From the desk of Victor Pride
Location: Saigon
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I recently received this email from an excited and aspiring young reader:
Uncle Vic!
When I signed up for your emails my entire life changed. More specifically, when I read some of the books you recommended (rich dad/poor dad and think and grow rich), I developed a new outlook on life. Every morning all I want to do is better myself, increase my financial literacy, and ultimately increase my passive income. I'm writing this to thank you and encourage you to keep at it. I'm also looking for a few tips to help me avoid beginner mistakes in my journey to financial freedom.
What things would you have done differently when you first started developing your passive income?
What is your “motto” or code that you live your life by?
What is the absolute BEST piece of advice or wisdom you've received in all your years of doing this?
Thanks a lot man. I'm looking forward to your next email.
Ok, you wanted the best you got the best. The hottest piece of advise in the world…..
The #1 piece of advice I give to aspiring entrepreneurs is this:
Do it pro from the get go.
The attitude you have makes all the difference to your “luck” and success.
When you say things like “well, I'll just do it and see how it goes” or “I'll give it a try and see what happens” you are setting yourself up for failure.
When you say things like “This is what I'm going to do. I'll sleep on the street before I give up” you are setting yourself up for success.
You've got to do it pro from the get go. That means you need to set yourself up as a professional and not an amateur. Pros are successful, amateurs aren't. Pros make money, amateurs make excuses.
I've been a professional at two things in my whole life. I've been a pro real estate investor and a pro blogger.
I've been an amateur at countless other endeavors.
The difference, the one absolutely only difference, between my pro endeavors and my amateur endeavors was my attitude. I said “I am going to do this” and that's all there was to it.
In my amateur endeavors, which lead nowhere, I always said “well, I'll just try this out and see how it works. I'll give it a shot“. You know where that loser mentality lead me? It lead me to borrowing money to make rent.
I could go pay a years worth of rent tomorrow and not even notice the money was gone.
That's the difference between having a professional attitude and having an amateur attitude.
Do everything the right way direct from the starting line. No if's or maybe's.
Doesn't matter if you are 17 or 57, start your project like a professional or don't start it at all.
Set up for success and success is what you will get.
The 3 steps for setting yourself up for success
#1) Work 16 hours per day.
Passive income is not really the right phrase. Deferred income is a better phrase. You do the work first and then you get paid. You aren't going to make any money if you don't work for it. Period.
It's “passive income” only in the sense that it comes to you at all times, whether you are sleeping or awake, whether you have been naughty or nice. But no such thing as free income. Work, get paid.
The difference between what I do and what Johnny office worker does is time. I don't get paid for my time, I get paid for my work. Johnny office worker gets paid for his time. I do my work once and get paid for a long time afterwards, Johnny office worker clocks in at 9am every day to beg for scraps.
If you want deferred income like I have then you work 16 hours per day and sleep 8 hours per night and you do that for one year. That's how you get passive income. You do a massive amount of work in the beginning and then you can relax and get paid.
#2) Live as cheap as possible.
I cannot stress this enough. Live as cheaply as possible.
Get rid of all unnecessary bills. Cable TV, $100 phone contracts, high rent/mortgage, auto loan payments. Get rid of everything you can. Stop using credit cards unless you are taking advantage of a points/rewards/frequent flier miles program.
If you can't afford to pay in cash then do not purchase it UNLESS you need it for business (that's NEED, not want).
It's not impossible to go out on your own when you have bills up to your eyeballs but it's really damn hard and I recommend making it easier on yourself.
#3) Do it pro from the get go.
Whatever your project is always present a professional image. Always be an authority. Even if you don't have a clue what you're doing. Fake it 'til you make it they say. If you need to, absolutely. You aren't a pro until you are paid for it, but you can and should always have the mentality of a professional.
When I started out in the real estate investing world I wasn't a pro. You aren't a bona fide pro until you've made money and done deals. Well, I just pretended. I pretended my way through my first few deals.
I presented a pro from the get go appearance and was able to do a tremendous amount of deals and make lots and lots of dollar bills.
After several deals I was a bona pro doing more deals than a lot of other people who had been in the business for years and years. Fake it, sure, but fake it 'til you make it.
The 2nd part of that phrase is the most important. Do what you've got to do until you get to your destination. If you're not an expert in your field you will eventually become one with time.
If you plan on becoming a success then don't ever present an amateur appearance. If you don't plan on being a success then don't even bother starting. Put on the big league jersey and leave the little league jersey at home.
Even if you're a nobody, act like somebody. That's the attitude of a go-getter. So if you want something, go get it.
Do some deals and make some dollar bills.
Until next time.
Your man,
-Victor Pride
Another great post ‘uncle’ Vic
Keep em coming…..
You said it!
My favorite is:
“When you say things like ‘This is what I’m going to do. I’ll sleep on the street before I give up’ you are setting yourself up for success.”
That is some powerful stuff and it hits close to home since I made some choices recently that were counter to the pro mentality. I am completely re-evaluating the choices I’ve made because they have drawn me away from the pro attitude.
Great article!
The living cheap advice is great! TV and all that doesn’t benefit you at all. It’s complete waste.
If it doesn’t benefit you then its a waste.
“Fake it till you make it.” We used that phrase a lot when we were young musicians opening for big acts.. We wanted to sound, perform, and look like a national act, even though we were local punk rockers. It worked for the most part, until we got too involved with drugs, sex, and rock and roll.
Mind your own business and you will never be out of work.
Great great article. Certainly at a great time personally as I’m launching a new venture.
How do you go about validating ideas Victor? I’ve read different approaches just wondering what has worked for you.
Thanks dude
Victor,
Your blog is an inspiration here at WM&S. We are just starting out blogging. You’re blog has provided more than enough info for us to get off the ground. Any success we have, we will owe to you.
Steven Pressfield wrote a book about this. It’s insightful stuff from a hugely successful author, entrepreneur, and businessman.
http://shop.blackirishbooks.com/products/turning-pro
(Excerpts at http://thefreelancery.com/2012/10/no-more-screwing-around/ )
Great post.Uncle Victor I currently have plans for developing software but I don’t have the savvy needed to do it.And i am not will to outsource due to the deals being very sensitive.Should i find a partner or just learn the thing myself?
If have “plans for developing software” but “don’t have the savvy needed to do it” you have “wish in one hand”. Maybe you can learn to do it yourself, but most people just don’t have the potential to do meaningful software work and if you haven’t already found yourself doing some coding just for fun you are probably part of “most”.
If you want to partner with someone who /can/ write software, consider what /you/ have to offer /him/. Bill Gates got rich off other people’s work because they were nerds doing it for fun in an era when no one thought there was any money in it. In today’s market, if you are lucky enough to find someone with programming ability who is underemployed, you’ll need something more than “wouldn’t this be cool”. You’ll need to provide an opportunity that is not already easily available.
Abgrund knows what he’s talking about.
Getting a partner is just like getting a girlfriend. You need to have the edge to make ’em go “Yes I want to work with you!”
Almost no one is willing to work for royalties and everyone hates signing an NDA because your idea might already be in their folder of 50 software projects they might do.
The good news is, absolutely anyone can be a programmer. The bad news is, it’s outright hard and may not be enjoyable. There’s quite a bit of terminology to learn, and most of the programming techniques and features take hours of googling to figure out their value or purpose.
A partnership is your best option. Outsourcing, if you can afford it, is second best due to time. Learning to code requires the most time. You’d have to learn how to program, then make the software, then find a partner who can market it, or get good at that as well.
If doing it yourself is your only option and you know there’s a market forthe software, then you can go ahead and download a copy of monodevelop and google c# tutorials.
Good advice, but I have to disagree about one thing: most people cannot learn to program, at least not effectively enough to be worth attempting anything remotely marketable. I have had to train and manage programmers and I have seen plenty of people with technical college degrees who couldn’t code their way out of a wet “Hello World”. Programming makes heavy demands on logic, concentration, intelligence, memory, and determination, which is why there are zero female programmers for every 100,000 male programmers.
Thanks for the advice guys.Coding to me is something like mathematics to me .If you put the time and effort and CONTINUOUS effort you’ll get the hang of it.If you’re not willing to put in the time them it an uphill battle.
As for the software I have to try my hand at learning and developing products of code,Before i dive into the software im considering .
This post contains the jet engines for those still using propellers. THANK YOU Uncle Victor for these weekly engines and the supply of jet fuel. Too many waste time reading nonsense published by the big companies… IF IT’S PUBLISHED BY THEM, THEN IT HAS INTENTION OF WASTING YOUR TIME AND LIMITING YOU. You’re LIVING and DOING EXACTLY what you advise us to do. Thank you for this no-nonsense power in words. You aren’t a pro until you are paid for it, but you can and should always have the mentality of a professional. Every word you write matters. Reading again and again. This is the ONLY blog that matters.
Great article Victor.
Work hard, work smart, and the rewards will come!
On a different note I’m having trouble with the maintenance diet in BOAS. Maybe I have misunderstood because if I eat protein until I’m full like suggested I can get through about a pound of steak and 8 eggs scrambled per meal which is way too expensive to keep up.
Could you give me a guideline of how much protein you need to get a day on this diet, so I can work out how much I need to eat?
Thanks
Damn, that was a really good post! I even read it aloud with authority so my mind would really get it and…I got it.
I’m really going to do it. I’m going to live very cheaply for as long as I can (living with parents, still young..and keep most of my expenses for business during that time) and work HARD for a few years and I’m going to ‘fake it til I make it’ starting right now.
I have your “30 Days of Discipline” Victor, but 30 days is not enough for me…2-3 years of supreme discipline and a lifetime of LIVING…really living.
11:33 PST , 09/23/2013
To future Daniel…smile when you read this again and take in the PRIDE :) FUARK yes!
Wise and good
Vic, can you check if I have some comments in the Spam . Dunno why but seems like askimet is spamming my comments just now
Thanks
Yeah, it was in spam.
Vic, can you check, I think my Ironthumb comments have been spammed by askimet. I think one particular site I commented in “spammed” one benign comment I made
Nice post, good motivation!!!
@Magallanes My comment got blocked too. It definitely was not spam.
yeah man, but it was and I asked the Askimet people to fix it and I they replied and took care of it. aparently I was correct, the guy from another web spammed me. For some reason the dude doesnt like me. LOL
@VIC
Thanks for checking my comment, bro I appreciate it compadre
Hey Victor,
Why’d you get out of real estate if you were successful with it?
I was tied to one geographical area and I wanted to travel and b) it was very stressful.
Interesting read and agree with most points.
You sound like Pursuit of Happiness near the end there. [you want something, go get it].
Love it. Fake it till you make it.
Vic, your blog has been a god send. In the world of wishy washy half assed, love everything, there are no losers everyones winners world and self actualization blogging you are a breath of fresh air. seriously no nonsense, no bullshit, real men talk. so tired of reading oh you can for 4 hours a week make millions. NO you can’t… you need to work 18 hour days, everyday, you need to be built for that shit, if you aren’t built for discomfort and grinding bone on bone you won’t make it in this world. I am glad you put it down straight.IN wrestling and jiu jitsu there is a term called “Embrace the suck” you have to love getting your face smashed in, twisted mindset, but that how you win. Rocky needed to get beat up the first 8 rounds.
keep rocking out bro. This society shows markers for today’s man that is devoid of masculinity, hard work, toughness, gruffness, shouldn’t have to apologize for being an alpha, smart, bold, brass balls.
Entrepreneurs may have their own unique way of setting up for success but the thought of doing it from the beginning may be ideal. Thank you for sharing three steps that may help aspiring entrepreneurs.
I need your advice Victor.
I really need it.
I have been hit on by a girl who is gorgeous. But, she is a whore. She has fucked over 20 guys, and she is only 16. When I mean hit on, I mean sexually hit on, in the hallways at school.
I don’t know what to do. I am very confused.
I have been encouraged by other people to go for it. She has fucked other guys my age. I feel I have got to fuck her to prove myself.
Yeah, I’m being a little fucking pussy about it. I know I need to grow a pair. I am still 14. I got the rest of my life to do that.
Your just a guy running a fucking blog, and you got guys like me fucking asking you for “counselling advice.”
I don’t know what to do Vic. You kick the real deal. If I ask anybody else, they’re going to shit me the estrogen advice.
I want to be a man. I just don’t know how.
Listen buddy, #1 You posted this comment in an inappropriate post. There’s no excuse for that if you’re 14 or 40 you should know better.
#2 You’re only 14, try and relax. I know it feels like life or death but it’s not. It’s meaningless in the long term. If you want to, do it. If you don’t want to, don’t do it. Simple as that. PS - Wrap it up buddy, you don’t want the village slut to give you the nasty herp at 14 years old.
Another great post Vic, each one of your articles on this sort of thing helps me further my own beyond what I used to consider. Keep up the great shit! I’d also really appreciate if I could get some feedback from people on my own site: StrengthInConfidence.com. I’m only just starting up but I’d love some advice to see if I’m doing it right.
Thanks for another awesome post Vic
Hey vic, why do you talk endlessly about keeping your info private if you give information to scorecardresearch.net and nrcdn.com without our permission.
I don’t give away any information about my readers, you clown.
1. I don’t see any scripts from nrcdn or scorecardresearch on my blocked list.
2. If any of these scripts are running for YOU it’s probably third parties serving them, not Victor.
3. I don’t allow any scripts at all on this site and it works fine for me. If Victor wants to sell the contents of this post to an advertiser I guess it will buy him a fucking Leerjet. Maybe I’ll take a picture of it. I haven’t even given him a fucking cookie.
4. If you think nrcdn and scorecardresearch are major threats to your privacy you should check out the Nazi Security Administration. What are you accomplishing by whining about some blogger?
This has become my new favorite article on B&D. Thanks, Victor!
Long time reader, first time commentor.
I resonate with you very much Victor on this:
“When you say things like “well, I’ll just do it and see how it goes” or “I’ll give it a try and see what happens” you are setting yourself up for failure.”
This makes for a wishy-washy half-assed kind of effort to be produced. Only when you are completely and utterly commited, is when the magic happens.
It very much goes with your other post in regard to obession. Obession is key, it is a powerful motivator, its what gets our gears crankin’ when we have doubts or start coming up with bullshit excuses.
Keep the good shit coming Vic.
I would love to hear more about real estate investing from you. It is something I am going to do as well. My first real estate investment will be a duplex. Rich Dad Poor Dad is initially what sparked my interest in this field. Any posts on real estate coming anytime soon?
You want some real estate advice?
Buy the book Deals on Wheels by Lonnie Scruggs
That’s a good point about ‘deferred’ income.
As you probably know better than I from the various guys that ask for advice on the subject -
There’s two types of people that are all giddy about earning “passive income”
1) people that are lazy as hell that visualizing sitting around all day playing video games (like they currently do)
2) people that have an extreme work ethic and decide - NO MATTER WHAT - they will succeed or die first.
good article
Victor,
Thanks for this post.
Two Questions.
How are you able to work 16 hours? I exercise, eat healthy, and sleep well. However, I still taper at the 8 hour solid work. After that I need to decompress my mind or my output diminishes.
I am leaving cheaply now. I live outside the USA. Thank God. Now, I have females as a diversion and they take away resources. I’m trying to get just one and bootstrap it until I make it. Do you recommend going blue balls?
Thank you, your humble follower.
16 hours: You don’t physically work 16 hours each day, unless you’re a Chinaman working for apple, but you put all your thought into the business.
Blue balls: No, I don’t recommend. Like you said, just get one and bootstrap ’til you make it.