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Go to school, get good grades, get a good job = Stupidity

G-Man

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There are a lot of days when I'm pretty sure I'm a damn idiot doing what I'm doing. I make half of what I did when I had a good 9-5.

Everyone is different. It's okay for you to want what you want, and for others to want what they want.
 

Thoelk

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I don't get why you should feel superior for not being in the Slowlane. If that is the message you got from the book... Read again. In the end, these "stupid" People are most likely both your cliënts and your employees in the (near) Future.. treat them well and perceive them in an even better way! ;-)

None of the genuine successful people look at Slowlaners in a bad way.. Everyone is differentieel and has different priorities.
 

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Thinking the same path and the same advice will work for everyone = Stupidity

.

exactly

as you are saying, everybody's case is unique and mine is unique as well. thanks

MJ DeMarco's philosophy helped me to better understand the slowlane


TMF helped me to reshape my values

freedom is better than wealth for me.

it means i don't look for a job but for opportunities

this is a mean to insert retirement in my life at 40 instead of waiting to be 70.

i mean i retire 2 years then i work then i am free again

i have been " free" since may 2015. so retirement is my way of living : work, freedom, work, freedom.
 
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lowtek

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So... that makes two video posts by people today that make me cringe. Is there some sort of contest going on that I'm not privy to?

Let's shine the blinding and unyielding light of logic on this video and examine some of the things you say:

"don't take financial advice from people who are broke"

What if they tell you not to roll your negative equity into a car you're financing for 72 months at 8% APR? Would you disregard that advice, just because the person is broke?

"don't take fitness advice from fat people"

What if they tell you to eat fewer processed carbs, consume more lean protein and lift heavy shit? Would you rush out to buy a sack of white sugar to snack on all day while you sit on the couch binge watching Orange Is The New Black?

Only simpletons follow those prescriptions.

Intelligent people evaluate information on the basis of its content, not on their preconceived notions of the source.

Real life example: Einstein was a patent clerk when he revolutionized our understanding of physics. Clearly he was unqualified since he wasn't a tenured faculty at a respectable university, he was just a PhD with a job. Nobody should have even bothered to test special relativity and just tossed the paper into the trash bin.

The ultimate irony of your diatribe is that you show a video of a guy who looks like the homeless bums that beg for money here in PHX, and proclaim that he is changing your life, the life of your family, and of your partner.

If you believe you should consider the source of information, then why would you take advice from someone who looks like they live in a cardboard box under the nearest highway overpass?

Worst of all, if you really think people who work for others are stupid... how could you justify hiring anybody since the employee is guaranteed to be stupid. Clearly they can't make good decisions for themselves, so how could they make good decisions for your business?

I think you should reread the book.
 

Pilot35

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I appreciate everyone's opinion, reminding me that I've got a lot more to learn. A few things to note:

1. The person in the video isn't me.
2. MJ explicitly mentioned multiple times (in his book and articles) that you shouldn't take advice from people who you don't want to be.
3. That so-called "homeless bum from PHX who begs for money" is a millionaire entrepreneur.
4. I never said people who work for others are stupid. I'm criticizing the path of mediocrity and failure that everyone preaches (the Slowlane), not the people who follows it. Read the thread's title again.
5. There might be people who enjoy their jobs, but this is not the case for most people.

Nevertheless I still think it's a good video worth sharing. Just didn't expect a response here similar to what we see on reddit.
 

GMSI7D

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there is a book written by a famous self made french guy who never went to college or anything ( olivier Roland)

since he couldn't find a job , the only solution was to start his business..

this is not translated in english but i can translate the title of his book : " everybody wasn't lucky enough to be a loser at school "

the guy went from 300 dollars a month to 28 000 dollars a month at 35 . he works 6 months a year and he travels the other 6 months.


so what's my point ? good grades are sometimes a waste of time

my good grades have been a waste of time. i have a degree in geography and another degree in statistics

i can't even find a job with that.

when i have a job, i work as an employee in the health insurance ....
 
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johnnyqt25

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Not everyone wants the huge stress that comes with being an entrepreneur. I don't see anything wrong with going to school, getting good grades, and getting a job, especially if they want to be engineers or doctors.
 

G-Man

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What if they tell you not to roll your negative equity into a car you're financing for 72 months at 8% APR? Would you disregard that advice, just because the person is broke?

"don't take fitness advice from fat people"

What if they tell you to eat fewer processed carbs, consume more lean protein and lift heavy shit? Would you rush out to buy a sack of white sugar to snack on all day while you sit on the couch binge watching Orange Is The New Black?

Only simpletons follow those prescriptions.

Intelligent people evaluate information on the basis of its content, not on their preconceived notions of the source.

I think I agree with you, but life, by virtue of being finite, isn't pure logic. You always logically try to evaluate the content, but there has to be something there that makes you want to give the person the benefit of the doubt long enough to listen to them, given that, since your time and attention are limited, you can't independently evaluate what everyone has to say, even though everyone has something to say.

Now, this is of course further complicated by the fact that people can fake social proof by renting planes and models like Tai Lopez, but you get my point.

If a guy like MJ comes along and says everything in my existing paradigm is essentially bullshit (which he did), I wouldn't have listened to him if he hadn't already achieved a demonstrably better outcome than I ever had.

Social proof does matter, even if it's not necessarily purely logical.

The ultimate irony of your diatribe is that you show a video of a guy who looks like the homeless bums that beg for money here in PHX, and proclaim that he is changing your life, the life of your family, and of your partner.

Agree with you, even though I'm somewhat playing devil's advocate for what's he's saying. It's painful to watch,... like aforementioned video with some kid that looks like he's 18 shelling out generic "entrepreneurship" advice.
 

ZF Lee

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Not everyone wants the huge stress that comes with being an entrepreneur. I don't see anything wrong with going to school, getting good grades, and getting a job, especially if they want to be engineers or doctors.
Unfortunately, even doctors and engineers are going off the deep dive. Around one quarter of my college batch were into these two fields and my batch's quite big. Too much competition to succeed. I know the presence of competitors shows my venture is worth pursuing, but when there's too many...

It is true that while engineers and doctors are badly needed in today's world, we actually need more EXPERIENCED doctors and engineers. In other words, those who have gone through challenges and succeeded, not some greenie who just exited college waving a bachelors in his hand.

I highly suspect that many went in just for the money or 'just because I am good at it.'

Look, on another note, I'm having a lot of 'entrepreneurship is hard' and 'stick with a 9-5 to be more stable and safe'. Obviously somehow the Fastlane spirit has gone diluted.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP IS HARD IF YOU
a) break all the Fastlane commandments. I did mention in my earlier threads that I had MLM friends and broke relatives who screwed Control, Entry and Time.

b) you don't get help. Help doesn't mean a business partner. It could mean a short course, a new referral, a free tool to boost your website, anything that will give you sales or reduce your worktime.

c) you are scared. (obvious?)

d) you listen to people who say entrepreneurship is hard and will not make you rich. (leads to (c) and a reconsideration of the Law of Effection)

e) you don't have critical thinking

f) you waste cash on every so-called 'business expense' even if it won't net you more cash

In my opinion, everything is hard until you make it easy. I hate the air of cowardice that looms about such threads....makes me feel more sick than yesterday....'cough', 'cough'...getme a doctor someone
 
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johnnyqt25

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Unfortunately, even doctors and engineers are going off the deep dive. Around one quarter of my college batch were into these two fields and my batch's quite big. Too much competition to succeed. I know the presence of competitors shows my venture is worth pursuing, but when there's too many...

It is true that while engineers and doctors are badly needed in today's world, we actually need more EXPERIENCED doctors and engineers. In other words, those who have gone through challenges and succeeded, not some greenie who just exited college waving a bachelors in his hand.

I highly suspect that many went in just for the money or 'just because I am good at it.'

Look, on another note, I'm having a lot of 'entrepreneurship is hard' and 'stick with a 9-5 to be more stable and safe'. Obviously somehow the Fastlane spirit has gone diluted.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP IS HARD IF YOU
a) break all the Fastlane commandments. I did mention in my earlier threads that I had MLM friends and broke relatives who screwed Control, Entry and Time.

b) you don't get help. Help doesn't mean a business partner. It could mean a short course, a new referral, a free tool to boost your website, anything that will give you sales or reduce your worktime.

c) you are scared. (obvious?)

d) you listen to people who say entrepreneurship is hard and will not make you rich. (leads to (c) and a reconsideration of the Law of Effection)

e) you don't have critical thinking

f) you waste cash on every so-called 'business expense' even if it won't net you more cash

In my opinion, everything is hard until you make it easy. I hate the air of cowardice that looms about such threads....makes me feel more sick than yesterday....'cough', 'cough'...getme a doctor someone

Not sure what you're trying to imply. I'm just saying that being an entrepreneur isn't for everyone. Let's be realistic, for every one successful entrepreneur is probably one thousand unsuccessful ones. I made my money in probably one of the slowest lanes (real estate). Although I would love to go faster, sometimes it's just not possible, and that's okay. Life isn't a race and it's not all about money.
 

johnnyqt25

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"Air of cowardice?"

Is everyone who disagrees with your path a coward? Or just those in this thread?

It's probably safe to say that I know some 9-5ers who have made LOTS more money than you likely ever will. They are some of the smartest people I know, and they most certainly aren't scared of entrepreneurship. They just have different priorities than you...

Agree. It's silly that some entrepreneurs think that they are somehow better than 9-5ers just because they don't work a regular job. I saw an Oprah Winfrey show about a surgeon who works in Africa for very low pay, instead of working in the U.S. for tons of money. There's more to life than money, such as purpose.
 

G-Man

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Thank god the unwatch button exists.
 
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AustinS28

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Just going off the title, I've had the fortunate luck to have a large professional network of high net worth individuals. I say luck because I had 0 intentions of this being a byproduct of my business, none whatsoever going into it. It never crossed my mind until I got connected personal training the hedge fund community out here in NYC along with other successful people in STEM and law.

With that said, school does not equal stupidity. I sometimes wish I finished college.

Going to school and getting a job in a STEM field, finance firm, or major law firm is going to give you a huge network of successful people, you'll learn from the best and have partners ready to help you start you start your own business when ready. On top of that you'll be making enough money to bootstrap a lot of projects.

I honestly can not think of many other concrete ways other than doing well in school getting a valuable degree to network, make money and get started rolling into your own thing. Again, I got lucky, not saying your professional network won't be great with or without a degree, but school shouldn't be frowned upon if you're smart, driven and know the path you want to take.

I know many people with degrees who make several hundred thousand a year to millions. Most making several hundred thousand and their salaries are posted online, are in their 30s. That's not a bad place to be in life.

One size doesn't fit all I also know dozens of people who majored in some bull shit or don't apply themselves and have a degree doing nothing.
 

ZF Lee

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"Air of cowardice?"

Is everyone who disagrees with your path a coward? Or just those in this thread?

It's probably safe to say that I know some 9-5ers who have made LOTS more money than you likely ever will. They are some of the smartest people I know, and they most certainly aren't scared of entrepreneurship. They just have different priorities than you...

Sorry..I don't mean any of you to be cowards. I must have been harsh.
I meant some factions or groups that have been cluttering my information feed with articles that purposed on pointing out that entrepreneurship wasn't a gold mine.
For me, it's a gold mine if you work in it or use a machine to dig in it.

9-5ers can make lots of money, especially in high-difficulty areas like petroleum engineering and pharmateuticals but the weakness is that their time is tied to their income.

Remember, we Fastlaners aren't just in it for the money, we are in it for the freedom of time too.


Agree. It's silly that some entrepreneurs think that they are somehow better than 9-5ers just because they don't work a regular job. I saw an Oprah Winfrey show about a surgeon who works in Africa for very low pay, instead of working in the U.S. for tons of money. There's more to life than money, such as purpose.

That surgeon must be working for charity, and that's up to him. I'm sure he has some help from supporting organizations though.

I'm no better that the ordinary 9-5er. You are right. But the difference is that I am aware that I have to use more tools and advantages and leverage than any ordinary 9-5er might. The entrepreneur greats did and used more stuff (not necessarily expensive or cheap, either way) normal people don't. Richard Branson booked his own jet to start his airline. Roped in some ex-airline owner screwed over by the British Airways to help him out.

MJ pioneered lead generation, quite a new online model at that time.

Facebook followed the crowd's wishes in implementation. Had games and all the like. Myspace just got worn down by corporate bureaucracy.

I could go on, but what makes a Fastlaner 'better' is that they do and use things that Slowlaners don't even have time or the mind to....as they are working their asses off for that weekend :)

There's a reason why MJ listed the dangers of the Slowlane at the end of the Slowlane section in TMF
 

Pilot35

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"Air of cowardice?"

Is everyone who disagrees with your path a coward? Or just those in this thread?

It's probably safe to say that I know some 9-5ers who have made LOTS more money than you likely ever will. They are some of the smartest people I know, and they most certainly aren't scared of entrepreneurship. They just have different priorities than you...
Likely ever will? What makes you think so?

The smartest people are the people who can think and figure things out for themselves, not conform and subscribe to some centurion-old concept that no longer works on the modern age.

Just because these top 9-5ers make more money than most entrepreneurs doesn't mean they're wealthier. Wealth is primarily defined by time, not money. Although I don't make as much as some middle manager or corporate lawyer, I don't have to go to work everyday for 10+ hours. I don't have to feel anxious on a Sunday night anticipating Monday tomorrow. Everyday is a Saturday to me. I never had a "real job" my whole life and I love it.
 
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johnnyqt25

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Sorry..I don't mean any of you to be cowards. I must have been harsh.
I meant some factions or groups that have been cluttering my information feed with articles that purposed on pointing out that entrepreneurship wasn't a gold mine.
For me, it's a gold mine if you work in it or use a machine to dig in it.

9-5ers can make lots of money, especially in high-difficulty areas like petroleum engineering and pharmateuticals but the weakness is that their time is tied to their income.

Remember, we Fastlaners aren't just in it for the money, we are in it for the freedom of time too.




That surgeon must be working for charity, and that's up to him. I'm sure he has some help from supporting organizations though.

I'm no better that the ordinary 9-5er. You are right. But the difference is that I am aware that I have to use more tools and advantages and leverage than any ordinary 9-5er might. The entrepreneur greats did and used more stuff (not necessarily expensive or cheap, either way) normal people don't. Richard Branson booked his own jet to start his airline. Roped in some ex-airline owner screwed over by the British Airways to help him out.

MJ pioneered lead generation, quite a new online model at that time.

Facebook followed the crowd's wishes in implementation. Had games and all the like. Myspace just got worn down by corporate bureaucracy.

I could go on, but what makes a Fastlaner 'better' is that they do and use things that Slowlaners don't even have time or the mind to....as they are working their asses off for that weekend :)

There's a reason why MJ listed the dangers of the Slowlane at the end of the Slowlane section in TMF

I wouldn't say "better," just different. And not every slowlaner are working their asses off for the weekend. Many are smart enough to have savings, investments, and properties. I'm a slowlaner who has these things, and can retire now if I wanted to, but like I said, there's more to life than money.
 

johnnyqt25

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Likely ever will? What makes you think so?

The smartest people are the people who can think and figure things out for themselves, not conform and subscribe to some centurion-old concept that no longer works on the modern age.

Just because these top 9-5ers make more money than most entrepreneurs doesn't mean they're wealthier. Wealth is primarily defined by time, not money. Although I don't make as much as some middle manager or corporate lawyer, I don't have to go to work everyday for 10+ hours. I don't have to feel anxious on a Sunday night anticipating Monday tomorrow. Everyday is a Saturday to me. I never had a "real job" my whole life and I love it.

Some people prefer the safer route of the slowlane and there's nothing wrong with that. Entrepreneurship isn't easy and very risky, especially if you're older and have a family. That's great that you never had a real job, but nobody really cares. Every person is in a different situation and being an entrepreneur isn't for everyone. No need to look down on them.
 

MJ DeMarco

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Geez, does it occur to anyone in this thread that this video (and similar ones like it) is NOT intended for people who are happy with their job, their boss, and their life? It is not for people who are comfortable with the idea of a job for 5 decades? INTENT and AUDIENCE needs to be considered.

Such people aren't watching these videos, much less searching for them. The message IS NOT for them.

I have several friends who have made well over $10M in the "slowlane," a couple well over $50M.

Sorry but this is a statistical outlier (Like 2 or 3 standard deviation) when it comes from someone with a broad history at Microsoft, startups, and Silicon Valley in general. There is no shock in hearing that the Assistant Engineer to the VP of Technology at [some tech firm in the valley] is a multimillionaire much less the secretary at Microsoft.
 
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MJ DeMarco

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It's exactly the same.

I'd had a feeling you'd come back and claim the same odds for entrepreneurs, but you're simply normalizing two widely variant bell curves. It's the old "apples to oranges" comparison.

Changing the odds and widening the bell curve is WHY WE ARE HERE.

Some random employee at some random job has virtually NO CHANCE of getting rich and setting themselves free -- their bell curve is extremely steep with statistical odds in the 2, 3 and 4 SD ranges. Even at 1SD, they are at a six-figure job. Add in the fact that they are limited in options for manipulation.

If they come under your tutelage w/respect to becoming a highly-paid employee w/gobs of stock options, they might improve their statistical odds and WIDEN the bell curve. If they take your instruction, now they've improved their odds -- instead of 3 and 4 SD probability, maybe now they're dealing with a 1.5, or even a 1 SD probability.

Again, this manipulation (no matter the path) is why we are here.

The bell-curve of a standard employee is extremely steep -- and it's extremely limited in manipulation.

But, what percentage of entrepreneurs do you think make $10M?

All things held equal, I'd imagine it's much better than the bell curve (not as steep) of your ordinary employee.

Still, the bell-curve of the average entrepreneur who thinks selling t-shirts and blogging about six-pack abs, ALSO has STEEP bell curve with odds that probably aren't much better.

The 9-5ers who make the smart decisions succeed, just like the entrepreneurs who make smart decisions. Show me a liberals arts college, and I'll show you a lot of people who will likely never get rich; show me all the posts on this forum about making money in the fitness/weightlifting space, and I'll show you a lot of "entrepreneurs" who will likely never get rich.

True, but I view them as being in the right direction, just the wrong path.

The entire point of this forum (and my writings) is to change the shape of the bell curve which we attach ourselves to -- and to give entrepreneurs a better than a 2,3 and 4, SD chance of creating a life-changing business.

If this forum (or my book) succeeds in WIDENING the bell curve, it's done its job.

That said, I can name dozens of entrepreneurs on this forum who have a better than a 2 or 3 SD chance at making $10M -- perhaps 1SD or better. My money is on them because they've manipulated their bell curve by making the right decisions in business.

As I see it, the options to manipulate the probability curve for an entrepreneur is 10X greater with 10X more options than an employee who must navigate job economics, demand, and educational credentials demanded by an employer, not to mention, "knowing the right people."

At the end of the day, none of this matters for someone who is content with a job, people who are unlikely to be on this forum, much less in the pages of my book.
 
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G-Man

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I'm not sophisticated enough for all of this analysis, and a lot of others probably aren't, either. If you're a medical doctor, or some other high earner, then it's probably a relevant decision matrix to look at.

For the other 80+% of the population, it's either take the entrepreneurship leap, or a virtually 100% chance of mediocrity.

Granted my definition of mediocrity doesn't exclude wealth if that wealth comes only in old age or involves listening to some 23 year old HR person tell me I have to give 2 weeks lead time to take a day off.
 

MJ DeMarco

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I'm not sophisticated enough for all of this analysis.

Sure you are, it's simple probability.

If the odds of pulling a red card in a standard deck of 52 cards is 50%, would you agree that removing 4 black cards improves your probability? Perhaps CENTS removes a few black cards? Perhaps blogging about fitness adds nothing?

I'm merely saying that our actions and chosen life paths have the ability to ADD or SUBTRACT cards -- entrepreneurship gives us more options to manipulate the deck we face -- as an employee, the options simply aren't as plentiful.

We're here to control our destiny.
 
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G-Man

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We're here to control our destiny.

I'm with you up to that statement. I don't think anybody would be here if they didn't at least believe that.... and I have for sure pulled some black cards out of my deck.
 

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Just based on the numbers. I have several friends who have made well over $10M in the "slowlane," a couple well over $50M. While I don't have any data to support this, I'd be willing to bet that the median income for an entrepreneur is far less than $10M. So, statistically, it's likely that some of my friends have made more than he ever will.

I dont know where you are living / what circles you run in but 10M and 50M working for someone else is certainly NOT the norm and telling anyone that they have a chance of making even half of that much working for someone else is a open and shut case of blatant fraud

us-total-money-income-distribution-by-age-2012.png
 
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G-Man

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open and shut case of blatant fraud

I'm concerned you don't know what fraud is.

This is why I unwatched this. Damn my morbid curiosity!
 

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If i stay in my career ill 100% never be a millionaire.

If i pursue the fastlane it's possible.
 

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I'd had a feeling you'd come back and claim the same odds for entrepreneurs, but you're simply normalizing two widely variant bell curves. It's the old "apples to oranges" comparison.

Changing the odds and widening the bell curve is WHY WE ARE HERE.

Some random employee at some random job has virtually NO CHANCE of getting rich and setting themselves free -- their bell curve is extremely steep with statistical odds in the 2, 3 and 4 SD ranges. Even at 1SD, they are at a six-figure job. Add in the fact that they are limited in options for manipulation.

If they come under your tutelage w/respect to becoming a highly-paid employee w/gobs of stock options, they might improve their statistical odds and WIDEN the bell curve. If they take your instruction, now they've improved their odds -- instead of 3 and 4 SD probability, maybe now they're dealing with a 1.5, or even a 1 SD probability.

Again, this manipulation (no matter the path) is why we are here.

The bell-curve of a standard employee is extremely steep -- and it's extremely limited in manipulation.



All things held equal, I'd imagine it's much better than the bell curve (not as steep) of your ordinary employee.

Still, the bell-curve of the average entrepreneur who thinks selling t-shirts and blogging about six-pack abs, ALSO has STEEP bell curve with odds that probably aren't much better.



True, but I view them as being in the right direction, just the wrong path.

The entire point of this forum (and my writings) is to change the shape of the bell curve which we attach ourselves to -- and to give entrepreneurs a better than a 2,3 and 4, SD chance of creating a life-changing business.

If this forum (or my book) succeeds in WIDENING the bell curve, it's done its job.

That said, I can name dozens of entrepreneurs on this forum who have a better than a 2 or 3 SD chance at making $10M -- perhaps 1SD or better. My money is on them because they've manipulated their bell curve by making the right decisions in business.

As I see it, the options to manipulate the probability curve for an entrepreneur is 10X greater with 10X more options than an employee who must navigate job economics, demand, and educational credentials demanded by an employer, not to mention, "knowing the right people."

At the end of the day, none of this matters for someone who is content with a job, people who are unlikely to be on this forum, much less in the pages of my book.
I knew you would come in sir!
This post really made my day!
You really explained things better.
 
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SquatchMan

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You can certainly make good money as an employee, but I wouldn't bet on it for most employees. I worked for a local accounting firm prepping tax returns and doing bookkeeping when I was in high school.

I prepped a return for a life insurance agent that made over 1 million in income that year. He didn't own the firm either, just a guy that had a huge network from a past career and started selling insurance later in life.

All the other million dollar earners were business owners. One of them paid 5 million dollars in federal income tax (not that impressive on this forum) and I got to hold the multi-million dollar cashier's check at 16 years old, which was super cool. Won't say the industry, but lots of people on this forum are in it.

Show me an entrepreneur at the same stage of his career, and I'll have absolutely no idea his chance of success.

I usually have a decent idea. If I hear:

"The only reason they're rich is because they got lucky" or "I'm so unlucky" then I can usually say they won't be successful. Granted those entrepreneurs hop back into the 9-5 rather quickly.
 

White Wolf

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It's all about making the money to provide for yourself and your dependants. However you do that, more power to you. Entrepreneurs couldn't exist without employees to work for them on a 9-5 basis, and those employees couldn't exist without entrepreneurs to hire them.

I don't like it when people bash the 9-5 lifestyle excessively. I see such people in the same way as I see those who bash formal education excessively. A lot of good things come from both. If you want to be a millionaire by 25, a 9-5 may not get you there. But I will point out that the majority of successful entrepreneurs had more formal education than the average person in their time, and most of them worked in 9-5 positions before they acquired the knowledge and resources to go out on their own.

Andrew Carnegie, for example, spent years working a 9-5 (and he actually worked more than 8 hours a day), first in a cotton mill and then as a telegraph operator, learning the industry in and out, where he made many of the connections and some of the money that eventually enabled him to become an entrepreneur.

That being said, if you want to be a young millionaire, it's going to be difficult to get there on the 9-5 lifestyle alone. I suspect that it will be increasingly more difficult with the rising cost of living and the growing scarcity of well-paying 9-5 jobs as a result of a combination of factors, including wage stagnation, globalization, inflation, and automation.

What a 9-5 job offers is an almost linear distribution of free time over the span of your career. That is, you'll always be working 9-5, but after 5:00P.M., you're relieved of your duties for the rest of the evening (and the weekend) until your next shift. This will be relatively consistent until you retire. With the "fastlane" lifestyle, the distribution is more exponential. You'll have much less free time in the early stages of your career than you would if you were working 9-5, as you'll have to live and breathe your business in order to carve your place in the market. But once you do, and the money starts rolling in, you will have access to a much greater amount of free time and freedom than you ever would in the 9-5 lifestyle, and at a much younger age. So it's a trade-off.

But not everybody has the discipline, courage, intelligence, and level head required to be an entrepreneur. Such people, in my opinion, are better-suited to work a 9-5. I'm a believer in the Aristotelian concept of the "natural slave" - that some people are better-suited to be leaders and others are better-suited to be followers. It's all about knowing your strengths and weaknesses, capitalizing on your strengths and mitigating your weaknesses through the right choices.
 

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