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[Daily Update] Watch me go from Freelancer To Entrepreneur

A detailed account of a Fastlane process...

MaxKhalus

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As for day 142, I made less money by putting the same effort. Two reasons:
- Put some time aside for a Test project from someone else (lower rate)
- Sacrificed some writing time for topic research time (will help tomorrow)
Amazon FBA research is in the process right now. I still have several hours left before the day ends.
 
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Good question.
I once started with $1300 thinking it'd be enough to succeed. It wasn't. I chose the wrong product and spent all of it trying to launch something that never sold.
Couple months sooner, I had no capital, no stable income stream (I still don't think I'm stable). That's about it.

If you really want an awesome course, you should try Yaniv's Fast Track program, which I never talked about. You can ask Biophase as well.

Oh I see. I am happy you didn't give up.
Thanks for the tip!
 

MaxKhalus

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Product research may end up sooner than expected. Good news.
 
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MaxKhalus

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Amazon asked for verification papers. Will definitely cause some delays (perhaps 1 week?) but won't stop product research nor writing.

Right now, I have found a product, 60% sure. I need to ask Amazon about it and contact suppliers to double-check. Now, I expected to have $2k by the time I found a product, which took me less than expected. I should move my writing goal from $40 to $80 a day, which is an extra 2000 words.

There's not as much research these days, so I should do more writing. Not lacking work so far.

Still especially worried about consistency and distractions.
 

MaxKhalus

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Problem: I'm not moving forward and have consistency issues with Dopamine Detox.

Thus, I'm not reaching $40 a day. BUT I rarely found myself making less than $0 (after $22 substracted). As a result, today I made $47.20 by overstating my expenses daily.

I won't reach 2K by June at this rate. That's why I'm overstating my expenses using $44 a day instead of $22 (which are actually $16). $44 Maintained for ten days would make $28*10 = $280 minus unexpected expenses.

One thing I hate is backing off after I crossed $1,000.
 
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MaxKhalus

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Today will be the second day after resetting Dopamine Detox.
 

MaxKhalus

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Here's the rescue plan:
Dopamine detox takes three weeks before unlocking god-like productivity. Three weeks that include frustration, mediocre results... all the energy focused on removing distractions. They just won't be amazing, and today has been Day one (again). Although I've done it before, I never kept it over twelve days (I quit half way).

Also, my 20th birthday gets closer every day (October), which makes my reflect about what I've achieved and what matters. My only wish for this decade is to start as a new man: no distractions, no flaws, and hopefully some money saved plus a product selling on Amazon. Four months for that. Will I make it? That depends on how I manage these three weeks.

- I will keep the minimum work to pay the day plus recent debt (that's $22 per day, $7 profit).
- There's one hour of non-negotiable work where I start immediately.
- The work ends once I hit $22 for the day.
- For the rest of the day, I want to be relaxed doing something I love that's not tied up to dopamine. Gamification brainstorming and coding, for example.

I really thought of leading this to $100 profit per day, but it would be too strict to keep up without crashing. As I learned from James Collins (Good To Great), one shouldn't waste time teaching good techniques to the wrong people. I'd rather become a better version first, then execute heavily later.

It also applies to the future. If I ever fall behind this thread, it will probably be due to dopamine detox issues. My life summary is what you've seen in the last 158 days times twenty. I can't waste another decade.

So, we don't have a money problem, but a work ethics problem. That's why I ignore most money advice I get.
 

MaxKhalus

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Keeping on with the plan. Second day on dopamine detox, the only habit not even millionaires have.
 
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MaxKhalus

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What does dopamine detox mean?

Also, what's your plan for selling on Amazon?
For Dopamine Detox, visit Alex Becker's Channel, awesome content. He'll explain it better than I would.
For Amazon, my plan is launching a successful product, create a brand, and keep launching to reach 300k/mo (profit). I'm on the Fast Track (by Yaniv), a course little people know about. I've chosen two products on Amazon, but I should be between 2-5K before I buy inventory (currently at 1.2K because of the dopamine detox challenge)
 
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MaxKhalus

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Don't think anything important is going on these days. Apparently, I found a client at 10cents/word, but he's extremely perfectionist (we're writing a story about a company he's about to fund). We're going through the third revision, but he seems to like my creative style.
 

MaxKhalus

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Three days ago, I slipped off the dopamine detox challenge. Today, I'm starting my Day 4.
 

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MaxKhalus

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Just found this thread, awesome! Keep going! You are inspiring and motivatin a lot of people, me included :)
Welcome come to the club! This doesn't stop until we win.
 

MaxKhalus

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Happy Sunday,
As I keep in "vacation mode," I realized I made a mistake when it comes to the challenge. Dopamine hits are different from actual dopamine detox, which means I disqualified myself too early. I took every little wrong thing I did as a total failure, but it doesn't have to be that way.

What I'm trying to say, is that today isn't Day 6 on the challenge, but Day 11. I can in fact start to feel some benefit from it (also, the boredom feelings are fading). Day 21 is just around the corner!
 

MaxKhalus

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As for day 171 (day 13 in the challenge), I'm doing decent progress, earning ~$18 for two hours of work after expenses. But now, this recounts is bugging me. Where do expenses come from?
- Amazon Pro Subscription (~$50/mo)
- Currency exchanges. I started earning this 1K when EUR was around 0.92-0.93. I must have lost 5% of my earnings because of that (I'm counting it on USD, which is how I'll be using this money). Perhaps I should ask my client to pay in USD. This loss is ridiculous.

Meanwhile, I have another sum of $1750 which I never talked about. Some Bitcoin program 10Xed my return, but I'll keep making as if it doesn't count. That's not what this challenge is about.
 
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MaxKhalus

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I should correct that red number regarding to currencies. Since I hold EUR, I'm actually making money instead of losing $115. I'll correct it later: it means any numbers you see here are likely under recorded.

Here're more good needs. It's day 16 today since I cut off dopamine traps. I complete work fast before 10AM and give myself the whole day for free time. Work isn't as challenging, and I have time for everything. I also avoid thinking about work when I'm not working, so I don't spend useless energy on that. So those dopamine days seem pretty far from now, and productivity will soon start to rise (if I keep the path).

Often when I brag about what I'm doing right, I stop doing it. Hopefully, I'll be more aware this time and not let overconfidence get in the way.
 

MaxKhalus

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Thinks keep moving:
33704
Day 20. Days start to look pretty similar and short. I get ~1000words written by 9AM. Having so much time lets me with nothing to do, so I started learning C# a few days ago. It looks fun, and it will help to create the SaaS company later.

Now, I have an idea to speed things up, although I'm doing great already. By this time, my amount already equals, at least, 50% of my hypothetical product inventory expense. I could "burn the boats", get details straight with a supplier, and pay the 50% upfront. They would only be able to hold the inventory for so long, and they would keep following up so I pay the other 50. Being one foot in the FBA business would give me the urgency I need.

Also, I'm less than 48h away from completing the dopamine detox challenge. It doesn't mean it stops there, but that negative drawn backs stop. Stay strong, and numbers will go up.
 

MaxKhalus

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Day 22 (success?) and Day 180. I'm meeting my daily minimum with ease, and now I need to upgrade.
 
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MaxKhalus

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Now that I'm reasonably distraction-free, I've created a better routine to stay productive throughout the day. It divides in Noon, Lunch, Midday (6PM), and 10:30 (Sleep).

Block 1: Write content (& make money):
1. 1h of no-negotiable work.
2. 1h of work by inertia.
-break-
3. Format content & research until noon (~1h)

Block 2: Manage the future e-com business:
-break (workout)-
1. Talk to suppliers/research for keywords/product research/[...] until lunch. (requires far less willpower than writing)
-break-

Block 3: "Free time:"
1. Code until 6PM
*Although it's unrelated to the progress thread, I do it for fun, because it helps me relax, and it prepares me for my future SaaS business. From lunch to 6PM, I rarely have energy left to write, but coding feels much easier.
**Don't use any screens from 6PM

Block 4: Relax
1. Walk for 2h (or stay outside of home)
2. Cook & have dinner (~1h)
3. Complete last-minute tasks, report metrics, and sleep!

I thought It would be interesting to share it. It grants 8h of productivity by putting one unit of effort (on the non-negotiable hour). This routine makes the day look fun for me. If It's sustainable, I will soon become more efficient with the writing time.

"Shouldn't you just write for eight hours?"

I've thought of adding more hours, but after hour 3 or 4, I find myself writing 100 words per hour. I expect to work harder If I improve at this. But for now, my work is more a matter of intensity rather than hours, especially when following it seven days a week.
 

MaxKhalus

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Ok, If dopamine detox was the first challenge, this routine must be level two. I've been three days in, counting today. I bring good news, but something bothers me A LOT.

The four blocks are great in theory:
- Writing (in the morning) has become the easiest task to perform in the day. Obviously, after full nine hours of rest at night.
- I'm managing the minimum of the FBA business. I'm following up on suppliers as they reach back with quotes, and I do the same with my e-com mentor. Can't complain.

Two insecurities I have:
- Despite keeping a good pace in writing, I only produce ~15 profit a day. Right now, I'm aware my productivity on the first block is lower. As I get used to the routine, I should get the amount to $40 a day (profit). Is it sustainable to write 2500 words from 8Am to 12PM, including edits? Probably, but I haven't reached it yet.

- Due to the corona thing, I couldn't renew my ID and it expired last month. After I cross $2000, PayPal will ask for verification or they'll freeze the account. There's no bank account attached, meaning if I messed up with that step, I may go from $1300 to $0 overnight. That terrifies me. This incoming month, however, I'm getting the ID docs updated.

What I really can't stand:
- I'm serious with the fact that writing has become the easiest task. After completing business management at ~2-3PM, my brain just disconnects and turns grey. After 3PM, I had programmed learning the coding skill, something that excited me. But now, I can't even enjoy it. I become unusable for hours, then the energy gets back up at 10PM. Very problematic.

I want to believe it's only a lack of habit. I'll try some bio hacks to boost the energy. If it doesn't work, then I'll need to assume I can't do more than one or two things in a day (essentialism).

My focus/priority is on becoming a stronger person, more than making the million bucks. That's why I believe, in the end, I'll get over the obstacles and make it.

I hope my reflection raises some self-awareness?
 

MaxKhalus

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It's day five of challenge level two. My energy levels are much more stable now. Yesterday, I managed to complete 3/4 blocks. It was fun.

Back to the other topic. I talked to some suppliers, and the cost will product will be under $5.

338323383333834

For 300 units, it will cost around $1500, which is far less than I expected (good news!). After I revise a few more details, I'll order it. I'm $100 away from that sum, but I have another $1000 reserved for monthly payments which can wait.


And that's going to be my first product. Hopefully, the launch will end successfully before the end of summer.
 
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MaxKhalus

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Performance went as usual. As for the loss, I spent $35 for the product sample, and Amazon charged the monthly $45.
 

MaxKhalus

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NOT according to plan.

After finishing the project, the client takes 1-2 days to respond, process, and start the next one. Although he warned me beforehand, I wasn't expecting this delay after completing work. I didn't plan for that. From now on, I'll write 500 extra words to finish earlier to avoid this problem.

What matters is that the Amazon business is moving on without delay, which was the reason I was making money.
 
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MaxKhalus

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He just got back... getting to work.
 

MaxKhalus

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Meanwhile, as for the FBA business, the sample is in transit. There's little to do until it arrives when it comes to management.

When it comes to writing, I'm proud that I'm making $18 profit within 2-2.5h almost effortlessly ($33rev) and still have free time.

As for the four-block routine I first mentioned, I'm getting used to it. The weakest parts of my day are Business Management (not a lot to do right now) and Relaxation (I'm still tempted to skip that one).

Looking to raise my standards from $18 to $40 this week.
 

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