Introduction, the Middle Lane, and the best $10 I’ve ever made

[Mana]

First the introduction. I have the ultimate slow lane job(for now). I work in a factory with mandatory overtime. If your lucky you trade 5 for 2, if not then you trade 6 for 1. Oh and by the way we need you for an extra 4 hours. Up to 12 hours a day 6 days a week, that’s 72 hours. While it’s never happened to me I’ve worked plenty of hours during the week. And the worst part, that right it gets worse, is hearing the older employs talk about being able to retire within the next couple of years. The reason this is horrible for me is because I just turned 30. I’ve got 28 more years until I can retire at age 58. The thought of that makes me want to cry, actually I have a couple of time. I hate my job and started hating my life. But I knew there had to be more to life then my shitty factory job. So I began to read books on my breaks at work looking for my answers.


I started with self help books. They helped a bit but they weren’t the answer that I was looking for. So I kept reading. The Four Hour Work Week was nice but also wasn’t enough. Here, go out and start a business and here’s how to automate it. Well that’s cute but I know nothing about starting a business. Then I came across a book called The Education of Millionaires. It was pretty good and got me started thinking. Then I’m assuming because they both had millionaire in the title, iBooks suggested The Fastlane Millionaire. I wasn’t so sure by reading the title and the sample, but for six bucks why not? I’ve got to say it was the best six dollars I’ve ever spent.



This book put everything into perspective. I was a sidewalker for a while putting stuff on credit before realizing I couldn’t keep it up, at that point I moved to the slow lane. And I now had a direction, the fast lane. And the forum is amazing too, so many different perspectives. For the first time in my life I am excited about what my future holds for me. I still go to my shitty job, but it doesn't even matter to me because I know I won't be there for much longer.

 

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[Mana]

Now for the best $10 I’ve ever made. In “The Education of Millionaires the author discusses copywriting which I’ll admit I had never heard of before. And which I also confused with copyright before googling it. Then I read Lex’s gold post on making money as a copywriter and got fired up. I bought Cashvertising which was suggested in the thread and the Copywriters Handbook. Then something happened that I didn’t expect to happen did in fact happen. I got a case of information overload. Now to step back for a second as I said I was reading Lex’s post, his ‘just do it’ that he always says got stuck in my brain. So before the overload I had created an Upwork account. So I had an Upwork account but wasn't sure about using it for copy.


So did I just give up and go back to my slow lane job? Sorta, still have to pay the bills for now. But instead of giving up and going back to World of Warcraft I decided to change tracks. You see I have an associates in graphic design, while I don’t have the basic of copy down yet I still have the basics of art. I changed my profile from copywriter to graphic designer. I used what I had learned from reading the copy books, but mainly from Lex’s threads to create a good profile. Then I found a simple job that I knew I could handle and applied. Instead of telling the client how amazing I am with photoshop or other such fluff I told him exactly what I could do for him. This is part of what I got back “Sounds like you understand exactly what I'm looking for.” I accepted the assignment gave him 2 different logos and he accepted them. He not only gave me the $10 we agreed upon but a $2.50 tip, so I made $10 total. Let me tell you it was the best feeling in the world. Sure it was only $10 but it was money I made on my own terms because I wanted to, not because I was doing what the boss told me to. If was my first taste of freedom and I want more. The best part was when the guy told some of his friends about me and I got 3 more jobs. People were actually working for me.

I still haven't given up on copywriting. I'm a pretty creative person and know I could do well with it. So I plan on hitting the books again but in the mean time I plan on giving actual copywriting a try. After doing the logos and reading through some of the jobs that people want for their logos I think I might be better off sticking to copy.

 

[Mana]

And now for my explanation of the Middle Lane. What the hell is the middle lane you ask? Well from what I’ve seen on the forums everyone thinks about this journey as a two lane highway with only a slow lane and a fast lane. But what if we think of this as a three lane high way instead.


Like I said earlier I’ve been reading Lex’s post but I started from the beginning of his threads. In early 2015 he picked up a couple books and taught himself how to be a copywriter and he managed to make some good money from it. Enough to keep the bills paid and then some from the sounds of it. The thing that struck me was that some people didn’t seem to approve and called it slow lane, but I call it the middle lane.


The difference was his mind set. Sure he was still trading time for money but he was doing it at a better rate. Slow lane is about settling for slow money for the rest of your life, the middle lane is about picking up speed so that you can get into the fast lane. Even MJ started out building other peoples websites before he built his own.


If you need further elaboration just follow along. For this example I’ll use myself and my friend Justin. I finally made it as a graphic designer(or copywriter) and make $50 an hour, well maybe not yet but for the sake of this example lets just go with it. Meanwhile Justin is still working at the shit factory making $24 an hour. We also have the same amount in bills each month, weird right? So lets just say Justin has to work 50 hours a week to pay his bills. Since I have the same bills and make about twice as much an hour I only have to work 25 hours to pay the same bills. And because I have this crazy business idea that will get me into the fastlane I work an extra 5 hours for a grand total of 30 hours. This is what I think the middle lane is all about. I made more money and came out 20 hours ahead. Now I have time to plot my fast lane business. That’s what the middle lane is all about. Sure maybe you still trade time for money but you do it at a better rate that gives you the freedom to work on something bigger. So even if the path you’re on isn’t fast lane so long as your are picking up speed to move into the fast lane it's not a bad thing. When I start making more money doing whatever it is I end up doing and am able to quit my shit job that will be a major upgrade to my life, even if I'm not in the fastlane yet.

 

[DBXI]

Inspirational story Mana. Keep pushing. PM me I might have some graphic design work for you if you are interested.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Welcome to the forum Mana, glad you enjoyed the book and got some value from it.

 

[ZF Lee]

First the introduction. I have the ultimate slow lane job(for now). I work in a factory with mandatory overtime. If your lucky you trade 5 for 2, if not then you trade 6 for 1. Oh and by the way we need you for an extra 4 hours. Up to 12 hours a day 6 days a week, that’s 72 hours. While it’s never happened to me I’ve worked plenty of hours during the week. And the worst part, that right it gets worse, is hearing the older employs talk about being able to retire within the next couple of years. The reason this is horrible for me is because I just turned 30. I’ve got 28 more years until I can retire at age 58. The thought of that makes me want to cry, actually I have a couple of time. I hate my job and started hating my life. But I knew there had to be more to life then my shitty factory job. So I began to read books on my breaks at work looking for my answers.

I started with self help books. They helped a bit but they weren’t the answer that I was looking for. So I kept reading. The Four Hour Work Week was nice but also wasn’t enough. Here, go out and start a business and here’s how to automate it. Well that’s cute but I know nothing about starting a business. Then I came across a book called The Education of Millionaires. It was pretty good and got me started thinking. Then I’m assuming because they both had millionaire in the title, iBooks suggested The Fastlane Millionaire. I wasn’t so sure by reading the title and the sample, but for six bucks why not? I’ve got to say it was the best six dollars I’ve ever spent.

Mandatory overtime? That bad!? Do you belong to an union? No one's complaining?

Anyway congrats on coming here. But as a Fastlaner (believing in the Fastlane), we need to be watchful of our resources including our reading material.

While the 4 hour workweek and The Education of Millionaires are good reads, they are actually very elementary as they focus merely of the logic and not the specifics. But the author of the former, Tim Feriss does have a blog that has tons of free info to grab. But this forum far supersedes it in terms of range and no-nonsense. But you have a selection there!

It was argued by critics that the 4 hour workweek was titled so just to create fad. Speaking of copywriting, that's a damn sales-magnet of a book title....who doesn't want to work 4 hours a week. I'm not a fan of just working that few hours...I like to do more productive things. That means the majority of the market is lazy and selfish...and therefore immature enough to fall in for even basic psychological tactics as Cashvertising did touch on. But that's reality....

Look out for more books focusing on specialised topics related to the problems of need you wish to solve. But trust me, that's the only easy part

 

[mazo]

Welcome.
Great post and work Mana. Looks like your heading in the right direction, keep applying the momentum am sure you'll make your opening into your own fastlane.

 

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[Scot]

Don't forget to get the badge https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/ive-read-the-millionaire-fastlane.28234/

Great story so far though! You have the mindset, keep going. Don't forget to look for places you can add value and pain points you can improve on.

Look forward to seeing your contributions in the community.

 

[mayana]

Mandatory overtime? That bad!? Do you belong to an union? No one's complaining?

I don't know how it is there, but in the U.S., employers are supposed to pay 1.5 times the hourly rate for an hours over 40. I used to be married to someone who worked at a factory, and overtime was the gravy. So that's why some people get excited about it, since the hours worked over 40 increase the paycheck much more quickly. The higher the original hourly rate, the higher the increase in over time. Some companies pay double-time for holidays, nights, or weekends, too. It just depends. Ultimate slowlane, but it works for some.

But I digress - that's not what this post was about

Welcome to the forum, Maya! I can't wait to hear how you progress.

 

[Mana]

Mandatory overtime? That bad!? Do you belong to an union? No one's complaining?

Anyway congrats on coming here. But as a Fastlaner (believing in the Fastlane), we need to be watchful of our resources including our reading material.

While the 4 hour workweek and The Education of Millionaires are good reads, they are actually very elementary as they focus merely of the logic and not the specifics. But the author of the former, Tim Feriss does have a blog that has tons of free info to grab. But this forum far supersedes it in terms of range and no-nonsense. But you have a selection there!

It was argued by critics that the 4 hour workweek was titled so just to create fad. Speaking of copywriting, that's a damn sales-magnet of a book title....who doesn't want to work 4 hours a week. I'm not a fan of just working that few hours...I like to do more productive things. That means the majority of the market is lazy and selfish...and therefore immature enough to fall in for even basic psychological tactics as Cashvertising did touch on. But that's reality....

Look out for more books focusing on specialised topics related to the problems of need you wish to solve. But trust me, that's the only easy part

Yeah the over time is bad. Mayana is right we do get paid 1.5 for our over time and double pay on holidays and on out 7th day of work, but the over time just isn't worth it after a while. I make about $100 for 4 hours of over time after taxes. Which is a lot for my area, but I've come to hate being at my job for even the 40 hours I work. I spent those 4 hours make that first logo for $10, took me a while to figure out how to use photoshop again. But I felt so much better about making that $10 then if I had stayed at work and made $100.

I also agree with you about 4HWW and The Education of Millionaires being good reads but not really the total answer. For me they expanded my thinking. I used to be miserable thinking my job was as good as I was going to get, but reading those books and FLM I realized I can do so much more. I don't know what my fastlane idea will be but I feel a hell of a lot better knowing I wont have to make chips for the rest of my life.

 

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[ZF Lee]

Yeah the over time is bad. Mayana is right we do get paid 1.5 for our over time and double pay on holidays and on out 7th day of work, but the over time just isn't worth it after a while. I make about $100 for 4 hours of over time after taxes. Which is a lot for my area, but I've come to hate being at my job for even the 40 hours I work. I spent those 4 hours make that first logo for $10, took me a while to figure out how to use photoshop again. But I felt so much better about making that $10 then if I had stayed at work and made $100.

I also agree with you about 4HWW and The Education of Millionaires being good reads but not really the total answer. For me they expanded my thinking. I used to be miserable thinking my job was as good as I was going to get, but reading those books and FLM I realized I can do so much more. I don't know what my fastlane idea will be but I feel a hell of a lot better knowing I wont have to make chips for the rest of my life.

Well, it's a pity that even the higher-ups like professionals or corporate executives are still nod ifferent from the blue-collar workers...giving time for money

Now that's a very sad way of building up for retirement, let alone wealth

 

[Mana]

Well, it's a pity that even the higher-ups like professionals or corporate executives are still nod ifferent from the blue-collar workers...giving time for money

Now that's a very sad way of building up for retirement, let alone wealth

Yeah it's pretty sad. It's really sad hearing my one coworker talk about how he'll retire in a year and a half and finally start enjoying his life. But these people just don't have open minds. As far as they're concerned this is as good as it gets. I just cant accept that though.

 

[ZF Lee]

Yeah it's pretty sad. It's really sad hearing my one coworker talk about how he'll retire in a year and a half and finally start enjoying his life. But these people just don't have open minds. As far as they're concerned this is as good as it gets. I just cant accept that though.

I guess that's our mission! To do the things most people can't, to bear the burden of ten workers via Fastlane systems, to accomplish the unthinkable, to slay the beasts that ravage the plains! We should press on so that these people will either realise that there is a better way, or be better provided for.

Our wealth should not be composed of our indulgences, that is too lonely. Rather, our wealth should comprise of the inspirations and strengths of a multitude. What people fear, and dream off, they should be the soul of our Fastlane businesses.

 

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