It is a shame how this thread is getting subtly derailed, just as it is picking up good steam.
And not to mince words, i am specifically talking about the two of you: Tresdus and VolandoVengoVolandoVoy
You are both posting obvious stuff or wrong stuff(maybe one or two good thing.). But mostly immaterial content with a negative, lecturing slant.
Who doesn't know that entrepreneurship is going to be hard? Who doesnt know that 7% to 11% is what you can realistically hope to make from a realestate investment, in fact, we have
sammybiker's live thread on realestate already.
As for myself, i own a rental house in a very shitty, crime-infested neighbourhood for $180K.. 2 floors, total of 6 rooms and 4 bathrooms. It generates $2300 per month for me before taxes.. that is $27,600 per year... that is +15% return before taxes, repairs and upkeep, etc....
Sammybiker generates between 15% to 20% in net profit on his real-estate business....
There are volumes already written on this forum, discussing the millionaire fastlane thread and 4hour work week.... you are both not telling us anything we don't already know... and certainly, we don't need to hear these things in a *lecturing tone* from either of you. If you think you have something substantive to add, do it without the attitude.
This is a brainstorming thread, some ideas are going to be good, some bad, and others completely atrocious... guess what? that is what you get when you brainstorm... no need to *lecture* others if you think they are off target.
And since this thread was started by YMG, it makes sense to quote him when it comes to the pains and sweat of being an entrepreneur:
Quote: (01-07-2014 10:30 PM)YMG Wrote:
OP, you are almost guaranteed to fail at this entrepreneurial option. To be safe, let's say that you have an 85% chance of failure. That is generous, considering you have zero experience.
You will burn through at least $10,000 USD of your own cash traveling and experimenting with your ideas that will likely crash and fail.
The reality is you are almost certainly going to fail and your expectations should be that you will almost certainly fail. 90%+ chance of this.
I will tell you up front that shooting for the stars means an OVER 75% chance of living in a $15/night Bangkok/Shenzhen/whatever apartment. You should understand that up front. You will suffer. This is not glamorous and anyone who tells you that entrepreneurship is glamorous is a liar.
You will go through moments that make you question whether or not you are bipolar. You will do joint ventures with people who seem great at the outset and turn out to be scumbags, thieves, liars, and idiots. You will vacillate dramatically between moments of pure euphoria and suicidal depression on a weekly basis.
IMO, calculating the EV of the entrepreneurial option is WORSE than nothing. That is because pulling numbers out of thin air that have no basis in reality and judging your own chances of success based on the success (or lackthereof) of some random person on an internet forum (who may be lying) is a dangerous foundation upon which to launch your own venture.
[all due respect to Tigre - I understand why he made this suggestion and I think it's logical but not necessarily the right way to advise someone in this context]
You should assume that you will crash and burn. You should assume that you will go through hell and that you will be fucked and double crossed at every turn. You should assume that you are going to burn through your cash.
Despite that, it will still be worth it, because there is only one way to learn how to be an entrepreneur, and that is by failing constantly and incrementally improving until your luck changes.
You are going to have to look at this with the grim reality that you may lose a year of your life and all of your money pursuing something that will almost certainly fail. You have to be able to look at this possibility and accept that with no regrets.
There are a million factors that can make you fail or succeed. Trying to predict these things in advance based on a bunch of random assumptions is mental masturbation at best.
I understand why all of these guys are playing devil's advocate against the entrepreneurial option. The chances of failure are very high and they are trying to give you advice that will set you up with what they view as a more stable future. In a lot of ways, they are correct. In the grand scheme of things, I think it is far less stable and secure to have a day job.
Frankly, I don't feel like continuing to defend the entrepreneurial route anymore. The fact of the matter is that if you need someone to convince you to become an entrepreneur, you are probably not cut out for it in the first place.
Assume that the absolute worst case WILL occur.
If you can accept losing every dollar you have, losing a year or two of your life, and then having to start from scratch, then you are probably cut out to be an entrepreneur. You have to assume that the absolute worst case scenario will happen and do it anyway. It's impossible to predict if you have a 65% chance of failure of 95% chance of failure.
If you can't accept that, then go get a day job.
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So you see, for some of us, this is not our first rodeo. Been there, done that. We don't need a lecture on what it takes. We already know from
starting our own business.
regards,
Nemencine
P.S. When i thought Roosh's business idea about videogaming journalism was ill-advised. I didn't go about lecturing or patronizing him and others who agree with his idea, instead i
wrote this post in response. Gringuito is a man that has made tens of millions starting, buying and selling businesses and companies; he agreed with my position
in this post. Note that Gringuito wasn't lecturing or patronizing to anybody, despite is over-qualified opinion on business. He simply and politely state his views, and leave it at that. And the instances where and when agree with Roosh's business idea? I
wrote this.
Deciding to put things forward in a polite and respectful way is not that difficult.