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.

LloydVII

New Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
73%
Sep 7, 2017
11
8
26
pittsburgh
Never made a intro post, but here it is..

I'm a 22 yo who drives trucks but now I'm going back to school for CS.

I'll be active on forms daily and my ultimate goal is to gain high skills in tech and accelerate my path to FATFIRING (even though I live in a low col city).

I recently had a daughter and I have my class B (with no loans of debt) but the pay scale is capped for local / regional driving + I want to escape the rat race and driving trucks isn't a option. I could get my class A but I'd have to take debt at a trucking school or join a big carrier and go OTR (which is something I don't want to do). Even If I had a Class A, OTR doesn't guarantee the amount of income I want to make / or owning a truck. Getting a bach in CS, seems like a good investment with a higher chance of reaching my goals.

Ik some will say, "why go to school to take debt if you want to create your own business?", my response to this is simple, the education and the salary I'd make would help fund any business ideas or goals I have. Coming from a regular / poor household, I have no money, no funding, no help, and driving a truck earning 50-60k a year is ok for most people, but it's not enough to $ to help my goals. Taking college debt won't be a problem because it'll be a car payment every month which I could pay down or off completely once I made enough $.

Any tips or advice on my plan / my career path? I started off making $12hr with no cdl, and went up to $22hr after almost 2 years of experience / and earning my class B

PS: I've read The Millionaire Fastlane and listened to the unscripted audio book + I've watching MJ DeMarco's youtube videos / his interviews on youtube.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Ernman

Gold Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
224%
Feb 8, 2019
969
2,168
64
Florida, USA
So what is your plan? Get a degree to earn more money? Doing what? I'm sorry but "gain high skills in tech and accelerate my path to FATFIRING" is still slow lane thinking. I sense there's more to you, so perhaps you're just having a hard time articulating where you want to go with this?

I'm not trying to put you down. You're obviously hard working and responsible. And there's nothing wrong with getting a college degree to focus skills for a fast lane life. But don't just go college because you think you'll earn more money and be able to be Financially Independent and Retire Early (FIRE). That is more scripted reprogramming in a new name.
 

LloydVII

New Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
73%
Sep 7, 2017
11
8
26
pittsburgh
So what is your plan? Get a degree to earn more money? Doing what? I'm sorry but "gain high skills in tech and accelerate my path to FATFIRING" is still slow lane thinking. I sense there's more to you, so perhaps you're just having a hard time articulating where you want to go with this?

I'm not trying to put you down. You're obviously hard working and responsible. And there's nothing wrong with getting a college degree to focus skills for a fast lane life. But don't just go college because you think you'll earn more money and be able to be Financially Independent and Retire Early (FIRE). That is more scripted reprogramming in a new name.
Mm I agree with you, it does seem like more scripted reprogramming, but my ultimate plan is to get a degree > earn more money faster (accelerate my earning potential quicker in the tech field) > FATFIRE early.

I feel like tech has a higher chance of leading me to FATFIRING vs driving trucks.

I envision creating a company using my tech skills and reaching FATFIRE EARLY.
 

Nick T

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
271%
Aug 26, 2020
52
141
Mm I agree with you, it does seem like more scripted reprogramming, but my ultimate plan is to get a degree > earn more money faster (accelerate my earning potential quicker in the tech field) > FATFIRE early.

I feel like tech has a higher chance of leading me to FATFIRING vs driving trucks.

I envision creating a company using my tech skills and reaching FATFIRE EARLY.

What will accelerate you faster than a degree... is just learning to code and building something.

Here is some free resources...





If you are trying to leverage a higher paying job into a creating a company you can go the IT route as well...

Get your AWS certifications... Get your security specialty and networking professional certs... A lot of the internet is powered by AWS...

acloud.guru is awesome for this...

If you want to accelerate your earning potential... you need execution, not a degree...
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.
D

Deleted74338

Guest
Mm I agree with you, it does seem like more scripted reprogramming, but my ultimate plan is to get a degree > earn more money faster (accelerate my earning potential quicker in the tech field) > FATFIRE early.

I feel like tech has a higher chance of leading me to FATFIRING vs driving trucks.

I envision creating a company using my tech skills and reaching FATFIRE EARLY.
There are many stories of CS graduates that can't code just like there are many stories of non-CS people that have programming jobs, so I would not bet on doing a 3-4 year degree just to learn coding and getting a job, there are better ways. And I also think that going to college now is scripted thinking. If you decide to go to college, make sure you learn coding and start building your business in your free time, don't wait another 4 years, because 4 years will turn into 6,8,10 and you will never start.

You could do "The Odin Project" which could get you a job within 6-12 months, so in 4 years time you will have 3 years of experience + money saved up + same skills you would if you went the CS degree route.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Einfamilienhaus

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
188%
Feb 8, 2019
217
408
I like your idea to receive a higher degree, to do a better job, maybe to get the social recognition you are also looking for which is connected with the job.

I do coding by my own and I can tell you: Yes, it is possible to earn a few bucks. But it is not so easy as many people act like.

Coding is serious work like many other jobs out there. Especially in this working field you need a higher dedication and knowledge than just to be the best bartender in your town who earns 20 bucks in an hour while serves coca cola and Sprite for his guests. If you really want to be the best bartender in your town, than you should do one of the 6 months courses out there.

I dont understand why people say just do this or that program and in 6 months you will have a high salary income of 100k+/month as a programmer. Such statements are far away from the reality. Yes, it is possible to work for Google and have no degree in Computer Science but you have to be extraordinary good. Even more than. Because those people who have make this step possible, they have started coding since they are 10 years old and they have now 15+ years of coding experience and they have been in projects involved which are highly abstract and complex even to understand logically.

If you really want to go to college and learn coding. Do it, but be aware that a college doesn't even make you good in coding. It will just give you the tools to understand how to do. At the end of the day, it is your own dedication to actively learn coding while you are studying.

What ever decision you will make. Take at least the coding as a serious work and never do the mistake to end up as 5 Bucks programming freelancer on Upwork.
 

LloydVII

New Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
73%
Sep 7, 2017
11
8
26
pittsburgh
What will accelerate you faster than a degree... is just learning to code and building something.

Here is some free resources...





If you are trying to leverage a higher paying job into a creating a company you can go the IT route as well...

Get your AWS certifications... Get your security specialty and networking professional certs... A lot of the internet is powered by AWS...

acloud.guru is awesome for this...

If you want to accelerate your earning potential... you need execution, not a degree...
I appreciate your response and all the sources you gave me, I'm gonna look into them more and try to develop a stratagem. I've heard of people who have bach degrees in CS who can't code and Ik most companies are looking for real coding skills. The problem isn't learning the information or building up a portfolio (without school), the problem for me is, staying disciplined, consistently learning it on my own, and competing against other people in the field with degrees.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

LloydVII

New Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
73%
Sep 7, 2017
11
8
26
pittsburgh
There are many stories of CS graduates that can't code just like there are many stories of non-CS people that have programming jobs, so I would not bet on doing a 3-4 year degree just to learn coding and getting a job, there are better ways. And I also think that going to college now is scripted thinking. If you decide to go to college, make sure you learn coding and start building your business in your free time, don't wait another 4 years, because 4 years will turn into 6,8,10 and you will never start.

You could do "The Odin Project" which could get you a job within 6-12 months, so in 4 years time you will have 3 years of experience + money saved up + same skills you would if you went the CS degree route.
Interesting, I've never heard of the Odin Project, I'll check it out. Thanks for the response and advice! College is indeed scripted thinking and I agree, it could get pushed back (the idea of creating a tech company), if I'm completely trapped within the rat race.

I'm going to start learning how to code asap and really rethink school. The OPP COST for a Bach Degree in computer science isn't terrible (over 4 years, I'd attend community college 1st then transfer over to UNI and save alot of $$$) and the debt spread over 30y, would basically be a car payment per month but If I could circumvent this process (or skip it by learning it on my own) and get a job by 2022 with no loan debt, it'd help me reach my goals even faster (especially when you factor in the useless classes college requires you to take)
 

LloydVII

New Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
73%
Sep 7, 2017
11
8
26
pittsburgh
I like your idea to receive a higher degree, to do a better job, maybe to get the social recognition you are also looking for which is connected with the job.

I do coding by my own and I can tell you: Yes, it is possible to earn a few bucks. But it is not so easy as many people act like.

Coding is serious work like many other jobs out there. Especially in this working field you need a higher dedication and knowledge than just to be the best bartender in your town who earns 20 bucks in an hour while serves coca cola and Sprite for his guests. If you really want to be the best bartender in your town, than you should do one of the 6 months courses out there.

I dont understand why people say just do this or that program and in 6 months you will have a high salary income of 100k+/month as a programmer. Such statements are far away from the reality. Yes, it is possible to work for Google and have no degree in Computer Science but you have to be extraordinary good. Even more than. Because those people who have make this step possible, they have started coding since they are 10 years old and they have now 15+ years of coding experience and they have been in projects involved which are highly abstract and complex even to understand logically.

If you really want to go to college and learn coding. Do it, but be aware that a college doesn't even make you good in coding. It will just give you the tools to understand how to do. At the end of the day, it is your own dedication to actively learn coding while you are studying.

What ever decision you will make. Take at least the coding as a serious work and never do the mistake to end up as 5 Bucks programming freelancer on Upwork.
I appreciate your response, and when you say a few bucks, how much roughly are we talking (per year)?

Also, how'd you learn it on your own / by yourself and how long did it take to get a job / develop your career?

I will also take coding very seriously and you're right, college doesn't make you a real coder, it just gives you a foundational understanding of what it is, why it works, etc but not really how to use languages like python, C++, JAVA, etc.
 

Einfamilienhaus

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
188%
Feb 8, 2019
217
408
I appreciate your response, and when you say a few bucks, how much roughly are we talking (per year)?
Your question depends on your fundamental skills in programming, your confidence which contracts you thinkyou can handle, your time you can invest to improve your skills and the risk you are willing to take.

Let's say you have no real experience as a programmer before and you also have no real experience on how to contact potential clients, how to make good deals and how to value your time per hour, then it can be really difficult to make a living from your first year.

The only way where you could maybe make a living from it, is when you living standards are pretty low. I guess you are living in the U.S. and depends on in which state you live, you will need maybe several thousand dollars to just have the minimum living standards.

So when you will start your journey as a programmer it would be wisely to have a side job or to do studying next to the time where you learn on how to code, to find the clients and so on....

For my own experience and what other people told me who are doing the same, I can call myself lucky to save up the first thousand dollars in the first 1 1/2 years. But the reason for this 8s because I have a minimum living standards of 800 - 900 euros in a month. And the 8 months of the first year I was working in full-time. If I would have to pay the living cost from day one, I would lose a lot of money.

The second reason why I call myself lucky, is because I have great clients who are appreciating my work and they are working with me till these days since day one. They also recommend me to other new clients which is not quite common, especially when you will start your journey as a unknown programmer with no much experience.

There are two ways on how you can earn money. Via B2C which I would highly recommend you! Because the benefits are bigger than the negatives!

Or the more "easier" way is the do freelancing. The benefits of freelancing are that you will earn the first 5 bucks fast and you also learn your market about the real demand. So you can optimize your skills more profitable.

If you want to start your journey as a freelancer with less difficulties I would recommend you the following two courses from Lex DeVille:

1. Advanced Upwork Profiles: Craft a Magnetic Profile Today!

2. Advanced Upwork Proposals: Tips to 10X Client Responses Fast

These are the best 20 Bucks I have invested because I could turn the insights from these courses into my first 1k. These insights are not limited to Upwork. Especially from the second lesson.

Also, how'd you learn it on your own / by yourself and how long did it take to get a job / develop your career?
How long it took to find my first client? I don't really know, but maybe just a few months. I think it was through a recommendation of a friend, but I'm not really sure. Remember, I only do make Web Design. If you want to gain deeper knowledge and do more specialised programming it will maybe take more time. But the payment is also higher and you will face less competition!

To learn programming I did also took a 10$ course on Udemy. There you will learn the basics of HTML & CSS. If you want, I can take a look in my Udemy history to find out how this calls.

I call tell you that even after 1 1/2 years I'm not a good programmer. But that is ok. I think every work which requires more mental dedication than physical, is an endless journey of constantly learning.

No matter what kind of decision you are going to make. Make sure that you have to take the responsibility of success and failure by yourself. If you let your own decisions depend on what others might think or do, you will never reach the goal you want to achieve.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

7.62x51

Bronze Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
180%
Jan 27, 2015
168
303
35
This is the path I took.

My thinking was that I didn't know if/when I'd succeed on a fastlane path so I wanted to have a slowdown backup option until then.

Now that I've done the degree and have started an okay career. My biggest piece of advice, especially for something related to software, make sure you enjoy it or can at least tolerate it.

Also this may or may not be a good thing from a fastlane perspective but once you have a degree and a steady career, you become a lot more picky about what type of fastlane ventures you'll entertain.
 

LloydVII

New Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
73%
Sep 7, 2017
11
8
26
pittsburgh
This is the path I took.

My thinking was that I didn't know if/when I'd succeed on a fastlane path so I wanted to have a slowdown backup option until then.

Now that I've done the degree and have started an okay career. My biggest piece of advice, especially for something related to software, make sure you enjoy it or can at least tolerate it.

Also this may or may not be a good thing from a fastlane perspective but once you have a degree and a steady career, you become a lot more picky about what type of fastlane ventures you'll entertain.
On the surface it can seem like another slow-lane pathway, but I feel like in the tech world, I have a higher chance of creating something serious / rewarding VS being stuck in the trucking industry with no room for growth. I have the mindset of tricking the system, using the slowlane pathway in-order to escape it faster (through tech) by earning more $$ and having the opportunity to grow, build up skills and create a successful business. Instead of just going to school, getting a job and retiring, my goal is to go to school, get a job, jump from that entry level job to a better job, go from that better job to a startup or work on starting up my own company using the skills I've attained.

When it comes to creating a business, my goal is to create something scalable (like MJ DeMarco talks about). If I drove trucks, I could save up money and eventually create a trucking company or a mom / pop type of shop / or something local, but I want to create something new, innovative, and scalable (and coding / CS skills can lead me to this goal). Scalable as in, a new app, platform, or something involving tech which can be used by millions of people.

Some might say, why not save up money and outsource my ideas (find programmers, or people with the skills), but I feel like serious companies have owners / founders who are masters of what they own
 
Last edited:

LloydVII

New Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
73%
Sep 7, 2017
11
8
26
pittsburgh
Your question depends on your fundamental skills in programming, your confidence which contracts you thinkyou can handle, your time you can invest to improve your skills and the risk you are willing to take.

Let's say you have no real experience as a programmer before and you also have no real experience on how to contact potential clients, how to make good deals and how to value your time per hour, then it can be really difficult to make a living from your first year.

The only way where you could maybe make a living from it, is when you living standards are pretty low. I guess you are living in the U.S. and depends on in which state you live, you will need maybe several thousand dollars to just have the minimum living standards.

So when you will start your journey as a programmer it would be wisely to have a side job or to do studying next to the time where you learn on how to code, to find the clients and so on....

For my own experience and what other people told me who are doing the same, I can call myself lucky to save up the first thousand dollars in the first 1 1/2 years. But the reason for this 8s because I have a minimum living standards of 800 - 900 euros in a month. And the 8 months of the first year I was working in full-time. If I would have to pay the living cost from day one, I would lose a lot of money.

The second reason why I call myself lucky, is because I have great clients who are appreciating my work and they are working with me till these days since day one. They also recommend me to other new clients which is not quite common, especially when you will start your journey as a unknown programmer with no much experience.

There are two ways on how you can earn money. Via B2C which I would highly recommend you! Because the benefits are bigger than the negatives!

Or the more "easier" way is the do freelancing. The benefits of freelancing are that you will earn the first 5 bucks fast and you also learn your market about the real demand. So you can optimize your skills more profitable.

If you want to start your journey as a freelancer with less difficulties I would recommend you the following two courses from Lex DeVille:

1. Advanced Upwork Profiles: Craft a Magnetic Profile Today!

2. Advanced Upwork Proposals: Tips to 10X Client Responses Fast

These are the best 20 Bucks I have invested because I could turn the insights from these courses into my first 1k. These insights are not limited to Upwork. Especially from the second lesson.


How long it took to find my first client? I don't really know, but maybe just a few months. I think it was through a recommendation of a friend, but I'm not really sure. Remember, I only do make Web Design. If you want to gain deeper knowledge and do more specialised programming it will maybe take more time. But the payment is also higher and you will face less competition!

To learn programming I did also took a 10$ course on Udemy. There you will learn the basics of HTML & CSS. If you want, I can take a look in my Udemy history to find out how this calls.

I call tell you that even after 1 1/2 years I'm not a good programmer. But that is ok. I think every work which requires more mental dedication than physical, is an endless journey of constantly learning.

No matter what kind of decision you are going to make. Make sure that you have to take the responsibility of success and failure by yourself. If you let your own decisions depend on what others might think or do, you will never reach the goal you want to achieve.
Damn it is a endless journey of consistent learning, and yea I need to earn a certain amount of $ per month just to stay afloat.

I can't just take a year off and learn (especially with my daughter). If I went to school, I'd work on the side.

It's definitely a grind and not easy, I'm gonna have to dedicate alot of time and energy to learn it and use it successfully.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

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