I've made a decent amount of money selling apps through the iOS and Mac app store over the last few years. Making $35-40k online shouldn't be too hard, if you p

I've made a decent amount of money selling apps through the iOS and Mac app store over the last few years. Making $35-40k online shouldn't be too hard, if you put your mind to it. However, most of the projects you can make money with won't be exciting from an engineering PoV. I found it's often either 1) a cool project; or 2) a money maker. Another thing is that you need a decent amount of savings. Even if you have a product that brings in 3-5k per month, having another $50/100/200k in the bank gives you tremendous piece of mind. It also helps with potential cashflow problems. I personally don't take on debt, unless it helps me make more money (i.e. on an investment). Where are you based? Living somewhere with a low cost of living + low taxes is probably the best way to do it, so you can build up capital to kickstart an investment portfolio. For example: having $200-500k invested in the stock market will yield you, on average, 7% per year. That's $14-$35k per year. You want to be working towards a number, so you can achieve financial independence.