I'll Make $1 Million in 6 Months

What is the goal?
I started this goal approximately September 24, 2007. It is what I call a Passion Project. This will form the main basis for the reason this blog exists, atleast for the next 6 months. The ultimate goal will be to make $1 million profit by March 25, 2008, and as a general point of reference, to make $250,000 by Christmas 2007.

Why am I starting this?
This is the one goal that has always felt rather elusive--financial freedom. There are other goals that I haven't reached ofcourse, but all the other ones feel relatively easy to me. For example, I do not have a girlfriend at this particular time, but unlike in previous times, I don't feel desperate because I have gained so much confidence and social skills that it would be stupid and irrational for me to believe that I can't get one. Honestly I would just have to spend a day or two going out chatting with people and it would be done.

I am not content with working at desk jobs. There was a time not too long ago that I hated the office and felt like it was going to jail due to some bad experiences. I no longer view it like that anymore, but I certainly would get much more satisfaction out of life creating something I'm passionate about and succeeding in the business world, instead of droning in an office till I'm 65.

What am I going to buy with the money?
Ironicially, I'm not a materialistic person at all. Throughout my life, even as a child, I've been notorious for being a person who doesn't want to buy things. I've lived my whole life in a middle-class white-collar family, but for me, money is really only important if I either have a lot of it (millions) or none at all (barely scraping by). Whether I'm earning $40,000 or $80,000 a year doesn't really change my lifestyle very much. I'm not really one to indulge in a spending spree, and getting a luxury vehical like a Mercedes Benz instead of a non-luxury vehical doesn't really make much difference to my level of happiness.

If I use the money on buying anything, it would most likely be for travelling. I don't know if that counts as materialism. It's not really tangible, I would go because I like to relax and see the world. I find those experiences to be enlightening if you open your mind. The money would give me the opportunity and power to live a life where I can do what I want for the rest of my life.

Are there any rules or guidelines to this project?
One of the things about this is that it's not just about the money, it's also about doing something I love versus doing something that I don't really enjoy. If I make money doing something that I am not passionate about, then it will not count. This goal has nothing to do with getting rich quick like some sort of scheme.

It's about something similar to what Ayn Rand talks about in some of her books like Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. I was introduced to her books when I read that NBA billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban, read her book Fountainhead religiously. I'm not a big fan of her writing style, but I am a fan of her ideology of Objectivism even though I'm not really an idealist. She describes it like this: "My philosophy, in essence, is the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute." She also says that in order for this to work, Laissez-faire capitalism needs to be the framework.

How much start up capital will I have?
I'm thinking a couple hundred dollars at most. It's not really that necessary for me to spend money on this, because hopefully when I make a product that is great and use proper marketing, I won't have to. It's really the time and guided effort of my creativity that I put in that will determine if I can succeed. I truly go with the motto that life is what you make of it.

What are my obstacles?
I'm taking a senior level Accounting class at night that is very difficult and will no doubt take up a lot of time. I will probably be working at a full time job for the entire time of this goal. And there will also be a learning curve for me since this is the first time I've worked on this sort of project.

So what exactly is this project?
I cannot state the specifics as of yet. I would much rather have more of my work done before going into detail about it. One thing I can say is that it has to do with a LOT of creativity.

Conclusion
It's the first time that a guy like me who has always focused on school and working for somebody else, has decided to do something entrepreneurial. I might not have much to lose when it comes to money since there isn't a lot of start up costs, but I will have a lot to lose in terms of the lifestyle that I might not be able to have for the remainder of my life. That, in my own life, is much more important. Again, I do not want to work in an office and follow all those rules forever; life should be about being free, doing what you love, and using your head to see success.