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Homeschool mom

Cherith

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Hi, I’m new here. I am a stay at home, home-school mom. I have always thought that school is a place where people are trained for servitude and mediocre mindsets and I didn’t want that for my kids. As the years have gone by, I have asked myself “What do I want for my kids?” And the answer that I’ve come to is that I want freedom for myself and for them. What does it matter if you can solve a quadratic equation or if you know all the wives of King Henry the Eighth? It doesn’t help you at all in life. What I want is out of the rat race. I started about 2 years ago trying to figure out this “money” thing. I have spent thousands of dollars on Gurus over the last 2 years who claim they can help you make money and I am poorer and more frustrated than when I started. I ran into MJ’s book “The Millionaire Fastlane ” about a week ago. I just finished reading it last night. It’s the first time I’ve seen anyone tell the truth. It was so refreshing to find the real answer I’ve been searching for all this time. Unfortunately, I feel really behind right now. I now know what I need to do to get our freedom but I’m feeling a bit daunted by the task ahead. I want to do it the right way but I have no idea as to what the first step even is - what need I can satisfy that follows the CENTS formula. It’s day one for me. I’m off to read some threads and see what I can find.
 
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Kevin88660

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Hi Cherith,

Good to know you.

Just to comment a bit on schools, most do not even teach the art of servitude properly now.

American school students do not score well on PISA.

I am in Singapore where students do very well on PISA but from my experience it is largely due to parents spending a lot of money on private tuition. Most public schools have not done a good job.
 

Strm

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Hey!

Welcome to the forum!
Don't let the CENTS cripple you though. I've learned a thousand new things with my first project just because I finally started something, I'm more willing to start new things and I'm finding new ideas more than before, and this venture don't make totally CENTS.
It is possible to change and tweak your business a bit later so it's closer to CENTS as time goes by.
 

MJ DeMarco

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Don't let the CENTS cripple you though.

Very true, this is something I've discovered in recent years when it comes to folks entirely new to entrepreneurship. CENTS is great, but not so great if it stops you from doing ANYTHING.

I've written about it here:


Welcome aboard!
 

ChrisV

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That's awesome you're homeschooling your kids.. i feel like that's the best way. Welcome to the forums!
 
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Danczyk

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You should journal your homeschooling on a blog. I can give you some ideas for organic traffic in case you need it.
 

ChrisV

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You should journal your homeschooling on a blog. I can give you some ideas for organic traffic in case you need it.
i want some ideas for organic traffic lol
 
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Cherith

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I’m feeling more confused than ever. I don’t think I’m getting it. I’m feeling paralyzed. So doing something is better than doing nothing.
Today I looked at businesses for sale in my area and found a crime scene clean up franchise that is looking for someone to start up in my area. It would mean going into a lot of debt.

I have been working doing seven paper routs and got a second part time job on Saturday nights that I just started so that I can afford coaching from another Guru who teaches how to start online businesses and says he can get me to be profitable within 6 months.

I am currently enrolled in yet a different Guru’s program that costs me $200 per month that promised to teach me a ‘high income skill’ and all it seems to do is draw money from my bank account

I feel totally lost and confused at this point. I have put in countless hours of work, tons of money on courses, and programs and no money has come in from any of it so far.

When you say do something, I feel totally out of ideas of things to do. I have been doing and I am doing - I’ll be back on my paper routs tomorrow and working my other part time job - to make money to invest in business. I feel so tired and directionless right now. I spent a good portion of the day in tears because I feel like everything I’ve tried has failed miserably. My dream of just getting to spend all my time watching my kids grow up and having my husband home with us feels more distant than ever.

I may just be a bit overwhelmed and emotional right now. Thanks guys for the feedback. I will figure it out.
 

flower_girl

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Hi @Cherith, a very warm welcome to you. I loved what you wrote. I'm new here too and share some of your sentiments.

I read The Millionaire Fastlane a few weeks ago and think MJ de Marco is brilliant, however I didn't agree with everything he said and am thinking about a lot of it long and hard. I think it's a great gift that he got me to do that and I am grateful.

However it seems to me it's a lot harder when you hit the rubber hits the road stage, when you're trying to get past the rhetoric to the substance. I don't mean this about MJ de Marco especially but the world is full of people with tons of rhetoric who haven't actually walked the talk (and that's another thing which inspires me about MJ de Marco, that he does actually walk the talk).

He's also probably a bit of a magician and I think some of us say yeah, we can see how that magic could work......but how do WE pull a rabbit out of the hat?

One thing I have noticed is a lot of people are trying to make megabucks out of nothing, especially on the Internet. Like I say there's all the talk and the rhetoric and the wishing and the dreaming but these two sayings have always spoken to me.

"Nil Sine Labore" - Nothing Without Labour. It's the motto of a military Corps.

"Of life's two great prizes, beauty and truth, I found the first in a loving heart and the second in a labourer's hand". - Kahlil Gibran.

For me I think you first have to "be somebody" (work on yourself) and then "produce something" or have real expertise or knowledge BEFORE you can get the magic to start working.

In other words there has to be substance. There has to be something real.

If you look at yourself, if we all look at ourselves, I believe we can see what we are or the potential.

For example when I read your opening post I saw "knows about kids" and "knows about home schooling" and "must be well organized to do what she does". I also see in you drive and ambition and the willingness to take action, take risks, speak honestly from the heart - you have so much going for you and you're gonna crack this!

I've been thinking since I read MJ's book of some of the things I am reasonably good at, some of the things I produce and suddenly when I view them through his lens I am starting to see possibilities.

For example I have a small seed company and know quite a lot about seeds, gardening and growing things in general. I can see now opportunities to develop this in a big way. I am working on a whole lot of garden plans complete with seeds. In my country I've never heard of anyone doing this before (a whole package as it were) and I see some good potential here. It's exciting and I enjoy it even though it IS a lot of hard work. I don't mind hard work, in fact I like hard work.....

I believe there is something in everyone's life, in everybody - if you just look at it, or look at it through a different lens, suddenly you see OPPORTUNITY! Maybe it's been staring us in the face all along......

Please keep letting us know how you're doing :)
 

KLL985

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Hi Cherith,

I have been a lurker here for a while but thought I would chime in a bit. My wife and I homeschool our 4 kids (14, 12, 10, 8) and are teaching them business skills as we go. They are not Fastlane businesses at this point however the skills they are learning should be a life long foundation for them.

My wife owns a Physical Therapy business, I have a carpet cleaning and handyman business, my oldest bought 3 vending machines and nets $100 per month. The 12 year old mows and weedeats and makes about 50-60 per month. We got a call last fall from a local used appliance store that asked us to deliver for him, the 10 year old is in charge of that and makes 25 or so per month. The youngest hasn't found a niche yet, but likes the idea of selling eggs, and blacksmithing. They are all learning about customers, tools, scheduling, record keeping, and more things than I can see.

The reason I post all this is because sometimes we get so caught up in the kids' books, worksheets, and school time, and then throw in our blog and forum reading and think we are missing something. Or we think someone else was successful so we should just be able to jump in and start then cash a check tomorrow. We don't see or feel their years of struggle to get to that point.

I would like to encourage you to take your time and enjoy the journey. As you see certain strengths in your kids, encourage them and build on it. Don't get all worked up about test scores and recreating the government school system at your kitchen table. Teach them about money, how to make it, spend it, and control it for the tool that it is. And as they journey to adulthood you will likely be in a more succesful position as a result of what you are pouring in to them (your biggest and most important investment).
 
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Walter Hay

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Today I looked at businesses for sale in my area and found a crime scene clean up franchise that is looking for someone to start up in my area. It would mean going into a lot of debt.
Be very cautious! I was a franchisor for 22 years, selling my franchises in 4 countries, and recently published a book about franchising for growth, but I would never recommend buying a franchise.

I have seen many franchises offered that have onerous conditions, and even some that are designed to fail.

If you care to send the name of the franchise to me via PM I will be happy to review it for you privately.

I suggest that there are many buy-a-job franchises that exist only because there are many people who lack the initiative or ability to find and do those jobs. From your posts already I have formed the opinion that you don't fall into that category.

One benefit in finding such franchises is that they could give you ideas about what kind of things you could handle.

Walter
 

broswoodwork

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got a second part time job on Saturday nights that I just started so that I can afford coaching from another Guru who teaches how to start online businesses
Can we back up and take a closer look at this?
 

Jon L

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welcome! Being overwhelmed when you first get here is normal. There's so much to read and learn about in business, its daunting.

What I've found over my 5 years of running my business (that has paid the bills, but has yet to make me rich), is that each business owner's journey is unique to them. You have a certain set of skills that are unique to you, that could also provide immense value to the right audience. If you think that running a paper route is your only skill set, you're missing a HUGE piece of what makes you, you. You run a freaking school, for crying out loud. Doing that successfully requires a whole list of skills that the average person would have no clue about. I'm sure there are other things that you're good at that would provide value to the right group of people.

If you're going to hire a guru, hire a good therapist or an experienced business coach that can help you get in tune with what makes you great. (I'm working with an excellent therapist through ginger.io right now that is by-far the best investment in myself that I've made to date.)
 
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WarWizard

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@Cherith - Welcome to the forums. :)

I've been through a few 'guru's' out there, and what I can say is that very few of them are right for any particular individual.
Most have never built or run a business other than the business they have now teaching others to become rich.

A piece of advise that I'm starting to understand better is what Dan Kennedy has said "Be the wizard, beware the wizard'. So, use your collective wisdom, experiences and skills to 'be the wizard' for a group of people who have a need that you can fulfil, and 'beware the wizard's' who have positioned themselves as 'guru's'. Find people who have built real businesses and are now passing on their learning, like MJ has in his 2 books and this forum, along with others who have left behind their knowledge and hard earned wisdom in quality books and courses.

As @Jon L has mentioned above, you are homeschooling, and there are many others out there who need a trusted source on how they can go down that path. You could be their source of truth and trusted advisor by sharing your journey and your discoveries along the way, so that they can make an informed decision. This advise can be shared partly for free on YouTube, as an organised basic course on Udemy and then a full detailed step by step advanced course on a domain you own and control. There is then the possibility to have auxiliary courses that then help the homeschooling parents with other aspects like effective instruction, better engagement, etc.

The above may not make you fabulously wealthy, but could serve you by filling the 'gap' in income.
while doing all this, you might learn and gain 'high income skills' that can be leveraged later.

Another outcome of having followed too many 'gurus' and 'paths' is having been overwhelmed and confused, which has taken a while to get rid of.

All the best on your journey.
 

Champion

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Hey Cherith, welcome to the forum, its great to hear that you found out about the fastlane!

Even though the schooling system might miss out on some essential skills needed for life these days, dont you think it has many many advantages in terms of the social & people skills your children would be able to pick up?

I never went to home schooling, so I cannot comment about any of its advantages or disadvantages, but I definitely would not say that going to normal school is a waste of time.

I feel that college was definitely a waste of time (even though I studied chemical engineering and got a great job right after finishing university). Studying engineering has taught me many great things and its helping me a lot in my business as well. Its just that when I think about the ROI, had I invested my time into executing on entrepreneurial ventures, it would have been time better spent.

School, however, is not a waste of time in my opinion... Even if many curriculums are outdated these days. The main thing you learn in school is relationships, communication, friends, sports etc. Dont you think these are the most important skills one needs to succeed in life?

Besides, how do you know that your kids would never need to learn how to solve a quadratic equation? Perhaps one of them was destined to become an aerospace engineer or has a talent for physics or something similar?

Im sorry if you find my post very pushy or offensive, I just wanted to share my experience and opinion on the topic, since I think schooling can be a great experience for children (as it was for myself).

Best,
Champion
 

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