Live Debt Free

Pay off debt. Save. Give. Live your mission.

Create Something Awesome and Sell It

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I used to carry a heavy burden of debt.

I pined away at an 8-5, M-F job I hated so I could pay for a bunch of crap I thought I wanted. I was an unhappy wage slave.

That was a few years ago.

Now I’m financially light on my feet. I wake up every day and aspire to create something awesome, in lieu of trading my time for money.

What about you? Are you where you want to be, or at least heading in that direction?

Answer these questions:

  1. Do you earn a living trading time for money (a.k.a. salaried worker)?
  2. Have you ever created something to sell (a product, service, etc.)?

Keep your answers in mind as we explore the intention of spending time creating something awesome, and selling it.

When I say awesome, I mean creating something that’s useful and meaningful, that embodies your passion. Something you could sell without even trying. Something you know other passionate, like-minded people will love.

If you’re looking for a step-by-step guide to quitting your job and making money fast, stop reading now, close this browser tab, and keep surfing.

I’m writing this to inspire you to action! In this relationship I’m the cowboy with spurred boots, and you’re the horse.

Now let’s go for a ride.

Note: if you love your job, this post isn’t for you.

Trading time for money

The average Joe/Jane will never earn money from a creative endeavor, which is fine unless they’ve always wanted to but never have.

If you want to stop trading time for money, and transition into selling your own creations, I’m here to tell you it’s not only possible, it’s doable . . . I have done it.

Before proceeding I want to touch on several philosophical reasons we fall victim to the “time for money” trap.

If you’re unsure how you turned into an unhappy, salary worker, let me assure you, you didn’t get here by accident. If you were publicly educated, the first 20+ years of your life were spent in something I refer to as “wage slave training.” You were trained to work for other people – people who create something to sell.

You were NOT taught to solve problems and think with independence.

While we can’t place full blame on our grade school and college undergrad curriculums, it’s important to recognize the effects of our training. Most people in the wage slave role wonder how they got there, and why the heck they hate it so much.

I know because I was one of them, for a long time.

Right about the time Obama was promising hope and change, I was breaking ground on my transition from wage slave to entrepreneur. I wanted to move toward creative, meaningful work ASAP, but I wasn’t sure what it would be or how I would get there.

When I was just about to lose it, I took a “mental health” day to drive to my Dad’s and ask him how in the world he spent 35 years working a job he hated. This is what he said:

“When I was about your age I reached the point you’re at now, and a decision had to made. I could either quit my job to pursue meaningful, fulfilling work, or stay where I was and focus on finding fulfillment in my personal life, and use the job to support it.“

He retired from that job, and it supports his personal life to this day.

But it was then that I KNEW it had to be different for me, I had to make the opposite decision.

God bless my mother for her steadfast support through this transition too. I Love her!

Create awesome stuff and sell it

It was January 1st, 2009 when I started DebtFreeAdventure.com. The interest on my debt alone was costing me over $1,300/month (yeah, you read that right).

I had tens of thousands of dollars in student loans, a 30 year fixed 1st mortgage, a 2nd mortgage, around $7k in auto loan debt, and another $6k in credit card debt.

I was working a job that drove me frickin nuts – but – I was creating my own plan for hope and change.

I started DFA for 3 reasons:

  1. To help me get, and stay, out of debt.
  2. To help others do the same.
  3. To earn money by creating something awesome.

Along the way I developed passions for simple living, doing things myself, and reducing my intake of harmful chemicals – and started diyNatural.com to nurture that passion.

Some goals for diyNatural were:

  1. To simplify life and learn new skills.
  2. To live a natural, sustainable lifestyle, and inspire others do the same.
  3. To earn money by creating something awesome.

In late October of 2010 I quit my job and toyed with the idea of creating information full-time. For a few months I tried to make the transition but – for whatever reason – wasn’t quite ready to take the plunge. I explored other avenues of work including a 3 month, $800 investment to become a financial advisor. It was not in line with my gifts and desires the way I thought it’d be.

Finally in February of 2011 I jumped off the entrepreneurial cliff and committed myself to creating information full-time. I would succeed, or fail while trying my best.

Website traffic and earnings increased as I lived and grew the plan, and it’s a good thing because in July Betsy left her full-time job to avoid having a stress breakdown (she was in the same boat I had been in, but under a lot more pressure).

That summer she began writing for diyNatural and on September 1st we released our first ebook titled DIY Natural Household Cleaners: How to make your own cleaners… naturally.

Two and a half months later we released the book in print version on Amazon, and just a few days ago made it available on Kindle and other e-reader platforms.

We had never run websites for a living – but we made it work because we were passionate about creating and sharing awesome information. We had never published, marketed, or sold an ebook, print book, or Kindle book – but the book is selling very well.

Nowadays we’re content using our God-given gifts to inspire others in holistic stewardship. We have time freedom, we’re happy with our work, and we trust God to provide. He always exceeds our best expectations!

Now it’s your turn to create and sell

Betsy and I focus on creating information products. We give most of the information away for free, but sell enough to support the work.

Maybe you want to create and share your gift and passion for art. Maybe crafts. Maybe farming. Maybe you have a flair for graphic design and want to build awesome websites for people, businesses, or charities.

Whatever your passions are, start creating something awesome, and trust God with the details and provisions. He gave us the desires of our hearts to steer our lives in certain directions. Stop ignoring Him.

Don’t worry about selling – yet – just focus on a passionate interest, outline some goals, and start creating.

Who knows, maybe in 3 years you’ll be much happier with your answers to the two questions asked above!

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photo credit: Mickey van der Stap

Start Living on One Income!

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I strongly urge you to do everything in your power to start living on one income, however and whenever possible.  If you are single, concentrate on living well below your means, paying off any debt you have, saving money, and giving generously.  If you are a two income family, please read on with a hopeful and open mind.  🙂

Why live on one income?

Living on one income does not necessarily mean you’re only earning one income.  Whether both spouses work, or only one works and the other stays home… there are many benefits to living on one income only.

When both spouses work

As it sits right now, me and Betsy have no children and are self-employed, but it wasn’t long ago that we were both working full-time jobs. There are benefits to having both spouses work, but if you do I still encourage you to live on only one income while you save the other.

Here are a few noteworthy benefits of a two income family living on one income:

  • A hedge against job loss. If both spouses work, yet they only require one income for their living expenses, then the other spouses job can be lost without an enormous family crisis taking place.
  • Pay off debt faster. Use the second income to get you out of debt in record time.
  • Save more money. Once you are out of debt, start packing away boatloads of cash.
  • Give more. Because you can, because it will make you happy, and because “…God loveth a cheerful giver.”  II Cor 9:7
  • Retire earlier. Once your emergency fund is established, begin fully funding your IRAs, 401(k)s, and other investments so you can retire earlier and spend more time doing what you love.

When only one spouse works

If you have been blessed with children then most of you will likely be forced to decide between having one spouse stay home and putting the children in some sort of day care.  Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of being able to skip the day care and enable mom or dad to stay home with the children while the other spouse brings home the bacon.

  • No day care. You raise your own kids… full-time.  You do not have to pay for day care, and no longer have to worry about whether or not your children are being properly raised 8-10 hours of the day.
  • Less stress and more quality time. When the working spouse comes home, many of the household duties, cares, and concerns can already be taken care of by the homemaker.  This affords the couple much more quality time with much less stress.
  • Enable one spouse to take care of the home, and everything in it. One spouse goes to work for pay, while the other stays home and works as the support system.  A homemaker taking seriously the job of caring for home and family may just be the most honorable and rewarding position there is – and I think we, as a society, are in dire need of more of this type of thing.

I hold to the belief that a woman will feel more fulfilled in the role of staying home and caring for the home and family while the man goes outside the home to earn.  I am not a chauvinist, and I do not think “stay-at-home-moms/wives” have it “easy,” that couldn’t be farther from the truth.  What I do believe in are the gender differences ordained and given us by God Almighty.  Don’t get me wrong… either spouse can provide, and either can stay home… but we are most interested in how intrinsically fulfilled each of us feel in either given role.

In conclusion…

Living on one income while both spouses earn gives you increased security, speedier debt repayment, more capability to save, give, and retire early.  Living on one income and raising a family will afford you less costs and outsourcing in regard to raising children, lowered levels of household stress, and more time together as a family!

Whichever route suits your family best… don’t the benefits of living on one income sound appealing?  So what are we waiting for?  Let’s start tweaking our budget so we can live on one income and start reaping some of these benefits!

Do you (or can you) live on one income?

We want to be there as soon as possible… so we’re working to get rid of all our debt (and a lot of our possessions.)  We cut costs drastically, are living far below our means, and would probably be fine if we were forced to trim down and live on one income only.

What about you?  🙂

Passion, Work, and Happiness

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I love and admire my dad for many things. He instilled in me a great work ethic and respect for people. He spent over 30 years helping build a small seed corn company into a well-respected player in a very competitive market. My dad also taught me that you cannot rest on your laurels or expect the past to repeat itself. Since he started with his current company in 1981, the world of work has tossed and shifted like a rowboat on stormy seas… but that didn’t stop my old man from rolling with the punches and demanding success.

If we’re to succeed in our chosen profession, we must realize that we ultimately work for ourselves. I realize that the vast majority of people in the United States are employees. Recent Labor Department statistics show approximately 15 million employees are self-employed (source), a figure representing 20% of the current workforce. In other words, four out of five employees work for someone else… but we must realize that we always represent ourselves.

I have spent much of my time here on DFA highlighting the benefits of self-employment, including a lot of self-reflection as I work to launch Whiteboard Business Partners. My goals may be different than your goals, but we’re all pursuing our vision of financial freedom. Pursuing a calling and loving our vocation are critical components to finding that freedom.

Hard passionate work promotes happiness

I had the privilege of interviewing best-selling author Kevin Kruse for my upcoming Whiteboard Business Radio podcast series. Mr. Kruse co-authored the book “We” with Rudy Karsan. It’s required reading for anyone looking for more fulfillment at work. The first key point in “We” is how we’re responsible for our own careers, and how we must act like we’re always working for ourselves.

In the past, an unwritten social contract existed between employers and employees. As long as you came to work on time, worked hard, and did not commit any major mistakes, you could count on your company to employ you for life. You would work for 30-35 years and retire with a nice pension. Global competition, technology, and shifting mindsets are now combining to make any job temporary at best. When many publicly-traded companies face declining profits, their first reaction is to lay off employees. These workers may be great employees, but it’s “just business.”

The other side of the unwritten social contracts of the past were that employers could place you where they wanted. If you wanted to move into a different division, the company may not want to do that. If you wanted to try a different job, you were at the mercy of the company. If your skills became outdated, the company really did not care as long as you were in your particular cog.

This type of career progression left many people unfulfilled at work and the recent job market only accelerates these feelings; and now-a-days employees are let go much more readily.  Which has exacerbated the “Why work hard for my employer, they don’t care about me?” attitude.

What can we do then? Adopting and holding to the understanding that we work for and represent ourselves will help us pursue more meaningful work, resulting in better performance. Think about it, would you rather perform poorly at a job you dislike or excel at something you love?

Passion improves life

Mr. Kruse’s most memorable moment as an employer came when an employee’s spouse came to him at a company gathering. The spouse thanked Mr. Kruse for providing such a great place to work, and shared how their lives were better thanks to the changes at work. His marriage was improving, his life outlook was improving, and the entire family was generally happier.

A bond exists between fulfillment at work and overall happiness. Mr. Kruse and Mr. Karsan dismiss the concept of work-life balance, opting for “work-life blend” where your work becomes an integral part of your life, and I agree. In my own life, I can see that I was most happy when doing work I enjoyed. In fact, I met my wife while working my favorite job. Coincidence? Perhaps not!

We have a unique opportunity in today’s economic environment. Sure, the traditional employment contract no longer exists, but that makes for less contraints to finding work that matters.

Know your passion, find what truly fulfills you, and watch your earning potential – and happiness- soar!