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Whats up Fastlaners,
This week was my first week as a full time entrepreneur and making this thread has been on my mind for quite some time. I keep thinking about how i got myself into this position because not too long ago I was literally living in a mobile home making 13/hr. Unlike most corny gurus that say that, that was actually my life and the life I live now is so unbelievably different. This month Ill make more money than I did in a year at my job, i dont set an alarm clock, no one tells me what to do, my companies are growing, and 6 years ago this is exactly what I planned as my "goal by 25" and I wanted to detail how I set myself up to quit so you can too.
My original thread: GOLD! - Its been one year of FLF for me. This forum will change your life and Ill prove it.
Theres a couple of factors and mindset is probably the biggest and im not going to get into it, i read TMF probably 10+ times through and through. Im expecting you already have the mindset.
Here's how I quit.
1. Get a job
The job is your base plate, its your foundation. I started as a customer service rep at 18 and worked my way into a VP of Operations at 24 using the thought process that every job is a stepping stone to getting out of the rat race. You NEED money to build your side hustle/business/investments. So you should constantly be pursing jobs that increase your hourly rate and lower your actual work time.
- I started at a job where I had to clock in and i could barely research or work on my own business.
- By the end i was salary, no schedule, operating my day how I wanted so I could work on my own business.
What should you do with your earned income?
-Live off half
-Save half for your venture
-Leverage the salary to get approved for loans to invest/loc (when applicable)
Most people FAIL with their jobs and trap themselves because they live off of the entire income and build their lifestyle on it.
You should build your business off of your job and build your life on your business.
2. Find Your Need & Build
You should be constantly looking for opportunities to start a business. Something that has the ability to scale far beyond your work income. You need to aim high, dont build a business that would have paid you the same as a job and been way less work and risk unless you truly love it.
Spend your hours after work researching, connecting with people necessary, building, creating, trying.
I would work 9-5, workout till 7:30/8, and study and build until midnight or 1am. To be honest this part consumed me, I didnt hangout with friends, I didnt party, I didnt spend money, all I did was build my idea. Your ability to remove the fear of missing out and remove the judgement of others will determine how far you can go. This part is lonely, the odds of your failure is extremely high (which is why you need the job so you dont lose ground).
This is also the part where this forum comes in handy the threads by BIOPHASE, JASONR, VIGILANTE, ALLENCRAWLEY, And VICK is all the information I needed to build my company. Thats it, those 5 guys and the information on their threads is enough you just need to implement it all. The faster you can try, fail and learn and close feedback loops will prove how quickly you can succeed.
I wish I could give more guidance on this but everyones ideas will be different, everyones process plays out in a different way because we all have different opportunities, passions, thoughts...
3. Kill Your Expenses
If you're serious about living in the fastlane, you need to kill your expenses. What you own will end up owning you and in doing so you wont be able to get out if you dont do this.
My rule of thumb and I still do this is 50/50.
I build my life, 50% is saved immediately in a seperate account I cant see, 30% funds my needs, and 20% funds my wants or gets saved.
The money that you save should be used for opportunity that can create income (businesses, investments). If I make 3k/mo I save 1.5k and leverage that money to build an idea.
If you find that you dont hit the 50/50 rule, Id downsize or find a new job that pays more, drive a wedge in your expenses and income. Sell your car, househack your home, move in with parents.
4. Get the business stable and growing
It's easy to see your business making 5k/mo and think that you've made it so you can quit when you've never made money before. Thats wrong, its shortsighted and you will lose in the long run.
Before I'd ever quit my job I knew that my business had to do 3 things.
1. It needs to pay me. (enough to live)
2. It needs to cover operating costs and any costs associated with the business.
3. It needs to be able to reinvest at a known rate to continue growing.
If you're company is making 5k/mo and you think you can quit your job and pay yourself 3k/mo but your operations are 3k and reinvesting is 2k+ you can see the gap in where you will stunt your growth, suck the money from your business, and eventually need to go get another job.
5. Build your emergency fund
This is hit or miss with some people but ideally your 50/50 lifestyle will continue as you start growing your business and you can continue saving. Before you quit your job you should save 6-12 months of runway so that if your business was not able to pay you you could atleast live off of your emergency fund as you try to figure out the issues that would prevent it from paying you.
If you are keeping your expenses low and not buying frivolous things you should be able to save 6-12 months within 3-6 months.
6. Get a mastermind group going
Im in a mastermind group with a couple of guys from this forum that are where I want to be or in the range that Im currently in. Without those guys Id probably still be at my job. When you have people holding you accountable every week asking you if you got your shit done, why your doing what your doing, where your trajectory is heading, its a MASSIVE advantage over being alone.
Having the expectation that you should not be spending your money on stupid things, building your emergency fund, and quitting your job from other people will keep the pressure on you to do so and prepare you to take the leap.
I hope this provides some insight, I understand its basic but for most people being consistent with it and truly following through is where you'll find success.
Good luck
This week was my first week as a full time entrepreneur and making this thread has been on my mind for quite some time. I keep thinking about how i got myself into this position because not too long ago I was literally living in a mobile home making 13/hr. Unlike most corny gurus that say that, that was actually my life and the life I live now is so unbelievably different. This month Ill make more money than I did in a year at my job, i dont set an alarm clock, no one tells me what to do, my companies are growing, and 6 years ago this is exactly what I planned as my "goal by 25" and I wanted to detail how I set myself up to quit so you can too.
My original thread: GOLD! - Its been one year of FLF for me. This forum will change your life and Ill prove it.
Theres a couple of factors and mindset is probably the biggest and im not going to get into it, i read TMF probably 10+ times through and through. Im expecting you already have the mindset.
Here's how I quit.
1. Get a job
The job is your base plate, its your foundation. I started as a customer service rep at 18 and worked my way into a VP of Operations at 24 using the thought process that every job is a stepping stone to getting out of the rat race. You NEED money to build your side hustle/business/investments. So you should constantly be pursing jobs that increase your hourly rate and lower your actual work time.
- I started at a job where I had to clock in and i could barely research or work on my own business.
- By the end i was salary, no schedule, operating my day how I wanted so I could work on my own business.
What should you do with your earned income?
-Live off half
-Save half for your venture
-Leverage the salary to get approved for loans to invest/loc (when applicable)
Most people FAIL with their jobs and trap themselves because they live off of the entire income and build their lifestyle on it.
You should build your business off of your job and build your life on your business.
2. Find Your Need & Build
You should be constantly looking for opportunities to start a business. Something that has the ability to scale far beyond your work income. You need to aim high, dont build a business that would have paid you the same as a job and been way less work and risk unless you truly love it.
Spend your hours after work researching, connecting with people necessary, building, creating, trying.
I would work 9-5, workout till 7:30/8, and study and build until midnight or 1am. To be honest this part consumed me, I didnt hangout with friends, I didnt party, I didnt spend money, all I did was build my idea. Your ability to remove the fear of missing out and remove the judgement of others will determine how far you can go. This part is lonely, the odds of your failure is extremely high (which is why you need the job so you dont lose ground).
This is also the part where this forum comes in handy the threads by BIOPHASE, JASONR, VIGILANTE, ALLENCRAWLEY, And VICK is all the information I needed to build my company. Thats it, those 5 guys and the information on their threads is enough you just need to implement it all. The faster you can try, fail and learn and close feedback loops will prove how quickly you can succeed.
I wish I could give more guidance on this but everyones ideas will be different, everyones process plays out in a different way because we all have different opportunities, passions, thoughts...
3. Kill Your Expenses
If you're serious about living in the fastlane, you need to kill your expenses. What you own will end up owning you and in doing so you wont be able to get out if you dont do this.
My rule of thumb and I still do this is 50/50.
I build my life, 50% is saved immediately in a seperate account I cant see, 30% funds my needs, and 20% funds my wants or gets saved.
The money that you save should be used for opportunity that can create income (businesses, investments). If I make 3k/mo I save 1.5k and leverage that money to build an idea.
If you find that you dont hit the 50/50 rule, Id downsize or find a new job that pays more, drive a wedge in your expenses and income. Sell your car, househack your home, move in with parents.
4. Get the business stable and growing
It's easy to see your business making 5k/mo and think that you've made it so you can quit when you've never made money before. Thats wrong, its shortsighted and you will lose in the long run.
Before I'd ever quit my job I knew that my business had to do 3 things.
1. It needs to pay me. (enough to live)
2. It needs to cover operating costs and any costs associated with the business.
3. It needs to be able to reinvest at a known rate to continue growing.
If you're company is making 5k/mo and you think you can quit your job and pay yourself 3k/mo but your operations are 3k and reinvesting is 2k+ you can see the gap in where you will stunt your growth, suck the money from your business, and eventually need to go get another job.
5. Build your emergency fund
This is hit or miss with some people but ideally your 50/50 lifestyle will continue as you start growing your business and you can continue saving. Before you quit your job you should save 6-12 months of runway so that if your business was not able to pay you you could atleast live off of your emergency fund as you try to figure out the issues that would prevent it from paying you.
If you are keeping your expenses low and not buying frivolous things you should be able to save 6-12 months within 3-6 months.
6. Get a mastermind group going
Im in a mastermind group with a couple of guys from this forum that are where I want to be or in the range that Im currently in. Without those guys Id probably still be at my job. When you have people holding you accountable every week asking you if you got your shit done, why your doing what your doing, where your trajectory is heading, its a MASSIVE advantage over being alone.
Having the expectation that you should not be spending your money on stupid things, building your emergency fund, and quitting your job from other people will keep the pressure on you to do so and prepare you to take the leap.
I hope this provides some insight, I understand its basic but for most people being consistent with it and truly following through is where you'll find success.
Good luck
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