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#200 · The New Path In 2026: Agency to Automated Service to SaaS

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Would you trade profit for knowledge?

Yes, I would now trade profit for knowledge, whereas before I would have traded knowledge for profit. Now that I'm financially secure, I want to return to being curious. In business, I constantly calculate the cost of my time: I only take on tasks that are worth more than my time's cost. For example, if I can make $10,000 in an hour, I won't spend an hour on a task that yields only $5,000, because the opportunity cost would be $5,000. Working from home turns everything into an opportunity cost calculation. Previously I'd read books or go down rabbit holes just for interest, but I can't justify that now since those hours would be worth less than working. I fell into that trap for years, trading hobby time for money, which made me wealthy. Now that my financial need is met, I wonder if I can return to satisfying my curiosity. I read this in my journal a few weeks ago; at that age I was reading two books a week and still needed the almighty dollar.

profitknowledgeopportunity cost

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What do you usually do with all the money you make? Could you spend it on some guilty pleasure like cars or just invest it?

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.

money mindsetinvestingquality of life
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Getting more money from less stuff (higher perceived value, harder to reach) is actually the norm, not the exception — people tend to put in more work for high perceived-value things that are harder to access. You have your content backlog, community, and Q&As — being at the top of the mountain, less available, could carry more perceived value than always being reachable. Have you considered this?

I'll consider it, and I think I probably naturally apply this to Make Money with Make and Maker School already, since I don't have time to answer every question — there's probably some leverage built in from that perceived exclusivity. I understand it's more psychologically effective, but I've built my brand on actually helping people. If it takes me working a bit harder to help everyone I said I would, even if I don't make quite as much money, I think that trade-off is worth it — the long-tail benefits of staying accessible probably outweigh the short-term benefits of being harder to reach. I do like the Burberry/Nordstrom exclusive model where people line up for something scarce, but I think I just prefer offering value more.

brand philosophyexclusivity vs accessibilityperceived value
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How has increased wealth affected your fulfillment, and what are the pros and cons of success from a personal psychological perspective?

More wealth makes it hard to tell if people like you for yourself or just your money; you test with stupid jokes to see their reaction. Many cozy up for the flashy bling, even if you're not flashy yourself. You're not more fulfilled than when you were sleeping in garages and making no money—fulfillment comes from working on stuff you care about, which you did then and do now. Your impact has grown, but your personal fulfillment hasn't, leaving you to wonder what that means for your craving for impact. When broke you could follow curiosity freely; now you constantly weigh financial effectiveness, which can lead to hard days.

wealthfulfillmentmindset
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How should I structure my business to achieve a work‑life balance with freedom, and what’s the client breakdown between Left Click, Score Up, and other ventures to fit the life I want?

You're worrying about the wrong thing—you're trying to solve a problem you don't have. Instead of trying to carve out the perfect life right now, first get to the place you want financially, then worry about carving that life out. In my case, scaling Left Click took us far beyond the point you're talking about; we hit $72k in one month. While scaling I saw varying degrees of work‑life balance and eventually worked 12‑14 hour days making $70k a month. Once I was making more money than 99% of people, I was in a better position to ask whether that life is truly what I want or just a hyper‑glamorized media image. From there I considered how to shave down the money I make per unit time to get a more reasonable workload. You’re approaching things backwards; start with the financial goal, then design the life you want. Rather than trying to get everything right at once, solve one problem at a time—career first, then balance and relationships. It’s much easier to tackle them sequentially than to try to get it all right on the first try; the probability of success is low if you try to do it all at once.

work-life balanceagency structureclient breakdown