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> Curious if anyone here has either built a side project or started something with the explicit goal of making $50k+? No, but in general: "The desire to get r

> Curious if anyone here has either built a side project or started something with the explicit goal of making $50k+? No, but in general: "The desire to get rich fast is pretty dangerous." - Charlie Munger What he means by this is that a lot of dumb things are caused by the desire to get rich fast. On average, slow but steady strategies outperform quick but risky strategies. See also the nice book The Dhandho Investor which talkes about placing "heads I win, tails I don’t lose much" bets. And yes, investment advice applies here because the question is about where to invest time (and possibly other resources too).

rco8786 5y ago
To be fair, an extra $50k a year is not "getting rich" in the sense that Charlie is talking about here... This is a perfectly reasonable goal for someone with enough time to devote to a side project.
- Matthias247 5y ago
  It really depends on where you are coming from. For an US software engineer with a salary of 300k$ it might not be a lot and a reasonable goal. For lots of others it might mean doubling their salary, which sounds a lot like "getting rich".
  - rco8786 5y ago
    I guess so. “Rich” is relative not to your current self but to those around you, IMO. If I doubled my salary from $20k-$40k I might feel better off but by no means would anyone consider me to be rich, at least in the US
amelius 5y ago
"Yeah, but that advice only holds for people who are not as smart as I am" :)
melony 5y ago
This is poverty advice to keep the middle class in their lane. You cannot get rich on a salary alone. This is well known advice. Even if you invest all your savings into long term investments/high yield ETFS and get a mid 6-7 figures job right out of college, at most you will be able to retire in the early thirties. To be rich enough to own private jets and high end yachts, you need to fundamentally create value or be very lucky. Some options are joining a promising, almost-IPO ready startup with generous equity or building something society needs. Either that or having a small fortune to start with and then becoming successful on the commodity markets. Side projects also work if they truly generate overwhelming value. You cannot however expect to reach 100+ million by working hard alone unless you are extremely well compensated in equity.
- AndrewOMartin 5y ago
  A lot of these statements might be factual, but if it's middle class to retire in your early thirties then I've overestimated my lot in life and will be adopting a flat cap and a Whippet on a rope forthwith.
  - melony 5y ago
    If you have no kids, it is actually quite doable.
ryanSrich 5y ago
As other's have said, I don't see how an extra $50k per year would constitute being rich. If I had said "what's the fastest way to 10x $100k" then yes, you'd fall into the trap of speculative assets and gambling. I'm talking more about strategies to make $50k over the course of 12 months while still having time for a full-time job and family activities. That seems pretty reasonable to me.

rco8786 5y ago

To be fair, an extra $50k a year is not "getting rich" in the sense that Charlie is talking about here... This is a perfectly reasonable goal for someone with enough time to devote to a side project.

Matthias247 5y ago
It really depends on where you are coming from. For an US software engineer with a salary of 300k$ it might not be a lot and a reasonable goal. For lots of others it might mean doubling their salary, which sounds a lot like "getting rich".
- rco8786 5y ago
  I guess so. “Rich” is relative not to your current self but to those around you, IMO. If I doubled my salary from $20k-$40k I might feel better off but by no means would anyone consider me to be rich, at least in the US

amelius 5y ago

"Yeah, but that advice only holds for people who are not as smart as I am" :)

melony 5y ago

This is poverty advice to keep the middle class in their lane. You cannot get rich on a salary alone. This is well known advice. Even if you invest all your savings into long term investments/high yield ETFS and get a mid 6-7 figures job right out of college, at most you will be able to retire in the early thirties. To be rich enough to own private jets and high end yachts, you need to fundamentally create value or be very lucky. Some options are joining a promising, almost-IPO ready startup with generous equity or building something society needs. Either that or having a small fortune to start with and then becoming successful on the commodity markets. Side projects also work if they truly generate overwhelming value. You cannot however expect to reach 100+ million by working hard alone unless you are extremely well compensated in equity.

AndrewOMartin 5y ago
A lot of these statements might be factual, but if it's middle class to retire in your early thirties then I've overestimated my lot in life and will be adopting a flat cap and a Whippet on a rope forthwith.
- melony 5y ago
  If you have no kids, it is actually quite doable.

ryanSrich 5y ago

As other's have said, I don't see how an extra $50k per year would constitute being rich. If I had said "what's the fastest way to 10x $100k" then yes, you'd fall into the trap of speculative assets and gambling. I'm talking more about strategies to make $50k over the course of 12 months while still having time for a full-time job and family activities. That seems pretty reasonable to me.