I read TMF almost exactly 3 years ago today and like many others, it completely rewired my thinking and overall life philosophy. At the time, I was determined to implement the wisdom in the book and take swift action. I even went as far as to literally follow MJ's footsteps by uprooting my life in a cold, dreary city to move to Scottsdale, AZ. However since then, I have done nothing but procrastinate and engage in worthless mental masturbation. I even began to delude myself into thinking that I could be satisfied with a steady W2 income and humble, normative lifestyle. But now, I've reached a breaking point.
I've made strides in my career, earning 6 figures in a relatively low-stress attorney position and gaining the respect of my colleagues in a niche practice area. As a young guy, I've been told by the senior folks that if I keep it up, I'll likely become shareholder of the firm in the future. I live in a nice (rented) apartment, have quality friends and family, traveled the world to dozens of countries, keep myself in elite physical condition, and overall have a life that most would kill to have. Yet despite all this, I am ashamed to say that I am deeply unhappy and deeply unsatisfied with my life's direction. A large reason for this is that TMF is ingrained in my life philosophy, and my lifestyle is currently completely incongruent with those values, regardless of how "good" it is.
I'm not sure what exactly snapped me out of it, but on July 4 weekend with nothing to do, I told myself I needed to start creating something...anything. Anything at all. This whole time I've been sitting idly in a hole with a shovel in hand. It's time to start digging myself out, even if it's just one microscopic piece of dirt a day. So I started doing what I do best - writing on my topic of legal expertise.
In the past four days, I've been working on an informational/educational website dedicated to a popular law in an industry that is particularly complex. I already teach an entire college class on this topic as an adjunct professor, so I have a deeper understanding of it than most people in the industry. Most importantly, having taught the topic to college kids (rather than professionals), I have the unique ability to distill and explain the complex material in a way that can be easily understood by anyone. The online resources currently out there on the law either 1) have very basic, general explanations that are too broad for any real level of knowledge; or 2) are unorganized and/or written so technically that only professionals in the field could make any practical use out of it; or 3) don't explain anything, but rather try to sell a product or service (e.g. a manual or consulting services) that will help the reader understand and comply with the law. There is simply no comprehensive source (like a wiki) online where someone could go to learn about the law with in-depth, easily understandable and organized explanations for free.
I don't know what will come of this. I don't know if it will ever result in any type of income stream or benefit. Maybe I could monetize the website with advertisements someday or turn the material in to an e-book or college textbook, but I am not focusing on that right now. I just want to start building something. I want to get myself out of a lifestyle that I do not want, so I've picked up the shovel and I've just started digging. And you know what? For the first time in a while, I'm feeling happy.
I hope that I continue to regularly check and contribute to this forum, as I know it will keep me accountable. I would also welcome any thoughts/insights/ideas on this concept of creating an educational website and any experiences you have to share.
I've made strides in my career, earning 6 figures in a relatively low-stress attorney position and gaining the respect of my colleagues in a niche practice area. As a young guy, I've been told by the senior folks that if I keep it up, I'll likely become shareholder of the firm in the future. I live in a nice (rented) apartment, have quality friends and family, traveled the world to dozens of countries, keep myself in elite physical condition, and overall have a life that most would kill to have. Yet despite all this, I am ashamed to say that I am deeply unhappy and deeply unsatisfied with my life's direction. A large reason for this is that TMF is ingrained in my life philosophy, and my lifestyle is currently completely incongruent with those values, regardless of how "good" it is.
I'm not sure what exactly snapped me out of it, but on July 4 weekend with nothing to do, I told myself I needed to start creating something...anything. Anything at all. This whole time I've been sitting idly in a hole with a shovel in hand. It's time to start digging myself out, even if it's just one microscopic piece of dirt a day. So I started doing what I do best - writing on my topic of legal expertise.
In the past four days, I've been working on an informational/educational website dedicated to a popular law in an industry that is particularly complex. I already teach an entire college class on this topic as an adjunct professor, so I have a deeper understanding of it than most people in the industry. Most importantly, having taught the topic to college kids (rather than professionals), I have the unique ability to distill and explain the complex material in a way that can be easily understood by anyone. The online resources currently out there on the law either 1) have very basic, general explanations that are too broad for any real level of knowledge; or 2) are unorganized and/or written so technically that only professionals in the field could make any practical use out of it; or 3) don't explain anything, but rather try to sell a product or service (e.g. a manual or consulting services) that will help the reader understand and comply with the law. There is simply no comprehensive source (like a wiki) online where someone could go to learn about the law with in-depth, easily understandable and organized explanations for free.
I don't know what will come of this. I don't know if it will ever result in any type of income stream or benefit. Maybe I could monetize the website with advertisements someday or turn the material in to an e-book or college textbook, but I am not focusing on that right now. I just want to start building something. I want to get myself out of a lifestyle that I do not want, so I've picked up the shovel and I've just started digging. And you know what? For the first time in a while, I'm feeling happy.
I hope that I continue to regularly check and contribute to this forum, as I know it will keep me accountable. I would also welcome any thoughts/insights/ideas on this concept of creating an educational website and any experiences you have to share.
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