Making my first move in the middle of nowhere

[axeman92]

Just signed up to this forum a couple of days ago. Glad to be among some like-minded folks.

I'm at a crossroads and I need some feedback. I am having difficulty deciding which of two options will bring me to success quicker.

Background:

• 23-year-old college dropout with no official area of expertise
• Self-starter with great work ethic (if it's something worth my time, like starting a business)
• Working for accommodation in sustainable farm community with free tenancy, utilities, and food
• Couple hundred in savings
• No source of income and dependent on parents for dental and health insurance

I was thinking about joining the Marine Corps to get more organized, fired up, and learn a useful trade to gain experience and knowledge in a certain field. I do not drink or smoke so I would dedicate all my free time to plan my business. I am aware that this could potentially be a Slowlane approach but I am on the Sidewalk with no practical skills under my belt. Staying at the farm seems counterproductive and joining the military seems proactive but I could be wrong. Any comments and suggestions are welcome. Thanks

 

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[Ninjakid]

Hi Axeman

Remember this guy?

Anyways..

Pretty sure it's not a good idea to join the military just you wanna get "more organized, fired up." When you join the U.S. military, they make it very clear that you are their property, and if you're joining because you think you're going to take something away from it that you could use in the civilian world, I can see you coming out disappointed.

Different story if it's actually something you really want to do, but from the tone of your post, it doesn't seem to be so.

If you're finding it hard to be organized and take care of yourself now, try it once you get into Marine bootcamp.

Check out @jon.a 's posts about joining the military before you make your decision.

 

[dru-man]

If you have internet there, the only thing that can hold you back is limited beliefs and self-doubt.

As a self-starter, you've already got the key ingredient that makes most who try it fail.

You build skills online just like you build skills at anything - by digging your hands in and getting started. Trial and error. Lots of reading and self-study.

Of course, you don't have to stay where you are to do this. I grew up in a very rural area - the town I was raised in had a populaton of 100 people, and it was an hour's drive to anything resembling a city. But I hit the road and built my online business in a cheap $60 apartment in Northern Thailand.

I spent considerable time reading up on different ways to make money online, allowing naysayers to convince me not to try various things, etc. But once I really got serious about making some cash, I found someone who was doing what I wanted to do and paid him $200 per month to show me the ropes.

You know how much time it took to go from my zero skills foundation to money in my PayPal account?

Three days.

I don't even have a degree, and I make anywhere from $50 - $100 an hour when I want to work (which I admit is not often haha). Yeah, that's not what you'd call fastlane, but believe me when I say that after spending nearly a decade elbows deep in the online business world, I have several fastlane opportunities at my fingertips anytime I want them if I just decide to dig my heels in and take a run at it.

Look, the military can be a fantastic primer to life on a purely practical level. Both of my brothers were soldiers and they gained a lot of competencies that a home run by a poor single mother was unable to quite deliver.

That being said - and let's try not to let this wander off course into a discussion about the virtues of military service and patriotism - I can't personally get on board with becoming a soldier solely for the economic or practical takeaways.

Warfare is a very serious business with very real consequences. And I advise you think it through on a spiritual and philisophical level - even if you're not going to be on the front lines, I suggest you only jump into the fray if you wholeheartedly agree with the contribution you'll be making to the world.

My brother fought for things he didn't believe in because it was his job; this left him with some deep emotional scars that I don't think will ever go away.

That's just my own personal take on it, of course. It's your life, and a man makes decisions the way he sees fit. I'm just suggesting that you take the decision a lot more personally than most new recruits take the time to do.

I know what it's like to come from a limited background with seemingly limited opportunities. The military keeps its numbers up by offering economic advancement to those of us who have nothing else to look forward to - no structure in our lives or opportunities for advancement.

But the idea that you don't have options is an illusion.

Living for years in the third and even fourth world, I've seen what it really means to have no options.

Nothing gives you a paradigm shift quite like sitting there feeling sorry for yourself about some financial or business blunder and then looking down to see a guy in rags with no legs crawling across the greasy pavement on this stomach. Oozing wounds on his body that he continually picks fresh just to try and guilt trip people into throwing him a few extra coins.

I've met poor Cambodian men who've taught themselves how to make money on the internet and created their own opportunities for themselves and their families. These are men at the bottom of the world's economic ladder. Men who can't even qualify for a PayPal account.

Like any accomplished men, they don't treat their obstacles as brick walls; they treat them like challenges that somehow or another must be overcome.

You can do the same for yourself if you just decide to, if you remove failure from your vocabulary, and if you just follow through and keep pushing until something gives.

There are plenty of other ways to carve out a place for yourself in this world, but if location feels like an issue, well, to me the answer seems clear...

The Internet.

Nobody is born with skills.

But are you willing to do what it takes to get them?

The answer to that question is the only thing standing between you and worlds of opportunity.

 

[Mcfroggin]

New poster as well but I'd consider joining the military to be a delay. The military is more regimented and does not have time for you to flex your entrepreneurial wings.

 

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[axeman92]

Hey @dru-man thanks for sharing. I've got 3 questions and if you wouldn't mind answering at least one of them that would be cool.

• How much cash did you start out with in Thailand?

• Did you already have a profitable online business when you decided to move?

• How many hours a week did you work to pay for rent/other expenses?

 

[dru-man]

Hey @dru-man thanks for sharing. I've got 3 questions and if you wouldn't mind answering at least one of them that would be cool.

• How much cash did you start out with in Thailand?

I had a pocketful of cash when I left. I sold my truck and everything else I had before I went.

However, I partied for the nine months or so and ripped right through it before I got around to getting serious about making some money.

By the time I decided I had to make something happen and hired someone to show me how, I only had $1000 to my name. As I said, I was paying him $200 for a month of coaching, so it was a bite your nails experience, to be sure. But it was also one of those gun to your head moments where I had no choice but to make it work, and that sure can help you get things done.

I don't necessarily recommend putting yourself into such a situation or even heading to Southeast Asia to build your business. There's no reason you can't start taking it seriously now and leave with a bit of income already coming in.

My point was just that it doesn't take long to get going once you find the right info and take it seriously...and the internet makes location pretty much a non-issue.

• Did you already have a profitable online business when you decided to move?

No, I didn't.

But I was confident enough in my own brains and work ethic to know that I could figure out something. I'm not the smartest guy in the room but I'm far from the dumbest either.

Here's how I treat life and business.

What one man can do, I can do.

I knew there were plenty of men out there doing this. Especially after reading "The Four-hour Workweek." So I knew I would find a way to do the same, and I committed myself to that end.

It's really as simple as that.

That's the same approach I'll take to whatever I decide to do next, and I plan to see the same kind of results.

It's hard to fail when you don't see failure as an option. To me a failure is detour that will just lead to taking a different route.

• How many hours a week did you work to pay for rent/other expenses?

Then? I don't remember. I worked my butt off in the beginning to get up and running - I'm talking all nighters at times.

Perhaps that had more to do with poor time management (and alcoholism) than anything else, but ask anyone who has ever built a business, and they'll tell you it often takes a gargantuan effort early on to create momentum. That's no different in the online space.

I've never been too good about putting in my consistent hours with the online stuff since. It's not uncommon for me to work my tail off for a few days to a week and then let three weeks pass without getting much done. It's cheap living here.

That said, I don't necessarily advise that either. When you run a business online, you alone are responsible for your future, and so it's a good idea to take your business very seriously and invest some cash/ look for other opportunities along the way.

I'm a copywriter - not sure if I mentioned that. If I got more serious about my marketing, I think a six-figure business only working half-time or a little more would be within reach. But even half that is nothing to sneeze at in Southeast Asia for those who find it difficult to believe.

There are plenty other businesses you can get involved with, though, some of which have a far higher earnings ceiling and that are much more fastlane. They take longer to get off the ground than freelance - that's why I ended up doing what I do.

Anyhow, I'm talking about mindset and mentality here more than anything else.

How and where you choose to apply that is of course up to you.

 

[axeman92]

Sweet. I'm in the process of creating a motivational blog website. I'll start out with affiliate marketing. Then I'll create my own products. Thanks for the advice.

 

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[dru-man]

Sweet. I'm in the process of creating a motivational blog website. I'll start out with affiliate marketing. Then I'll create my own products. Thanks for the advice.

That's great you're taking action, however, just in case there's any confusion about the intent of my advice...

I'm NOT saying take action on just anything and believe it will work and eventually it will.

There's still money to be made in affiliate marketing, to be sure. And blogging is still a great authority builder (assuming you have something meaningful to say about motivation, which may be tough since you don't have substantial accomplishments to prove the tangibility of your thoughts in this department).

But it will not happen overnight or anywhere near as fast as jumping into offering a service.

I'm sure you know all this already and accept that, so I don't mean to be a discouraging voice after all I've said already. And again, I don't mean to imply services is the only way to go.

But given that the original post in this thread mentioned a desire to find the path that would bring success "quickest," I thought it necessary to throw this disclaimer out there, as I question a blog about motivation being this fast path you seem to desire (unless you've got a unique plan to make it a quick success).

So to my previous advice, I'll add this.

If you want to make it online, focus on building hard skills in whatever you're doing so you can use those as cross-over into something else if it doesn't get off the ground. And back up your dream and your good intentions with a ton of reading up on those who've gone before you....balanced with just as much taking action, as always, since that's what turns a theoretical understanding into an active knowledge.

If you need income now, you might consider renting out those hard skills in the meanwhile to more established online businesspeople who already have a budget. Thus giving yourself a half-decent lifestyle in meantime, whether you aim to stay there in the middle of nowhere or head abroad.

Don't get me wrong: you don't necessarily have to set off on the right foot to get somewhere - often, the most important thing is to take action. So at least you're getting that part right.

Carry on and good luck.

 

[luniac]

I started making apps at 23, still learning new stuff at 25. JUST START.

 

[Captain Jack]

That being said - and let's try not to let this wander off course into a discussion about the virtues of military service and patriotism - I can't personally get on board with becoming a soldier solely for the economic or practical takeaways.

Warfare is a very serious business with very real consequences. And I advise you think it through on a spiritual and philisophical level - even if you're not going to be on the front lines, I suggest you only jump into the fray if you wholeheartedly agree with the contribution you'll be making to the world.

My brother fought for things he didn't believe in because it was his job; this left him with some deep emotional scars that I don't think will ever go away.

That's just my own personal take on it, of course. It's your life, and a man makes decisions the way he sees fit. I'm just suggesting that you take the decision a lot more personally than most new recruits take the time to do.

I know what it's like to come from a limited background with seemingly limited opportunities. The military keeps its numbers up by offering economic advancement to those of us who have nothing else to look forward to - no structure in our lives or opportunities for advancement.

As a counterpoint to this argument, there are many jobs out there that will never see actual combat (most jobs in the Air Force, Navy, and Coast Guard). Yes, if OP joins the Marines or Army, he has a good chance of being infantry.

The military can be absolutely great for some people. A friend of mine joined at 18, got into a critically-manned (but highly desirable) career field, and is about to retire at age 38 with lifetime healthcare benefits and a monthly pension that begins the day he retires. Also, because of his particular career, he is currently fielding offers from companies like Lockheed Martin for $200k/yr salary.

OP doesn't seem like much of a self-starter, based on his posts. I think the military would instill some discipline in him and, at the very least, get him out of his parent's house. If he doesn't like it, he could just get out after one tour.

Just my 2 cents.


Capt Jack

 

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[Jake]

and then looking down to see a guy in rags with no legs crawling across the greasy pavement on this stomach. Oozing wounds on his body that he continually picks fresh just to try and guilt trip people into throwing him a few extra coins.

Nana BTS?

The military can be absolutely great for some people. A friend of mine joined at 18, got into a critically-manned (but highly desirable) career field, and is about to retire at age 38 with lifetime healthcare benefits and a monthly pension that begins the day he retires. Also, because of his particular career, he is currently fielding offers from companies like Lockheed Martin for $200k/yr salary.

Was great for me. I was living in Okinawa by the time I was barely 19, traveled around Asia for free, went on to land 6 figure jobs.

Due to lack of control you don't have a clue as to the path you will be sent on (well unless you go infantry then you have a good idea) but mine was nice.

 

[Captain Jack]

Nana BTS?



Was great for me. I was living in Okinawa by the time I was barely 19, traveled around Asia for free, went on to land 6 figure jobs.

Due to lack of control you don't have a clue as to the path you will be sent on (well unless you go infantry then you have a good idea) but mine was nice.

My experience was similar in that I was set up very well (both job-wise and in terms of entrepreneurial opportunities), though I didn't go overseas and my time was full of considerable rectal bleeding at the hands of .mil.

Still, I don't regret it.

And, yeah, the vast majority don't make it to retirement, but most people that I know ended up far better off than before they joined.

I'm not saying that it's a better career path than entrepreneurship for any of us, but it certainly can be for the right person.

 

[dru-man]

As a counterpoint to this argument, there are many jobs out there that will never see actual combat (most jobs in the Air Force, Navy, and Coast Guard). Yes, if OP joins the Marines or Army, he has a good chance of being infantry

With all due respect, I understand that perfectly, Jack. Perhaps I wasn't clear enough about what I was trying to say, but note this comment:

Warfare is a very serious business with very real consequences. And I advise you think it through on a spiritual and philisophical level - even if you're not going to be on the front lines, I suggest you only jump into the fray if you wholeheartedly agree with the contribution you'll be making to the world.

You're talking about practicalities only. I'm talking about personal life philosophy, which to me is more important than any number of juicy benefits and happy ending stories you could hand me. And it's my contention that if you're ANY part of the overall system, you should be very clear that you're contributing to a cause you actually believe in.

Many people in the military feel that just because they're in a non-violent position there is no deeper need to reflect on their true values before signing the paperwork. To me that's just convenient self-delusion - no matter what cog you are on the wheel, you're still a cog on the wheel.

I'm not telling anyone to believe what I believe about military service (in fact, I've yet to even directly mention my own beliefs about the matter). All I'm stressing is that you're contributing to something very serious when you sign that paperwork, and it's not a decision that a man with integrity should make before being fully honest with himself about what he's engaging in and deciding whether or not it's something he wants to stand behind.

I'm aware that isn't the way most soldiers do it these days, but I don't suggest following the average person's approach to morality any more than I suggest following the average person's approach to making money, so my prescription of it as a more intentional way to live a life still stands.

If you believe in American military might and what it's used for, hell, you SHOULD sign on and support what you believe in.

If not, have the self-respect to at least think it all the way through and make a conscious choice. Don't hand over the liberty to choose your own right and wrong for a meager paycheck and a "good start in life."

 

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[dru-man]

Nana BTS?

Nah. I limit my time in Bangkok, but it's almost a daily occurrence eating out in the streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia.