The Entrepreneur Forum | Financial Freedom | Starting a Business | Motivation | Money | Success

Welcome to the only entrepreneur forum dedicated to building life-changing wealth.

Build a Fastlane business. Earn real financial freedom. Join free.

Join over 80,000 entrepreneurs who have rejected the paradigm of mediocrity and said "NO!" to underpaid jobs, ascetic frugality, and suffocating savings rituals— learn how to build a Fastlane business that pays both freedom and lifestyle affluence.

Free registration at the forum removes this block.

20 years old, planning to quit uni and move to Thailand to work on business

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
So I just finished second year of uni. Didn't do great, as I really haven't been interested in the stuff I'm learning and spent way more time working on my business than revising lol. I'm now on a placement, working for 1 year before I'm expected to go back for final year.

But I don't think I'm going to go back to uni as I don't see the investment (in both time & money) worth it, given how much I dislike uni and it won't take me to where I want to be. Instead I'm thinking about saving as much as I can from my placement and moving to Thailand to focus on my business. As the living costs there are super low, it means I don't need to make that much from the business to sustain me and I can reach freedom a lot sooner. Also Thailand is full of entrepreneurs so the environment sounds great! Currently I'm making about £100/pm and I'm well aware this isn't much, but it only proves that my product is viable and people are willing to pay for it. If I don't manage to make much from the business for a while, I already have £6K in savings plus the salary for the placement is £15K, should be able to save at least £8K from that.

So I'm just wondering if anyone here has moved to Thailand to work on their business and has any advice? What do you think of my plan? I know quitting uni is controversial, but I honestly don't see many advantages to continuing.. My placement finishes next year and I'll be 21. The 9-5 is just not for me and I want to get out of it asap. I feel like a minion helping someone else become rich..

To anyone who has done this before: got any visa advice? Also I haven't registered my business yet (so it's basically a side project right now), but I'd prefer to do that in the UK then operate from Thailand. Is that possible or a good idea?

Would really appreciate any kind of advice!
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.
Last edited:

happiness2go

Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
109%
Jul 21, 2018
86
94
Germany
Very difficult to give any advice if we have no clue about the feasibility of your business.

General thoughts:

Don't do it! Finish your degree and then you're free to do whatever you want (for as long as you have cash...).

Get the idea out of your head that working for sb. else is somethong to be avoided at all costs. Reaching the point where you build a business that pays the bills takes a long time for most people.

If you definetely do want to follow this plan of yours:

Get a certification as an English teacher before you move. You can 100% get work there easily and can cover your bills as you are working on your business.

IMO for somebody to move into entrepreneurship full time, they need to have enough cash to cover themelseves for at least 1-2 years. Unless, they have a validated plan to make money quickly.
 

Digamma

Gold Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
301%
Nov 13, 2014
826
2,487
Why would you drop out and move halfway around the world when your business is not even a business yet?
How is that remotely a smart move?

Currently I'm making about £100/pm and I'm well aware this isn't much, but it only proves that my product is viable and people are willing to pay for it.
Is it? Then why don't you scale it instead of thinking about Thailand?
 

Kevin88660

Platinum Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
118%
Feb 8, 2019
3,456
4,078
Singapore

rpeck90

Gold Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
442%
Nov 26, 2016
317
1,401
34
United Kingdom
I've not been to Thailand, although was asked to go some time back and will echo my sentiments here.

Thailand (in my opinion) is not what you think it is. It looks nice on FB pictures, but are you *really* going to improve your business by going there? Likely not. Like almost all 21 year olds, you have wanderlust and are trying to justify it by going to Thailand to "work on business".

Real business is rough. All the idiots showing you Shopify screenshots on YouTube don't run real businesses. They are mostly one-man bands surviving off Google, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or some other promotional trick. Real businesses have clients, assets, balance sheets, lawsuits and a network. You get none of that by going to Thailand.

Without going around the houses, I'll say this:

If you want to go to Thailand, use your summer break and rough it for 3 months. Backpacking or whatever it's called. Get it out of your system. You may be able to survive doing freelance work, but I'll tell you now that when you get to 27+, you'll look back and think about how much opportunity you missed because you were being naive.

My most ardent recommendation would be to stay and focus on developing yourself (and by virtue, your business), and use the money you earn to go on holidays as a reward. If your business takes you to those destinations, even better. But never - EVER - underestimate the brutality of what's required to create a company of value.

In terms of university, that's a personal choice - but as someone who didn't go, I will tell you now that you'll make it 100x harder for yourself in the real world. University opens doors that you would otherwise have to build from scratch. I've found that out the hard way. If you don't believe me, here's a clip of Felix Dennis iterating the same:

View: https://youtu.be/Mm57XBtPMOo?t=698
11:40 if the time is incorrect

--

Finally -- and this probably the biggest aspect to all of this -- NO ONE cares about you.

At 21, there's likely at least some aspect of "I'm cool because I lived in Thailand" behind your jaunt.

Whilst this may impress your fellow Love-Island-watching student friends, the closer to 30 you get, the less importance it holds. No one gives the slightest shit about your personal life, and if you're going to Thailand for some "fun in the sun", you'll be better just going on an extended holiday. Don't fool yourself into thinking you're going to build a legit business out there.

Business is hard even if you're born into a prosperous country such as the US or UK. Unless you can ardently say that Thailand is definitely going to enhance your chances of success, I'd stay put.

If you want some further reading, I'd peruse Simon Dolan's book:
 

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
Thanks for the replies. Why Thailand? Because the living costs are so low, which means it shouldn't take too long focusing on the business full time before I make enough income to be equal or more than my living costs (so it becomes sustainable). Right now I only have time in the mornings and evenings to work on it because of placement and now I see the business is starting to gain traction and income has been increasing.

I got the idea of moving to Thailand from this video:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaaQltNTn6Q

And when I hear about all the entrepreneurs there it made it sound even better, as I could finally be in an environment where entrepreneurship is encouraged.

I've been pretty miserable at uni the past two years, just learning all this theoretical nonsense I don't care about, so I thought it would be a waste of time to complete the degree, given that I don't enjoy it and want to be an entrepreneur anyway. I'm studying computer science, I love programming but hate lectures and theory. But now these replies are starting to make me think I should just stick it out :arghh: My results aren't great though, I may end up with a 2.2 as I always end up working on my business more than the course material.. so I don't know how useful the degree will be in the end
 

rpeck90

Gold Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
442%
Nov 26, 2016
317
1,401
34
United Kingdom
Is the guy in the video someone you want to take life advice from?

If you want to cut living expenses, nothing wrong with living with your parents.

In terms of what you're doing, what is your business? Are you a freelance coder or have a product? If the latter, what costs are required to keep investing into it?

As regards the university situation, my brother was in a similar position. He studied Mechanical Engineering and ended up doing spreadsheets at Rolls Royce, hated it. However, he was smart in that he saved his money, went travelling around Asia (Thailand, Japan etc) on a shoestring for 6 months, moved back with my parents for a time and then used the money he'd saved to buy a house and get a more tolerable job.

Whilst you don't want to get a job, you do want to cultivate a network.

I'm involved with software - perhaps you could give us some specifics on the focus of your studies?
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Xavier X

Gold Contributor
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
261%
Jan 1, 2016
474
1,235
These United States
The real question is - what skills do you already have?
Your username is "TimTheCoder," but are you actually proficient in any major programming language?

If yes, then you are already one step ahead.
If not, then you might fit right in with the hordes of wantpreneurs flooding to Thailand daily.

I've been to Thailand two times in the last seven months, and spent one month on each occasion (Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Krabi).
I met a lot of these so-called entrepreneurs you speak of, and a large chunk are only in the business of selling dreams, in form of webinars and such.
They target starry-eyed people with lines like "How to Live in Paradise and Build a Business Empire."
The ones working on real things, or already fully in the groove are few and far between.

Computer science is one of those fields where your skills speak a bit louder than your degree.
My suggestion is you give it a try, but ONLY if your current expenses SIGNIFICANTLY exceed your projected expenses in Thailand. AND you actively invest the difference into growing the business, not getting drunk on khaosan road every night.

Also, make sure your college credits are transferable, in case you decide to go back to graduate. Better yet, formally take a year off from college and go give it your best shot.
After that, you might be in a better position to decide your direction.
 

MattR82

Gold Contributor
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
178%
Oct 4, 2015
1,394
2,480
41
Brisbane
Forget about it if you are only thinking about Thailand because of cost of living. I just got back from 3 years away from Australia, living in thailand, Vietnam and Bali. I'm spending less on my living expenses now being back in Australia lol.

However, it's cool if you join in with a coworking or digital nomad community in some hot spots in sth east Asia. I haven't found anything similar in Australia.

I don't recommend going though if it's just to save money on living expenses. You can do the same at home if you look hard enough and won't have the stress of budget living in asia.
 

MattR82

Gold Contributor
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
178%
Oct 4, 2015
1,394
2,480
41
Brisbane
The real question is - what skills do you already have?
Your username is "TimTheCoder," but are you actually proficient in any major programming language?

If yes, then you are already one step ahead.
If not, then you might fit right in with the hordes of wantpreneurs flooding to Thailand daily.

I've been to Thailand two times in the last seven months, and spent one month on each occasion (Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Krabi).
I met a lot of these so-called entrepreneurs you speak of, and a large chunk are only in the business of selling dreams, in form of webinars and such.
They target starry-eyed people with lines like "How to Live in Paradise and Build a Business Empire."
The ones working on real things, or already fully in the groove are few and far between.

Computer science is one of those fields where your skills speak a bit louder than your degree.
My suggestion is you give it a try, but ONLY if your current expenses SIGNIFICANTLY exceed your projected expenses in Thailand. AND you actively invest the difference into growing the business, not getting drunk on khaosan road every night.

Also, make sure your college credits are transferable, in case you decide to go back to graduate. Better yet, formally take a year off from college and go give it your best shot.
After that, you might be in a better position to decide your direction.
There are plenty of legit remote workers and business owners around too. Maybe it was just that area. I know Chiang mai is famous for those kind of guys but can't say for sure. I was only there for the new years party lol.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

ManlyMansNegator

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
130%
Sep 29, 2018
222
289
Australia
Just don't come back in a few years huffing and puffing about why you didn't become a millionaire from dropping out of university , moving to a third world country and using a youtube video to gauge your life choices.

My advice is to not drop out before you have a successful business.Backpacking is not as great as its made out to be and in Thailand you have no fall back method (welfare/social services / family) if your buisness fails(which it will at some point).

Furthermore , it seems that the reason you are leaving uni is because you aren't getting great marks.

Giving up is not a trait you want to have as an entrepreneur.

A better method is to finish university(you only have 2 years left) while building some sort of buisness on the side.Once you finish you can try this starry eyed dream these youtubers are selling you.

good luck!
 

Devilery

Silver Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
195%
Feb 11, 2019
282
550
As someone who recently graduated: "Don't quit!"
It's not that hard to finish it, it doesn't take that much of your time to maintain decent results and you never know how useful it might be some day. I look at it as short-term safety net.
Let's be honest - entrepreneurship is really hard. Therefore, if some major shit goes down, I can atleast get myself back up by working in a comfortable job and saving up, not washing dishes for pennies.
My degree is usually in my opinion, but I'm glad I got it. I wanted to quit badly, but you know why I didn't?
Because I had no plan B. "My idea is validated because I make 100 per month!" That's bullshit.
I made 100$ in few days (easy af) copywriting on the side, but I didn't quit school. You know why? Because I'm still not on a level where I can comfortably and safely be a full-time copywriter.
Finish it, get that degree and use every single minute of your free time to build a machine that will free you from job forever.
 

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
Is the guy in the video someone you want to take life advice from?
Actually yes, I've been watching him for about a year and he generally gives pretty solid advice. He is super successful as well. Actually got TMF recommended by him, so that's how I discovered this whole world.

If you want to cut living expenses, nothing wrong with living with your parents.
I'm not sure they'll want me to move in. My parents don't understand entrepreneurship, no doubt if I move in they'll be harassing me to get a job so not sure this is the best environment.

In terms of what you're doing, what is your business? Are you a freelance coder or have a product? If the latter, what costs are required to keep investing into it?
I have a product, it's called Quiznetic. The current version isn't scalable, but I've been working on v2 for a year and soon will be releasing it. You can check it out at Quiznetic 2.0. On version 1 I have over 9000 registered users, making around £100/pm and have done practically 0 marketing which is why I feel like I may have an opportunity with this. Version 2 has a new pricing structure in hopes of growing the revenue a bit. Costs are currently only £6/pm but the new version they'll be higher, not sure by how much as it's based on usage with cloud hosting.

Whilst you don't want to get a job, you do want to cultivate a network.
This is true, and as Thailand is full of entrepreneurs (especially Chiang Mai like @MattR82 said ), I would have thought this would be a great place to network. In the UK there aren't that many entrepreneur groups except for in London but so expensive down there :\

I'm involved with software - perhaps you could give us some specifics on the focus of your studies?
AI, Distributed Systems, Software Engineering, Languages and Computation, Image Processing, Operating Systems & Concurrency, etc.. Some of these sound interesting, but the way uni teaches things through lecture slides makes everything dull imo. I much prefer learning on my own by playing around with things. I've barely learnt anything useful, especially since I'm self taught programmer so I'm already familiar with most of the programming-related things they teach.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
The real question is - what skills do you already have?
Your username is "TimTheCoder," but are you actually proficient in any major programming language?
Yes I'm pretty good with JavaScript and Node.js. Learnt React JS a year ago and been using it for the new version of my product. Also a variety of other technologies, but I won't bother listing them all here.

I met a lot of these so-called entrepreneurs you speak of, and a large chunk are only in the business of selling dreams, in form of webinars and such.
They target starry-eyed people with lines like "How to Live in Paradise and Build a Business Empire."
The ones working on real things, or already fully in the groove are few and far between.
Oh, I hope it's not as bad as you make it out to be... There's always going to be a few of those, but there will be some who are doing actual stuff.

Computer science is one of those fields where your skills speak a bit louder than your degree.
Exactly and in my placement interview one of the interviewers said I could probably get into a few companies based on the programming I do in my spare time, without the degree. So I'm fairly confident I could get a job without a degree should I need one.

Also, make sure your college credits are transferable, in case you decide to go back to graduate. Better yet, formally take a year off from college and go give it your best shot.
After that, you might be in a better position to decide your direction.
I guess this wouldn't be a bad idea, thanks!
 

Rabby

Legendary Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
319%
Aug 26, 2018
1,924
6,128
Florida
I lived in Thailand for about a year. While I was there I learned/improved my coding and vector drawing and published 3 iphone apps. This was a while back (9-10 years), when iPhone was pretty young.

I didn't make much money, but I also didn't have as clear of an idea about what to do in business at that time, as I do now. This forum would have helped me a lot. That said, we didn't go broke or anything (my wife and 1 year old at the time were with me, and neither starved). Living is pretty cheap in Thailand as long as you don't have to live in a mansion and dine on imported food.
 

Rising88

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
75%
Jul 4, 2019
4
3
I’d suggest... network people within college, complete that degree because that is credentials and creditials is value to your customers in the right market

BUT if you’re really stressed out from school RIGHT NOW, take a semester off, do goto Thailand for 2-3 weeks, and just RELAX and SELF REFLECT.

Motivation and clarity is made when we REST.

I’ve been travelling around the world for the past 10 years. And I thought the same, but it’s really a phase I had to go through, I had to get it out of my system, experience the world, and feel what freedom looks like.

Also, I’ve tried different ventures, and you will fail on your first few ones until you find a one that works for you. But with those failures, you’ll restort to your part-time job to live, while you pivot and start another venture that works.

What I’m doing is similar to you, but currently I work part time at an office. Learning and banking it here, and creating an online business on the side, and when I hit my cash flow that I can live on without a job, then I will move out to a country I love to live in.

End of the day, the decision is up to you. Just know what you’re getting into. Know the pros and cons before moving.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
Just don't come back in a few years huffing and puffing about why you didn't become a millionaire from dropping out of university , moving to a third world country and using a youtube video to gauge your life choices.
lol why so negative? I don't see anything wrong with following successful people on YouTube and taking action on some of their advice..

My advice is to not drop out before you have a successful business.Backpacking is not as great as its made out to be and in Thailand you have no fall back method (welfare/social services / family) if your buisness fails(which it will at some point).
To be clear, I'm not talking about moving to Thailand permanently. Just for a period of about 6 months will do, so I can focus on getting the business off the ground and surround myself with people who are doing similar things.

Furthermore , it seems that the reason you are leaving uni is because you aren't getting great marks.

Giving up is not a trait you want to have as an entrepreneur.
Not so, I haven't done that badly - still passed second year. Averaged just over 80% in my first year, this year I averaged 52%. And even after first year I wanted to quit, but being with friends in a joint tenancy agreement made me continue (ugh).
You know how time is your most valuable asset? That's what makes me think I shouldn't waste my time with something that isn't going to serve me. But there are pros and cons I guess.

A better method is to finish university(you only have 2 years left) while building some sort of buisness on the side.Once you finish you can try this starry eyed dream these youtubers are selling you.
This would definitely be a safer method. I've been doing this already the past two years at uni, I just really want to go full time and not have to worry about pointless exams and stuff :\
 

rpeck90

Gold Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
442%
Nov 26, 2016
317
1,401
34
United Kingdom
Actually yes, I've been watching him for about a year and he generally gives pretty solid advice. He is super successful as well. Actually got TMF recommended by him, so that's how I discovered this whole world.


I'm not sure they'll want me to move in. My parents don't understand entrepreneurship, no doubt if I move in they'll be harassing me to get a job so not sure this is the best environment.


I have a product, it's called Quiznetic. The current version isn't scalable, but I've been working on v2 for a year and soon will be releasing it. You can check it out at Quiznetic 2.0. On version 1 I have over 9000 registered users, making around £100/pm and have done practically 0 marketing which is why I feel like I may have an opportunity with this. Version 2 has a new pricing structure in hopes of growing the revenue a bit. Costs are currently only £6/pm but the new version they'll be higher, not sure by how much as it's based on usage with cloud hosting.


This is true, and as Thailand is full of entrepreneurs (especially Chiang Mai like @MattR82 said ), I would have thought this would be a great place to network. In the UK there aren't that many entrepreneur groups except for in London but so expensive down there :\


AI, Distributed Systems, Software Engineering, Languages and Computation, Image Processing, Operating Systems & Concurrency, etc.. Some of these sound interesting, but the way uni teaches things through lecture slides makes everything dull imo. I much prefer learning on my own by playing around with things. I've barely learnt anything useful, especially since I'm self taught programmer so I'm already familiar with most of the programming-related things they teach.

Thank you for the detailed response - you must appreciate most people asking about "moving to Thailand" don't have much going for them.

If you have 9,000+ users on a product that you didn't even market, I would call that a success.

Having looked over what you've got, it's got massive potential (especially for the "course" market such as Lynda.com and Udemy) -- I believe the term for these tools is LMS. It's got a great name, is relatively innovative, and seems to have a good reputation in the market. I made something similar when my mother worked with a special needs child (it was in VB6 but I lost the code now).

I would still avoid going to Thailand. You'd be better putting your time/money into getting a barebones version of V2 sorted, and then talking to distribution partners for it. The scope for the product is substantive, particularly for the likes of health and education.

What are your plans on marketing it moving forward?
 

NursingTn

Bronze Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
212%
Jan 30, 2019
126
267
You do not like school. You feel it is a waste of time. It is pointless to you because you want to focus on your business.

If you cannot succeed now, what guarantees do you have that you will succeed somewhere else? A place that is completely different culturally. A place where you most likely will need to make a whole new social support group. A place where you might have to spend a long time to learn to live safely and wisely.

What if you feel the same way, but you're now in Thailand? What then? More importantly, will you be happier? If you cannot be happy now in relatively comfortable circumstance, how will a change in circumstances make you happy for the long-term? Circumstances change all the time; it is life. You might feel the same way down the road.

You are free to do what you wish. However, it might be more beneficial to you to take some time off of school and work on your mind and your business where you are at right now. I agree with the others; go travel to Thailand for a few weeks or the summer and see if you still feel the same before you completely uproot yourself.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

broswoodwork

Intermediate User of the Flying Guillotine
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
313%
Oct 16, 2015
890
2,790
I'm sure someone has already asked, but will your business, as it exists today, pay for you to live in Thailand?

If yes, who gives a shit; go for it. If not, get the adventure out of your system by reading some Kerouac.
 

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
Thank you for the detailed response - you must appreciate most people asking about "moving to Thailand" don't have much going for them.

If you have 9,000+ users on a product that you didn't even market, I would call that a success.

Having looked over what you've got, it's got massive potential (especially for the "course" market such as Lynda.com and Udemy) -- I believe the term for these tools is LMS. It's got a great name, is relatively innovative, and seems to have a good reputation in the market. I made something similar when my mother worked with a special needs child (it was in VB6 but I lost the code now).

I would still avoid going to Thailand. You'd be better putting your time/money into getting a barebones version of V2 sorted, and then talking to distribution partners for it. The scope for the product is substantive, particularly for the likes of health and education.

What are your plans on marketing it moving forward?
Thanks for showing interest in it! Honestly I don't know much about marketing so I'm trying to learn. Currently reading "The one page marketing plan" which is supposed to be very good. I'm getting the feeling though that it might be more for audience businesses with email lists and stuff, not sure if that's the best strategy for me? I'm not a teacher so I don't think I'm qualified to write about classroom learning and things (content marketing).
Do you have any suggestions for resources to learn from?

Ok maybe moving to Thailand is too big a jump and will distract me or I might die from my inexperience lol. Just I found appartments in Thailand for only like £180/pm which is half my rent now! Also my manager at work used to live in Thailand and he was saying how good it was, so it really got me thinking about it seriously..
 

Johnny boy

Legendary Contributor
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
620%
May 9, 2017
2,929
18,172
27
Washington State
I can’t believe the answers here. When did you get your nuts cut off?

“Stay in school!”

“Don’t take the risk!”

Jesus Christ.

Don’t listen to them. Say yes. Screw school. Take a chance and make it happen. You’ll ask “what if I took the risk” when you’re older and you’ll hate yourself for being a wimp.

Just do it.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
I can’t believe the answers here. When did you get your nuts cut off?

“Stay in school!”

“Don’t take the risk!”

Jesus Christ.

Don’t listen to them. Say yes. Screw school. Take a chance and make it happen. You’ll ask “what if I took the risk” when you’re older and you’ll hate yourself for being a wimp.

Just do it.
Lol I was wondering if there would be a post like this. Honestly I didn't expect so many people on the fastlane forum to be saying to stay in school!
 

Jack Hammer

Bronze Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
130%
Sep 19, 2018
118
153
I guess I'm about the only one one of the few who thinks you should just go for it. Not that I have a great track record of success in life, but then, I never did anything quite like that. It seems like it could be a great experience, one way or another. You never know what kind of experiences you might have or who you might meet. Even if it turns into a painful experience, like you have to spend your days stooped over in a rice field just to keep from starving too much, it'll certainly be character-building.

I understand the feeling of alienation from your CS studies. I used to be a CS major and had to switch because the classes and textbooks put me to sleep. Most of my coding skills now are self-taught, but when I look back at my code from my CS days, it was atrocious. It sounds like going solo, you've done way better than I had by depending on my classes. Still, all else held equal, it is true that a degree is better than no degree, but you can always finish it later.
 

happiness2go

Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
109%
Jul 21, 2018
86
94
Germany
I'm sure someone has already asked, but will your business, as it exists today, pay for you to live in Thailand?

If yes, who gives a shit; go for it. If not, get the adventure out of your system by reading some Kerouac.

This.

Teach your brain that you first need to work to get what you want.

Once you have DONE it, then you have the freedom to move wherever you want.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
This.

Teach your brain that you first need to work to get what you want.

Once you have DONE it, then you have the freedom to move wherever you want.
No but the reason I'm saying about moving to Thailand (temporarily btw, like 6 months) is so I can work *full time* on business with low living expenses and be around people who are doing similar things. The low living expenses is key because it can become sustainable pretty quickly. I'm not going for sandy beaches and nice weather, because it looks nice, I don't care about that :)
There's nowhere in the UK which offers super low living expenses and is an entrepreneurial hub
 

rpeck90

Gold Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
442%
Nov 26, 2016
317
1,401
34
United Kingdom
Honestly I don't know much about marketing so I'm trying to learn.

Marketing is its own ballgame.

The core of it is the USP - Unique Selling Proposition. This article explains it best.

On top of the USP, you have the "marketing mix". This is a descriptive term used to highlight the several aspects which determine the market share of a product. It's typically presented as the "4 P's", but some people have got up to 7.

Ultimately, like your studies in school, the problem with this is that it's observatory. It's designed to describe products which have already been created, and has relatively little to do with any new products that may be brought to market.

If you are interested in creating a new product, and building new market share, it's not going to be of much help. Fortunately, there's a simple way -- Product + Offer.

The secret to creating a successful new product is the "offer" -- the ONE thing the product does that no one else ever will. You may consider the offer as the "sizzle" to the product's "steak".

The point is, and I've said this several times on the forum before, no one buys the product.

The code, or technicality, of what you've created isn't what sells your offering... but the results that it can derive for the people using it. These results - and specifically how your product creates them - is what determines its value.

Whilst you obviously need a great product (which you have) - the key metric is making it indispensable to a group of people who didn't think they previously needed such a thing. Do that, and you have a flourishing business.

Obviously, this is quite esoteric - and can cause issues. However... if you're able to work with companies or institutions who may benefit from the "model" of what you've created (interactive quizzes), you may find a LOT of budget for enhanced training mechanisms. If you're able to deliver that with a web-based platform, you'll start attracting clients.

I can help brainstorm some more if interested.

Also my manager at work used to live in Thailand and he was saying how good it was, so it really got me thinking about it seriously..

Going for a 3 week (or even several month) break won't do you any harm, but don't expect to come home to a flourishing company, that's all I was saying.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Matt Sun

Gold Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
252%
Oct 21, 2017
572
1,442
Argentina
This is what i was thinking. You sound like you know what you are doing. 9k users with no marketing ? That's productrocracy. Well done.

If you move:

You will pay less rent,
enjoy more the place you live,
have more time for your business,
and be surrounded by a better, entrepreneur enviroment ...

Just do it.
 

Singularity73

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
122%
Jun 3, 2018
82
100
United Kingdom
T
Marketing is its own ballgame.

The core of it is the USP - Unique Selling Proposition. This article explains it best.

On top of the USP, you have the "marketing mix". This is a descriptive term used to highlight the several aspects which determine the market share of a product. It's typically presented as the "4 P's", but some people have got up to 7.

Ultimately, like your studies in school, the problem with this is that it's observatory. It's designed to describe products which have already been created, and has relatively little to do with any new products that may be brought to market.

If you are interested in creating a new product, and building new market share, it's not going to be of much help. Fortunately, there's a simple way -- Product + Offer.

The secret to creating a successful new product is the "offer" -- the ONE thing the product does that no one else ever will. You may consider the offer as the "sizzle" to the product's "steak".

The point is, and I've said this several times on the forum before, no one buys the product.

The code, or technicality, of what you've created isn't what sells your offering... but the results that it can derive for the people using it. These results - and specifically how your product creates them - is what determines its value.

Whilst you obviously need a great product (which you have) - the key metric is making it indispensable to a group of people who didn't think they previously needed such a thing. Do that, and you have a flourishing business.

Obviously, this is quite esoteric - and can cause issues. However... if you're able to work with companies or institutions who may benefit from the "model" of what you've created (interactive quizzes), you may find a LOT of budget for enhanced training mechanisms. If you're able to deliver that with a web-based platform, you'll start attracting clients.

I can help brainstorm some more if interested.



Going for a 3 week (or even several month) break won't do you any harm, but don't expect to come home to a flourishing company, that's all I was saying.
Thanks for all the great information! Haven't had time to fully study this yet, but will definitely refer back to it!
 

Post New Topic

Please SEARCH before posting.
Please select the BEST category.

Post new topic

Guest post submissions offered HERE.

Latest Posts

New Topics

Fastlane Insiders

View the forum AD FREE.
Private, unindexed content
Detailed process/execution threads
Ideas needing execution, more!

Join Fastlane Insiders.

Top