you won't end up homeless and destitute.
Gold-diggers are a thing today, active more than ever.
I have been in a slump, so I have a friend who is helping me, he is a rock star and was in some famous bands, and he produced several bands, he is a hero here in Venice Beach, he is going to help me to reach the next level with my Production Company and to get traction and to stop spinning my wheels. I am smart enough to appreciate the help of a successful friend.
And my Mother did like you said, when she was young she was beautiful and smart, and she received good grades in high school and qualified for a scholarship, she used the money to go to Beauty School and she became a Licensed Cosmetologist and she went to work at a Beauty Shop. The Lady who owned the Beauty Shop wanted to retire, so she sold the Beauty Shop to my Mother and my Mother used the money from the Beauty Shop to pay the Old Lady the money to buy the shop. The Beauty Shop had a house on the property, and my Mother rented out the house. Meanwhile my Mother lived at home with her Mother and Father and Family, she was only 19 years old at this time. Then my Mother met my Father when she was about 20 and they bought a small ranch after they got married. My Father then studied Business at Pepperdine in Malibu and learned Business. Then, my Mother and Father sold the Beauty Shop and the House, and they sold the small ranch, and they purchased 360 acres of Land outside of Battle Mountain Nevada, and they wanted to have a Cattle Ranch like in the television show "Bonanza" and they bought cattle and pigs and horses, etc. Anyhow, long story short, after they finished that venture they ended up making money from the pigs, they said that the pigs were the best money-maker. My Father died, but my Mother did well, and she owns a nice home out in the desert with a swimming pool and solar power with batteries, etc, and she has a husband who she loves, and she has a good retirement, she was a smart and hard working woman.
On the issue of rich women, Malibu is full of wealthy ex-wives, the rich husband dumps her for a younger woman but the ex-wife gets half of his money. California is a 50% state, in the divorce the woman gets half of his money. So Malibu is full of rich single ex-wives. I rented a room from the ex-wife of Sammy Hagar's family doctor when I lived in Malibu.
Salute,
Tony V.