My $10,000/Month Online Journey Didn’t Start As I Expected
How to release the constraints holding you back from your optimal future
It’s 2019. I just bought my second camera.
It’s a gorgeous Sony, full-frame beast. As a photographer, it’s my ultimate tool to make loads of sweet cash, and I’d shoot all sorts of subjects:
Backyard weddings
Rooftop pool parties
Bougie snack brands from Whole Foods
Then the Pandemic hit.
All the juicy photo gigs dried up, and I wondered how I’d make money.
Expectation = Suffering
When I thought everything was going my way, my expectations crumbled like a Nature Valley bar.
I’d expected to make money
I’d expected to move out of my parent’s house
I’d expected to buy a car, meet a girl, and have a sick apartment
So when none of that happened, I was frustrated. But couldn’t pinpoint exactly why.
The Pandemic? My job? Myself?
Three years later, I realize it was because my expectations weren’t met.
“Desire is suffering” — Naval Ravikant
Since 2020, I’ve learned to limit my expectations and wait for opportunities to come to me rather than force them.
Handouts kill long-term goals
I grew up with a supportive family, and in a way, they helped me too much.
After college, I didn’t have any real-world experience to lean on, and I expected to get a job. My ego was inflated like the Michelin Man.
I had two choices:
Go work for one of my parents and live at their house rent-free until 30.
Study high-demand skills and level up my status
I worked three different jobs and several freelancing gigs before I landed my current position. But I’m where I’m at because I took action.
Action trumps inaction
Taking action on any task, no matter how big or small, is the first step to taking control of your life.
Clean the kitchen
Schedule your tweets
Respond to all the emails
Write your weekly newsletter
And when it comes to working toward $10,000/month, you have to do the things the version of you who is making money is doing, be it reading, making courses, or practicing sales calls.
Only you will know what you need to make $10,000/month online.
A course might tell you, but you have to find the course or meet the person who refers the information to you.
Top earners don’t take action for the sake of taking action.
The two-person thought experiment
Pretend two people work the same hours.
They’re both told whoever can make $10,000 first wins.
Eventually, one person will make more money because they are focused on the right things. Doing simply isn’t enough. One must take the right action.
That’s the difference between working harder and working smarter.
Put yourself in the best position to win, and you’ll do more work in less time.
Do what future you are doing
In five years, I want a typical day to look like this:
8:00 AM: Wake up
8:30 AM: Read for 30 minutes
9:00 AM: Caffeine and walk the dog
10:00 AM: Write
12:00 PM: Make lunch
1:00 PM: Write again
3:00 PM: Workout
6:00 PM: Make dinner
7:00 PM: Plan my day
7:30 PM: Decompress
It’s a long list, but it’s a simple life.
But here’s the thing, if present me isn’t writing, taking walks, or planning out my days in advance, I won’t ever reach my goal.
Your present action defines your optimal future.
Go with the flow
I’m so fixated on my optimal future I forget to stop and smell the roses.
As a result, I become a stress ball.
But every goal is a desire, and desire is suffering.
Every new goal adds to the stress you might already have from work, relationships, or your favorite sports ball team.
Remember to scope out and focus on what matters, be it relationships, rest, health, and spending time in nature.
Everything happens for a reason
That’s what I told myself when my dreams were snatched from me.
That’s what I told myself when my dream school denied me.
That’s what I told myself after every failure because it’s important to remember this about failures:
Failures are lessons
Nothing good comes without struggle
Everyone is a prerequisite to future success
This mindset is about reminding yourself to let go of the past and focus on the present. Focus on daily action.
I knew I wanted to work in media one day, so even though I was teaching, I practiced. I still wrote, I still shot photos, and I still studied other brands.
And where did this lead me? A remote job managing a media team.
And I’m not at $10K/month yet, but I’m getting there. I thought I’d be there by now, but everyone’s journey is unique, and that’s exciting.
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Curious to know your thoughts of limiting your expectations. I am currently under this impression:
If desire is suffering and if we decided to suffer through to our goals, I think we need to come to a realization.
A realization that we require the knowledge or set better (limited) expectations to know how long it will take for our desires to be achieved. This way we know how long we need to suffer and instead feel accomplished at the end. Building mental toughness or resilience for the end goal.