Hey all,
For my 1000th post, I'm not going to write a storybook but I wanted to share with you a couple of things I've learned in the last 10 years.
Despite steady increases in income year by year, web income can be volatile as shit
If you are making good money on the web save a large percentage of it. Be frugal because you never know when it will dry up.
I went from making over 200k per year from running a big content site to 10k per year. Business was good, really good. Then shit hit the fan when the Penguin update was released in 2012.
I always thought that the algorithm updates wouldn't hurt site owners who have been building their sites slowly with original content for 10+ years. News flash: Google doesn't give a fuck, and will screw anyone over in a whim.
Stay employable
Even if you have a successful web enterprise right now, I would still suggest getting a job and staying employed. This is unless you have already banked enough to live off investment income for the rest of your life.
The reason I suggest this is because for the most part, employers don't really give a shit about your little side projects. Just by the fact that you are applying for a job tells them that you didn't make it anywhere online.
You want to build up experience and contacts, and people that can give you a good reference from a reputable company. From the various web jobs that I've had, very few (if any) showed any interest in my personal projects during interviews. They only cared about my last "real job", even though I was making 5x as much online.
Diversify your investments
Every time I read the investing threads about forum members trying to beat the market, I can't help but face palm. There is countless research that shows active investing is loser's game and that over the long haul it is virtually impossible to beat the market.
Unless you are cut from the same cloth as Warren Buffet, your money belongs in a boring old index fund. And the broadest and lowest cost one. This is because when you buy individual stocks, you are essentially trading with a professional money manager, since most trading is done by institutions. They have more information than you.
Watch out for fees
If you are in a fund that charges 1% or more in fees, you are getting raped over your lifespan. This is due to the nature of compounding returns. Of course 1% doesn't sound like a lot, especially in a strong bull market, but there are folks like me who are getting the same or better returns for 20x less the cost by following a passive strategy. Companies like Vanguard, Fidelity, and Schwab are a few that have low cost ETFs - unlike the major banks.
Health is #1
Don't be afraid to take a visit to the doctor's office. If you need to get your balls checked, do it. There is nothing to it. I've had a few scares in my time and have been for ultrasounds on my balls, and also had a colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy. Everything procedure was painless and it's better to catch something early. It will pay dividends in the end.
Don't be an idiot and get a hair transplant
Three years ago I almost got a hair transplant and if I did, it would have fucked me over with a big scar for life. If you are under 35, don't get a fucking transplant. You don't know the severity of your baldness yet. The longer you wait, the better. Better yet, just shave your head like me, you'll eventually get used to it and not give a shit anymore.
I know this thread was pretty random, but I hope that someone finds some value in it.
For my 1000th post, I'm not going to write a storybook but I wanted to share with you a couple of things I've learned in the last 10 years.
Despite steady increases in income year by year, web income can be volatile as shit
If you are making good money on the web save a large percentage of it. Be frugal because you never know when it will dry up.
I went from making over 200k per year from running a big content site to 10k per year. Business was good, really good. Then shit hit the fan when the Penguin update was released in 2012.
I always thought that the algorithm updates wouldn't hurt site owners who have been building their sites slowly with original content for 10+ years. News flash: Google doesn't give a fuck, and will screw anyone over in a whim.
Stay employable
Even if you have a successful web enterprise right now, I would still suggest getting a job and staying employed. This is unless you have already banked enough to live off investment income for the rest of your life.
The reason I suggest this is because for the most part, employers don't really give a shit about your little side projects. Just by the fact that you are applying for a job tells them that you didn't make it anywhere online.
You want to build up experience and contacts, and people that can give you a good reference from a reputable company. From the various web jobs that I've had, very few (if any) showed any interest in my personal projects during interviews. They only cared about my last "real job", even though I was making 5x as much online.
Diversify your investments
Every time I read the investing threads about forum members trying to beat the market, I can't help but face palm. There is countless research that shows active investing is loser's game and that over the long haul it is virtually impossible to beat the market.
Unless you are cut from the same cloth as Warren Buffet, your money belongs in a boring old index fund. And the broadest and lowest cost one. This is because when you buy individual stocks, you are essentially trading with a professional money manager, since most trading is done by institutions. They have more information than you.
Watch out for fees
If you are in a fund that charges 1% or more in fees, you are getting raped over your lifespan. This is due to the nature of compounding returns. Of course 1% doesn't sound like a lot, especially in a strong bull market, but there are folks like me who are getting the same or better returns for 20x less the cost by following a passive strategy. Companies like Vanguard, Fidelity, and Schwab are a few that have low cost ETFs - unlike the major banks.
Health is #1
Don't be afraid to take a visit to the doctor's office. If you need to get your balls checked, do it. There is nothing to it. I've had a few scares in my time and have been for ultrasounds on my balls, and also had a colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy. Everything procedure was painless and it's better to catch something early. It will pay dividends in the end.
Don't be an idiot and get a hair transplant
Three years ago I almost got a hair transplant and if I did, it would have fucked me over with a big scar for life. If you are under 35, don't get a fucking transplant. You don't know the severity of your baldness yet. The longer you wait, the better. Better yet, just shave your head like me, you'll eventually get used to it and not give a shit anymore.
I know this thread was pretty random, but I hope that someone finds some value in it.
