I’m middle class, working a 9-5 job, want a successful side hustle. How can I gain the motivation or knowledge that the rich or poor have to succeed?
If you spend time worrying about your station or constantly asking how to improve, it's not incredible to believe you'll succeed. Humans are remarkable and can access virtually anything they want today—far more than a king had 500 years ago. So don't be your own biggest enemy; put in the time to think and consider how to be successful in any field, and it's reasonable to expect success. Just relax and keep taking the daily steps.
Yes, I once believed I needed to make $2,000 a month to live comfortably, and at the time I was earning far less, living frugally in a converted garage and feeling proud enough to avoid getting a job or moving back home. That period was tough and gave me many gray hairs. Now I earn that amount in the time it takes to record a video, showing how my perspective has shifted. The reality is that money is abundant; the issue was my mindset—I was my own worst enemy, unable to see opportunities. Success isn’t about sheer hours worked; it’s about working effectively. When you focus on effective work, you can achieve in moments what others take days, weeks, or years to accomplish.
A lot of kids are obsessed with making money but don’t understand the process or sacrifices required. They see only the upside. It’s like trying to draw an owl: everyone wants to skip to the finished drawing without learning the basics. My advice: pre‑commit to something for long enough to dive deep and see results. Pre‑committing is tough because we’re sold the idea of infinite opportunity, but in reality doors close constantly. Accepting that is part of becoming mature. You must trade off some opportunity for results—whether it’s committing to a partner, a business, a lead‑generation approach, or a discipline like 75 hard. This trade‑off is a fundamental equation for achieving greatness.
I've started many YouTube channels, e-commerce stores, service agencies, and PPC businesses - most of them failed and made me no money, leaving me feeling underperforming. The real differentiator isn't hyper-optimized skills; it's the ability to stay consistent over long periods. After about age 23, that's the skill worth optimizing. It's not a deep philosophical trait; it's a skill like learning ads or managing clients. To build it, spend disproportionate time on it, use books and practices, and create accountability - tell friends, family, partners, or staff about your daily goals so there are consequences for skipping. I've done this exclusively for the last few years: just commitment and daily showing up. As long as you don't give up, you'll eventually win.
I do make a significant amount of money—around $300,000 per month—mainly from the school games (third-party revenue) and another community. I earn far more talking about the stuff than actually doing it, which is typical for an information product: leverage comes from teaching others, allowing them to achieve 100x results while I earn proportionally. What do I do with the money? I don't have guilty pleasures like cars; I invest it. I have friends aiming for tens or hundreds of millions in the S&P 500, but that's never been my primary motivator. When I was broke, an extra $10,000 a year would have dramatically improved my quality of life; now, extra millions don't materially affect it unless you have extreme comfort needs. I'm thankful my family immigrated from Eastern Europe around the fall of communism; they lived frugally, teaching me that a fulfilling life doesn't require a lot of money. Though I now make what most would consider a lot of money, I still find life enjoyable and fulfilling without needing wealth.