1) Take your income from programming and save as much as possible. Depending in your income & lifestyle you can probably save up several hundred thousand in a

1) Take your income from programming and save as much as possible. Depending in your income & lifestyle you can probably save up several hundred thousand in a few years. 2) learn to trade the stock market. Continually invest, and re-invest in high risk/reward stocks 3) As soon as you are able to sustain yourself indefinitely you quit your day job and begin coding full-time for yourself