Take Control of Your Success

The Harsh Reality of Today’s World

The sad truth of today’s world is that you are not in control of your future, especially your financial future.

The standard path is:

• Go to college where you’re taught specific skillsets designed for research or the workforce

• Graduate into a career job where you can climb up the ranks

• Make as much in that day job as you can

• Hope you can retire by 65 years old

• (Possibly go back to work during retirement due to a downturn. ~20% of people in retirement age are still in the workforce.)

Of course, this stems from innumerable factors, such as unliveable wages and marketing tactics of consumer brand companies.

However, much of this stems from an employer’s hold on its employees.

An employer decides:

• When you work

• How long you work for

• How much you get paid

• How much free time you have

Not to mention that the employer reaps all of the benefits when profits rise.

This much is clear by 2% or 3% annual raises, if any.

For most people, the success they can achieve is determined by how a company or companies decide to treat them.

Look at Those Around You

You may wonder, “Why do I need to take control of my path?”

I don’t need to look any further than the coworkers around me.

They spend their days doing what they’re told to do, how they’re told to do it, when they’re told to do it, and for the set pay they are given.

Most of the control is out of their hands, and they aren’t happy with their situation.

The classic “Happy Monday” or “Thank god it’s Friday”s are typical, wry humor to describe the hatred of where they are.

This kind of blatant hatred under a thin veil of humor is even more reassurance that sticking to the norm and letting others determine your path is a sure way to live an unhappy life.

Break the Mold

If your only source of wealth generation is through a day job, you are beholden to the path they provide you.

We should aim to break out of this pattern and put the control back in our hands.

How can we do this?

The best way to break this traditional cycle is to build income sources outside your day job.

Before I scare you away, I’m not proposing you spend 24/7 working on a side project (unless you want to).

Instead, even spending a couple of hours each week can get you out of the limitations of your day job.

Don’t Underestimate Yourself

Many people assume they just aren’t cut out to live a life outside of the norm.

This kind of limiting thinking is precisely what companies hope for.

They are incentivized to make you believe that working for them is the only way to survive reliably.

Now, with the prevalence of online jobs and freelancing, this lie is becoming more evident by the day.

People are making more than they ever did in their day jobs by creating things online and offering their personal services.

Most of these people aren’t geniuses (no offense); they just saw an opportunity and were willing to take it.

If you don’t believe you can do it, do yourself a favor and give yourself an opportunity to prove yourself wrong.

Interested in an automated tool to track your net worth?

Tracking your net worth is useful for tracking progress toward big purchases and financial milestones such as retirement.

I just released an automated spreadsheet that helps me:

• Track asset values

• Track my net worth

• Keep historical net worths

• Keep historical asset values

• Visualize progress over time