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.

A hello from cold Montreal

GuitarOmniaVinci

New Contributor
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
115%
Oct 21, 2021
13
15
Montreal
Hi all !

My name is Olivier, I'm French Canadian from Montreal.

I've read MJ's books in early 2020 while I was finishing my bachelor degree. It really did hit home with me, because, since as early as I can remember, I could never see myself working a traditional 5 days a week job like the vast majority of people. I always thought that there had to be more to life then this type of conventional, absolutely not adventurous and basically mediocre life. So when I was a teenager and wondering what I'd like to do as a grown up, I knew I'd at least give a shot at something more interesting and meaningful to me. At that time I had the same expectations as young MJ - to be living the good life, you had to be athletic, a famous singer, musician, artist, writer etc.

I gravitated towards football, writing and music for some time but ultimately I decided I had to go all-in in the one thing in which I was the most talented in and which came the most naturally - I chose music. From age 15 to 19 I spent basically all my free time playing guitar. From age 18 to 20 I was out of school and worked both in bands and learned record production in a local recording studio. This period was very hard psychologically because I was very young and immature. I had absolutely no support from family and was feeling like a complete disappointment to my parents. I was going completely unscripted and definitely did't have enough real world experience to feel confident that the seeders themselves were the problem and that I was not just a crazy weirdo dreamer.

In hindsight at the time I think I might have become a bit depressed and decided to quit Montreal and go see the world. I traveled from New Orleans to Vancouver and hung out in a lot of places along the way. I basically headed West to California going through Texas etc. I had heard from when hitchhiking in QC that there was a lot of money to be made in Western Canada's oil fields. So I invited two friends of mine and we spent a month trying to get work as roughneck. We finally got some work in Saskatchewan in oil wells servicing. The work was really hard in a dangerous environment and the work culture was very tough. But I was making about 10k$ a month and saved money on rent for 5-6 months. I spent all that money on a bike trip in Europe the next summer. When I came back I decided I was going to go back to school and see if I could tolerate the conventional life, after-all.

My experience in oil made me choose Mining Engineering as a major. I knew I was interested in doing shift work where I could be working 14 days and then get 14 days off. I went all in into school just like I had done with music. I had the best grades and won all the scholarships. I was finally receiving some validation for my efforts whereas I had worked even harder on music and never reaped any benefit... It gave me the opportunity to go live in Australia for a year in 2019. I studied at Melbourne's RMIT Uni for a semester and then headed out to Perth to find work as a Driller's offsider. This is work similar to being a roughneck : I was working 28 days then 14 off and I took every chance to go visit Asia when I was off with an additional 10k in my pockets every time. I worked there for 5 or 6 months then left and travelled all over Vietnam with two friends of mine. I came back to finish my degree in January 2020.

Then came Covid, hitting really hard. I was confined to my room in my father's basement and started putting everything in perspective. I started reading the millionnaire fastlane and unscripted and it reignited the fire I had as a kid. Also as I grew older, I realized all the people who were putting me down for pursuing my dreams and passion were living the most mediocre and boring lives. They were still living on pretty much the same street they were born on, had not travelled anywhere interesting, were not making good money, were stuck in the same relationship they had just fallen into years ago and to top it all, had lost their looks. I was angry at myself for letting them have an influence over me... (Funnily enough, one of the only supportive person I knew while growing up never gave up and actually made it very big).

Anyway these days, I finally got the job I wanted ever since I went back to school 5 years ago. Life is great, I've accomplished all the other goals that were more important to me then money and therefore, now has come the time to work on my finances. I have integrated a similar mindset to MJ's baseball analogy in relation to success long before reading his books and I don't mind striking out as many time as needed before hitting a home run. I am not gonna quit again, it is now clear I have absolutely no control over that burning desire for freedom I've always had. It is always gonna be there.

I am now planning to first work on monetizing my existing skills even though I am aware these projects are probably not gonna make big bucks. Nevertheless, I think it's a good way to get a start, get the ball rolling and gain a little momentum on which to build more ambitious projects later on.

My first project is based on music. Expressed as simply as possible : a website offering information on how to acquire the skillset in a way that is also entertaining.

If it gets some traction I'd monetize it with the promotion of the products I'm actually using or by having an e-com section on the website... That would be in quite some time down the line though.

Pretty low expectations to be honest, but I think I can learn a lot and gain good experience from taking this project as far as I can, and then move on to the next.

Here's my first video :
View: https://youtu.be/Wyc5e82jOiw
- It's just an Eric Clapton guitar solo cover to give an idea. I am aware posting a youtube video as a first post is frowned upon but I am not promoting any product or anything. I see it as a part of this introduction to the community. Let me know if you prefer I take it out, I would understand...

I'll share the website once it is more developed. I've bought the domain and got it set up though. The Website is basically gonna be an equivalent to a book teaching classic rock/blues guitar playing + singer/songwriter style of performance, free of access.

Obviously left a lot out but I think it's still a lot for a start.

Ok thanks for reading, I'll see you around !
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

MJ DeMarco

I followed the science; all I found was money.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
445%
Jul 23, 2007
38,083
169,524
Utah
We should get a band together, @SamRussell is pretty darn good guitar player too. ;)

Thanks for sharing, and welcome to the forum.
 

StrikingViper69

Shredding scales and making sales
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
167%
Dec 3, 2018
1,452
2,422
UK
Hi all !

My name is Olivier, I'm French Canadian from Montreal.

I've read MJ's books in early 2020 while I was finishing my bachelor degree. It really did hit home with me, because, since as early as I can remember, I could never see myself working a traditional 5 days a week job like the vast majority of people. I always thought that there had to be more to life then this type of conventional, absolutely not adventurous and basically mediocre life. So when I was a teenager and wondering what I'd like to do as a grown up, I knew I'd at least give a shot at something more interesting and meaningful to me. At that time I had the same expectations as young MJ - to be living the good life, you had to be athletic, a famous singer, musician, artist, writer etc.

I gravitated towards football, writing and music for some time but ultimately I decided I had to go all-in in the one thing in which I was the most talented in and which came the most naturally - I chose music. From age 15 to 19 I spent basically all my free time playing guitar. From age 18 to 20 I was out of school and worked both in bands and learned record production in a local recording studio. This period was very hard psychologically because I was very young and immature. I had absolutely no support from family and was feeling like a complete disappointment to my parents. I was going completely unscripted and definitely did't have enough real world experience to feel confident that the seeders themselves were the problem and that I was not just a crazy weirdo dreamer.

In hindsight at the time I think I might have become a bit depressed and decided to quit Montreal and go see the world. I traveled from New Orleans to Vancouver and hung out in a lot of places along the way. I basically headed West to California going through Texas etc. I had heard from when hitchhiking in QC that there was a lot of money to be made in Western Canada's oil fields. So I invited two friends of mine and we spent a month trying to get work as roughneck. We finally got some work in Saskatchewan in oil wells servicing. The work was really hard in a dangerous environment and the work culture was very tough. But I was making about 10k$ a month and saved money on rent for 5-6 months. I spent all that money on a bike trip in Europe the next summer. When I came back I decided I was going to go back to school and see if I could tolerate the conventional life, after-all.

My experience in oil made me choose Mining Engineering as a major. I knew I was interested in doing shift work where I could be working 14 days and then get 14 days off. I went all in into school just like I had done with music. I had the best grades and won all the scholarships. I was finally receiving some validation for my efforts whereas I had worked even harder on music and never reaped any benefit... It gave me the opportunity to go live in Australia for a year in 2019. I studied at Melbourne's RMIT Uni for a semester and then headed out to Perth to find work as a Driller's offsider. This is work similar to being a roughneck : I was working 28 days then 14 off and I took every chance to go visit Asia when I was off with an additional 10k in my pockets every time. I worked there for 5 or 6 months then left and travelled all over Vietnam with two friends of mine. I came back to finish my degree in January 2020.

Then came C0VlD, hitting really hard. I was confined to my room in my father's basement and started putting everything in perspective. I started reading the millionnaire fastlane and unscripted and it reignited the fire I had as a kid. Also as I grew older, I realized all the people who were putting me down for pursuing my dreams and passion were living the most mediocre and boring lives. They were still living on pretty much the same street they were born on, had not travelled anywhere interesting, were not making good money, were stuck in the same relationship they had just fallen into years ago and to top it all, had lost their looks. I was angry at myself for letting them have an influence over me... (Funnily enough, one of the only supportive person I knew while growing up never gave up and actually made it very big).

Anyway these days, I finally got the job I wanted ever since I went back to school 5 years ago. Life is great, I've accomplished all the other goals that were more important to me then money and therefore, now has come the time to work on my finances. I have integrated a similar mindset to MJ's baseball analogy in relation to success long before reading his books and I don't mind striking out as many time as needed before hitting a home run. I am not gonna quit again, it is now clear I have absolutely no control over that burning desire for freedom I've always had. It is always gonna be there.

I am now planning to first work on monetizing my existing skills even though I am aware these projects are probably not gonna make big bucks. Nevertheless, I think it's a good way to get a start, get the ball rolling and gain a little momentum on which to build more ambitious projects later on.

My first project is based on music. Expressed as simply as possible : a website offering information on how to acquire the skillset in a way that is also entertaining.

If it gets some traction I'd monetize it with the promotion of the products I'm actually using or by having an e-com section on the website... That would be in quite some time down the line though.

Pretty low expectations to be honest, but I think I can learn a lot and gain good experience from taking this project as far as I can, and then move on to the next.

Here's my first video :
View: https://youtu.be/Wyc5e82jOiw
- It's just an Eric Clapton guitar solo cover to give an idea. I am aware posting a youtube video as a first post is frowned upon but I am not promoting any product or anything. I see it as a part of this introduction to the community. Let me know if you prefer I take it out, I would understand...

I'll share the website once it is more developed. I've bought the domain and got it set up though. The Website is basically gonna be an equivalent to a book teaching classic rock/blues guitar playing + singer/songwriter style of performance, free of access.

Obviously left a lot out but I think it's still a lot for a start.

Ok thanks for reading, I'll see you around !

Welcome to the forum - and nice playing!

Something I've seen people make pretty big money with is having YouTube leading to courses. Someone I know does this, they teach people to play simple strumming songs, and have a $30/mo course on the fundamentals of playing guitar.

You could do something similar, rather than just playing solos / songs, make videos breaking down how to play them, then have your website behind a paywall.

Thanks for the shoutout @MJ DeMarco
 

Private Witt

Gold Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
220%
Feb 20, 2018
984
2,168
Oklahoma

MJ DeMarco

I followed the science; all I found was money.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
445%
Jul 23, 2007
38,083
169,524
Utah
Call the band MJ and The Fastlaners.

Except I can't sing or play an instrument, I'd ruin the band before they even got started. I'd have to go full-scale Milli Vanilli to pull this off... :rofl:
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

GuitarOmniaVinci

New Contributor
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
115%
Oct 21, 2021
13
15
Montreal
Sort of. People value having a structured course and also having a point of contact for asking questions and getting help.

Your idea can work, but from what I've seen, the earning potential for sharing products is capped - some of the bigger names in the online guitar world already complain about not making much from their million view YouTube videos.

If you look at the numbers, it's easy to see why:
Someone buys a guitar from your affiliate link - you get maybe $50 for that sale (IF it's a top end guitar).
Someone buys a t shirt from you - you make $5 profit.
Someone subscribes to your course(s) for 10 months: $300 profit.

Now if you're making your own products, like how Rob Chapman and Ola Englund launched their own guitar brands, that's a different story!

Whatever you do, work out the maths behind it.

Thanks a lot for the advice, will keep that in mind !

Can't see why I couldn’t do both !
 
Last edited:

GuitarOmniaVinci

New Contributor
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
115%
Oct 21, 2021
13
15
Montreal
:rofl::rofl: Let's go

@SamRussell Thanks man I appreciate !

That definitely is along the lines of what I'm planning. I think that's where people might find value, in learning the skillset.

I want to give the info for free though and monetize the project through products instead later on. More of a win-win situation I think, the info is already available for free...
 

StrikingViper69

Shredding scales and making sales
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
167%
Dec 3, 2018
1,452
2,422
UK
:rofl::rofl: Let's go

@SamRussell Thanks man I appreciate !

That definitely is along the lines of what I'm planning. I think that's where people might find value, in learning the skillset.

I want to give the info for free though and monetize the project through products instead later on. More of a win-win situation I think, the info is already available for free...

Sort of. People value having a structured course and also having a point of contact for asking questions and getting help.

Your idea can work, but from what I've seen, the earning potential for sharing products is capped - some of the bigger names in the online guitar world already complain about not making much from their million view YouTube videos.

If you look at the numbers, it's easy to see why:
Someone buys a guitar from your affiliate link - you get maybe $50 for that sale (IF it's a top end guitar).
Someone buys a t shirt from you - you make $5 profit.
Someone subscribes to your course(s) for 10 months: $300 profit.

Now if you're making your own products, like how Rob Chapman and Ola Englund launched their own guitar brands, that's a different story!

Whatever you do, work out the maths behind it.
 

Post New Topic

Please SEARCH before posting.
Please select the BEST category.

Post new topic

Guest post submissions offered HERE.

New Topics

Fastlane Insiders

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

Join Fastlane Insiders.

More Intros...

Top