Hello all- I’m a longtime lurker, and with a ticket to the Summit in February, I guess it’s time to say hello!
A little about myself:
About half way through college, I went to my university’s career fair. It was horrible. I spent all day repeating the same intro to recruiter after recruiter, answered the same questions, and got the same rehearsed pitches everyone else had received… All. Day. Long. About the only positive on the day was the replenishment of water bottles, Frisbees, and post-its I collected for the apartment. I got home and one of my roommates asked me how it went. I said, “I never want to have another boss”. This became my mission.
Admittedly, in the beginning, I wasn’t very proactive in obtaining my goal. The closest I would come in the first few years would definitely be considered more hustling than Fastlane- I would flip stuff on eBay and I started a little lawn crew with a buddy.
My first big attempt was with real estate. I read a bunch of books, got on a few different forums, and set my DVR to record all of the Saturday morning house flipping shows. I found a house that needed work, had a contractor tell me what needed done, and had an agent tell me what it’d be worth when fixed. I brought on family members as investors, and pulled the trigger. This was it, the first stop on my way to a McMansion and Ferrari… right? Wrong. We paid too much for the house, contractor was way low on the bid… had to fire him, and the house wasn’t worth as much when finished… the agent I got the ARV comps from was the agent trying to sell the house originally (gee… ya think I would’ve seen that one coming).
Next step on my tour was a food service franchise. The asking price on the business was about a third of what it would cost to open new. What a deal… right? Wrong. I got pretty close to taking ownership, and 2 days before closing, I had enough sense to walk away. I would’ve been working 60-70 hours/wk min just to keep the place afloat. It would have been a classic case of buying a job… and a horrible one at that! My Dad’s always said, “Sometimes the best deals you make are the ones that you walk away from.”
At times when I got a little lazy, or my mission was looking bleak, I would break down and send out several resumes and cover letters for entry level jobs that looked interesting. It only took a phone interview or two to light a fire under my butt and get back on track. I would continue to hustle and bartend in the interim.
Next, I came across an “online business” for sale. I called the business broker and he explained the model to me (basically drop shipping with a little inventory), which I knew nothing about at the time. I got off the phone and thought, “holy crap, I can make all this money from the couch!” Someone else ended up buying the business the next day, which ended up being a very good thing. The business was declining, which most drop shippers are probably starting to see by now anyway.
So, I started looking for another “online business”. I also started educating myself on how to operate an ecommerce business (this is actually how I found the FLF!). I ended up buying an ecommerce business that I still own and operate today. It was a pretty rocky start (Google update caused a hit early on, I wasn’t nearly as good with PPC as I thought, etc.), but it’s been my first profitable venture… which after several failures is quite motivating!
Since then, I’ve continued to grow my business and actually start a second one (also ecommerce). I’m also doing a little bit in real estate when the right opportunity comes along (a few flips and a vacation rental with family members.)
My biggest goal right now is to start operating my ventures from a Fastlane approach. I’m trying to make that transition from working in the business, to on the business.
So, that’s my story thus far! Look forward to being a part of the forum!
Cheers!
PS- huuuuuge shoutout to MJ and all of the contributors that make this place what it is. I can't tell you how many times I've hit a roadblock and used that search bar to find my solution. For the few that don't already know: there is epic info here!
A little about myself:
About half way through college, I went to my university’s career fair. It was horrible. I spent all day repeating the same intro to recruiter after recruiter, answered the same questions, and got the same rehearsed pitches everyone else had received… All. Day. Long. About the only positive on the day was the replenishment of water bottles, Frisbees, and post-its I collected for the apartment. I got home and one of my roommates asked me how it went. I said, “I never want to have another boss”. This became my mission.
Admittedly, in the beginning, I wasn’t very proactive in obtaining my goal. The closest I would come in the first few years would definitely be considered more hustling than Fastlane- I would flip stuff on eBay and I started a little lawn crew with a buddy.
My first big attempt was with real estate. I read a bunch of books, got on a few different forums, and set my DVR to record all of the Saturday morning house flipping shows. I found a house that needed work, had a contractor tell me what needed done, and had an agent tell me what it’d be worth when fixed. I brought on family members as investors, and pulled the trigger. This was it, the first stop on my way to a McMansion and Ferrari… right? Wrong. We paid too much for the house, contractor was way low on the bid… had to fire him, and the house wasn’t worth as much when finished… the agent I got the ARV comps from was the agent trying to sell the house originally (gee… ya think I would’ve seen that one coming).
Next step on my tour was a food service franchise. The asking price on the business was about a third of what it would cost to open new. What a deal… right? Wrong. I got pretty close to taking ownership, and 2 days before closing, I had enough sense to walk away. I would’ve been working 60-70 hours/wk min just to keep the place afloat. It would have been a classic case of buying a job… and a horrible one at that! My Dad’s always said, “Sometimes the best deals you make are the ones that you walk away from.”
At times when I got a little lazy, or my mission was looking bleak, I would break down and send out several resumes and cover letters for entry level jobs that looked interesting. It only took a phone interview or two to light a fire under my butt and get back on track. I would continue to hustle and bartend in the interim.
Next, I came across an “online business” for sale. I called the business broker and he explained the model to me (basically drop shipping with a little inventory), which I knew nothing about at the time. I got off the phone and thought, “holy crap, I can make all this money from the couch!” Someone else ended up buying the business the next day, which ended up being a very good thing. The business was declining, which most drop shippers are probably starting to see by now anyway.
So, I started looking for another “online business”. I also started educating myself on how to operate an ecommerce business (this is actually how I found the FLF!). I ended up buying an ecommerce business that I still own and operate today. It was a pretty rocky start (Google update caused a hit early on, I wasn’t nearly as good with PPC as I thought, etc.), but it’s been my first profitable venture… which after several failures is quite motivating!
Since then, I’ve continued to grow my business and actually start a second one (also ecommerce). I’m also doing a little bit in real estate when the right opportunity comes along (a few flips and a vacation rental with family members.)
My biggest goal right now is to start operating my ventures from a Fastlane approach. I’m trying to make that transition from working in the business, to on the business.
So, that’s my story thus far! Look forward to being a part of the forum!
Cheers!
PS- huuuuuge shoutout to MJ and all of the contributors that make this place what it is. I can't tell you how many times I've hit a roadblock and used that search bar to find my solution. For the few that don't already know: there is epic info here!
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