Millionaire Challenge

ElleWoods

I read this entire thread a few months ago, subscribed to it and have been keeping up to date ever since. I find everyone's stories and posts inspirational, so thought it was time to say hello.

I'm a single mum to a 6yo and currently work in advertising/marketing, an industry I've been in for 15 years. Three years ago I went part time, so my income is quite low and I have big dreams of increasing it. A year ago I asked to go back full time and was told it wasn't possible. My ex doesn't pay maintenance (long story) so I'm totally responsible for bringing money into the house. I've wanted to work for myself for years and unfortunately my current employment is under thread of potential redundancy, so I've started to look more seriously into self employment and am researching potential ways of doing this. I'm 40, so I'm coming to this a bit late but I don't want to spend the next 27 years just drifting in my job, the way I have for the last 15.

I've thought of lots of things I'd quite like to do but I can't afford to retrain, so lots of them are out. That means I need to utilise the skills I already have but I often feel like I don't have that many actual skills - for instance, a hair stylist working in a salon could go freelance, but I don't have a practical skill like that as such. I also suffer from low self esteem and social anxiety, which I'm currently having CBT for. Another concern I have is I currently receive top up benefits so any SE income I receive will affect those, so it HAS to be successful and bring money in, or I'll end up worse off than ever - like many others I've got debts on pay off and don't want to get into any more.

So at the moment I'm struggling to know where to start, but I'm looking into the following:

- opening an eBay shop as a reseller (currently researching products but considering watches or designer perfumes)
- some kind of affiliate marketing opportunity
- setting myself up as a business offering marketing/social media to SMEs
- long-term I'd like to own a portfolio of BTLs and do 'flippers' I believe they're called (buy as cheap as possible, do up, sell). I don't have the capital to do this atm but it's definitely my long-term aim.

I'd love any advice or suggestions from those of you on here who are already on track. I just feel a bit lost at the moment.

Btw, Ray I live in the area where you're shortly moving to. <waves hello>

Chai_2

Hi Guys,

I am late to the party also but wanted to join in!!! I and in my late 20's and I am also on my millionaire journey. My methods will be purely online as property requires too much upfront money which could be used to make you a millionaire in 18 months if you knew how to use it online!!

I am lucky that I have a passion for helping people live their best lives and this is my main focus ( I have recently moved to the canary islands living in a lovely place for £200 all inclusive so im keen to help other reach what seemed impossible by being creative).

So..... My main methods will be...

1- writing books and selling them on Amazon.

I have a masters in Psychology so have a bit of knowledge on the area and some existing material that could be used to be a part of a book. I also have many areas of interest that I can write on so will be looking to produce short - medium books via on Kindle and paperback versions. I will also set up a publishing company to do this for others to.

2- Blogs and affiliate commissions.

Connected to the books will be blogs which will be an information resources but also sell affiliate products. I already have 4 blogs that have a minimum of 50 articles each but I am yet to monetise this. I probably wont be selling alot of affiliate products as I prefer to create and sell my own.. which leads me onto my third method...

3- Creating products

I know how to easily create ebooks, video courses, audio courses and so on so will be looking to create information products and sell them a variety of market places that I know other marketers search for (such as clickbank and so on)

4- Online events/ web classes

I plan to interview people who have achieved something special, successful people and sell a product or courses off the back of that. This method is kinda special as I have created the funnel from my own observations so cant say too much but its a way to inspire others to live their best life and people can choose to pay for the info if they want to but can freely enjoy the info as it is delivered..

Woooaahhh!! Writing that out was a little scary but keeps me accountable. I might make a new thread as I dont want to interrupt this one but it seemed like the right place to be of all the threads on here. Whilst this may not seem alot I know countless people who earn 6 figure businesses from each one of these methods let alone all of them combined!

Wish me luck!!

MKeynesMoneySaver

Welcome SoftKitty, I have been considering a business idea which might be useful for yourself. Unfortunately the idea won't work in my current area as it is due to an business in the local area which I have got the idea from.

Once a month an A5 booklet, approx 44 pages gets delivered to homes in the local area. The majority of pages are advertising space of varying sizes which are sold to local firms. There are a number of pages with articles which mostly are written by business owners and somehow related to their business.

I have no experience of the industry and no idea of the profitability but it seems an opportunity that might be worth investigating.

Their website is https://www.mkflyers.co.uk

cazmanian_minx

SoftKittyWarmKitty wrote: »

- opening an eBay shop as a reseller (currently researching products but considering watches or designer perfumes)

Word of warning about perfumes; Royal Mail won't accept them at all from personal customers now and only with restrictions if you're a business customer:

http://www.royalmail.com/business/help-and-support/tell-me-about-restricted-goods (under Perfumes and Aftershaves)

http://www.royalmail.com/personal/help-and-support/Tell-me-about-Prohibited-Goods (under Flammable Liquids).

lessonlearned

Hi just stopping by to say hello to all you lovely newbies. Lots of positive vibes here. Fantastic.

Chai - you seem pretty well sorted - some awe inspiring ideas there and I'm sure you will do well. I believe there is a big market for your skills.

Kitty - I just wanted to say to you that for much of my life that is exactly how I felt. I felt that for all my intelligence etc I wasn't actually "trained" for anything. What had I actually got to offer anyone. Yes I could sell but what else.

Your hairdressing analogy is most interesting because oddly enough this is the one I always used when thinking about my own perceived lack of real skills.

I always could, and still can, turn my hand to just about anything but whereas I now understand and appreciate the fact that I am a "good all rounder" in the past I always criticised myself for being a "Jack (Jill) of All Trades, Master (Mistress) of none".

I always chided myself for being such a butterfly, unable to settle in any one job or career. I was easily distracted, got bored and just flitted to the next thing, never having a proper plan or goal.

I now realise that being a "butterfly" isn't necessarily a bad thing. It means that I'm always interested in new things, new ways of making money etc. I don't have to get down to the grinding fine detail - the stuff which I'm not terribly good at. I can delegate and pay someone to do that for me, freeing me to look at the bigger picture and find further deals, additional ways of making money.

It wasn't until my husband became ill and I had to really fight for our economic survival, care for my OH, and deal with all the endless red tape and faceless bureaucracy that the NHS and Adult Social Services embroil you in that I realised something very profound.

My 33 jobs had been my apprenticeship. They had given me a skillset and had prepared me for the enormous task which was upon me. I had simply soaked up knowledge and skills without even realising it.

Countless people have expressed astonishment and bewilderment at my ability to cope with what has been thrown at me. So many people have said that they just couldn't have done it.

I think that if I had had a more stable and conventional career trajectory I wouldn't have been so well prepared. I wouldn't have been so adaptable, able to bend and weather the storm.

What I'm saying is I think you will find you know more than you think you do, that you have skills and resources that you are unaware of.

I've spent quite some time deciding on how I am going to make my money. I came up with property and antique dealing, with a possible move into complementary therapies.

Why these??

Well the complementary therapies is an extension of my beauty therapy days. I'm not interested in opening nail bars, tanning booths etc. I am more interested in health, nutrition and complementary medicine.

Antiques and bric a brac are just a little sideline/hobby which I have dabbled in on and off for years. I shall just keep doing these alongside for an additional income stream.

Property - is what I know and understand. It formed a major part of my working life over the years. Property developing is just the next stage. I'm not about to attempt to outdo Barratts or Taylor Wimpy - just a couple of good projects a year. I don't have to physically do every single task myself. I am the brains and the vision, I can employ the trades and the muscles required. I'm not too fussed about BTL's myself but DS2 wants to do these so I will help him along.

My choices have been dictated by what I'm good at but also what I enjoy most. I am of the opinion that if you really enjoy what you are doing then it isn't work - it's just part of your lifestyle.

Which is why I can't see me wanting to "retire" in the accepted sense of the word. Retire and do what....potter about my garden, decorating, doing arts and crafts, travelling.

Well I can do all of that and turn it into a business and income.

Instead I will be designing, building, landscaping. For me it's the same as retiring but, on a grander scale and making money from it. When I get too old and decrepit to lift a paintbrush I can sit in my wheelchair and just order everyone about.....

Kitty - just think about what you enjoy most, about the skills you already have and how you can deploy them to your advantage. You are a single mum bringing up a child on your own. You have more skills and strengths than you probably realise;)

GreatBigBookcase

Hey all, just a quickie from me.

Kitty - hello back! Yes, returning to Sheffield. Was thinking I was coming back in Spring, but it turns out it was snowing yesterday! Will have to re-think what clothes to bring back with me, seems packing my winter clothes in the stuff that's going to be shipped and take 10 weeks to get there is a bad idea. I agree with LessonLearned, by the way, that you'll have picked up many transferrable skills from you previous jobs. I bet if you sit down and think about it and make a list of all the skills you've picked up, most of them will be transferrable to other businesses/jobs.

Chai, some great ideas there. I've always enjoyed writing, but never looked into the self-publishing side of things...maybe I will... Good luck!

droopsnoot, I never received the e-book download either, and totally forgot all about it until you mentioned it (pregnancy brain ) so thanks for reminding me. I'll chase that up.

allie, I'm 40 too...definitely not too late for us...

Gallygirl, how many BTLs do you currently have (if you don't mind me asking? ) Any tips on getting started??

LessonLearned, thanks for all the BTL landlord tips. I'm also learning lots from you other thread...I feel like I'm stalking you a wee bit...

I've had a bad day today money-wise. I'm not sure if I just did something really stupid or if I was just over-optimistic to begin with and what actually happened was always going to happen and had nothing to do with my own stupidity at all... Hope you're all having better days!

ElleWoods

Thanks for such a warm welcome .

Chai - Your ideas sound fantastic and I'm very envious of your psychology knowledge as it's an area I find fascinating. I love your self publising aims. Perhaps you should write an e-book on how to self publish - I'd buy it!

RayKay - I'm also 40 - there's a lot of us about . Here's hoping the life begins here! Yes, it's very cold here and it's forecast to snow on Friday and Saturday, so pack your thermals in your hand luggage - you'll need them! On another note, you said in an ealier post about decent terraces for £50k on the outskirts of Sheffield - do you mind me asking whereabouts? I don't have any capital so I'm no competition to you, I'm just curious. I live in a terrace (private rented) in a pretty decent area, so agree that you'll get a decent one to live in for around £100k.

LessonLearned Thanks for such a long and well thought out post. I agree that I must have lots of transferable skills but I also have that mainly female trait of not believing in myself. Every time I have a potential business idea, almost straight away I'm thinking things like 'I can't do that', 'I don't know enough', I'm not good enough and will be found out', 'no-one will want that'. I'm my own worst enemy sometimes.

I read somewhere (might even have been on this thread) that men will apply for a job if they meet around 20% of the job spec, but women won't apply for one unless they meet around 80% of the job spec. That is definitely true for me. I feel like I need to know everything there is to know about what I'm doing before I set up a business, otherwise I can't possibly offer anyone what they need/want, can I?

When I think about it I've done quite a few different jobs. Nowhere near 33, but quite a few. Retail, cleaning, telephone sales, admin, marketing/advertising, and in my teens I had a Saturday job shampooing clients' hair at a hair salon and making their coffee :rotfl:.

Like you I'm also interested in diet and nutrition but have no training or official knowledge, so honestly don't think I can really offer anything there - it's more for my own health and enjoyment really. Other than that, these came off the top of my head:
- I love property and would love to get into 'flippers' and BTL but that has to be a long term aim as I don't have the capital to start investing.
- I love money saving and being frugal, and often give advice to friends and colleagues about where/how they can cut back. However I think :money: has beat me to it!
- I enjoy travelling/holidays and love nothing more than an afternoon browsing travel brochures (of holidays I can't afford to go on - yet!).
- I'm online savvy - I love online forums like MSE and Mumsnet, I like using social media and making bits of money from Ebay.
- The one thing I know most about is being/coping with being a single parent, and all that it brings.

I'll keep thinking and making notes as I go along - I have a notebook that everything gets written down in. It's my ideas log I suppose, so I need to fill it!

nat21luv

LL, I've been talking with a friend who knows a bit about property but I'm sure she was being overly negative, possibly a little jealous. I would love your opinion on BTL V Home ownership. I'm currently renting but would love to own my own home for stability for the sprogs. But I'm also very keen on a BTL property or possibly a BTSell. Prices down here are horrendous so I would look at a BTL/sell a 1/2 bed flat at £60kish. Wouldn't want to put all my eggs in one basket without experience. Currently a single parent and a 20% deposit on our own home will take me 3years to save.

What do you think?

lessonlearned

SoftKittyWarmKitty wrote: »

When I think about it I've done quite a few different jobs. Nowhere near 33, but quite a few. Retail, cleaning, telephone sales, admin, marketing/advertising, and in my teens I had a Saturday job shampooing clients' hair at a hair salon and making their coffee :rotfl:.

I could be reading my own CV:rotfl: I too started as a Saturday girl in a salon - loved it. The joke was I got more tips on a Saturday than the full time styalists got. I was only 13 at the time, everyone treated me like I was a lucky mascot. I thought I was loaded.....

Yes that job list looks pretty familiar - I've done them all and then some more.

The absolute worst was when I tried my hands at being a waitress.:eek::eek: I was so clumsy and couldn't stop shaking, I spilt stuff, dropped plates, bumped into things, fell over. It was a riot - the customers were cross at first and then they started to find it funny.

The boss wasn't amused though. When I quit after just one night he just sighed and said "Thank God for that, I was not looking forward to having to fire you". He said "You are very nice and the customers love you, but I can't afford the breakages".......

You'll find something that clicks.

lessonlearned

Nat - I would read up a bit if I were you. Look at all the pros and cons. Get some knowledge under your belt before you make any decisions.

Tink is currently in rented and has a BTL. I've know several people do this.

One of the reasons being that they can't afford to buy such a nice place as the one they are currently renting, and they want to live somewhere nice. Rather than just trying to save for a deposit, they are using the funds they have to buy a BTL or two. For the following reasons:

1. Increase their income
2. Hopefully gain some capital growth on their investments

It has to be remembered that savings returns are at an all time low at the moment, barely keeping pace with inflation so property may well be a better bet.

I'm renting at the moment. There are a lot of advantages to renting and then using your capital to invest in BTL's and/or flippers.

Yes there are risks attached but my own personal take is that, if you buy wisely, there is still less risk with property than there is with say, share dealing.

Maybe I take that view because I know and understand property whilst I have very little knowledge of share dealing. Someone who is a whizz at share dealing may well come to a different conlusion.

My advice is to try and learn as much as you can. Read up and around the subject.

For developing and flipping I would recommend Sarah Beeny and Gary McCausland. Not sure who to recommend for BTL's - I've read a few though. Basically the principles are the same anyway, but the difference is in the type of property you would need to purchase. This is because of the lenders requirements.

In order to get a BTL mortgage the property has to be in a reasonable condition. If you are buying a flipper to renovate and sell on, then you might need a commerical development loan if you had insufficient cash.

Read up on this.

Whichever you decide on you really ought to think about the tax issues and decide just what sort of business you want to set up, ie sole trader, partnership, limited company. There are pros and cons to each type and they all are treated differently for tax purposes.

Buy yourself a decent tax guide. I am currently working my way through some guides which are specially geared to property investment. They are published by the Tax Cafe. They cost around £25 each so are not cheap, but of course you can soon recoup that if you get your tax planning right. The Tax Cafe guides are written in plain English so are fairly readable - well as tax guides go.:rotfl:

Bit like wading through treacle. Worth persevering with though.

Yes you will probably use an accountant but I do think it is worth learning as much as you can - even if it's just so you can monitor your accountant and actually understand what he/she is talking about.

I'm sorry if I have not given you a direct answer. I don't think it would be appropriate of me to say do this or do that. You need to make your own decisions. Hopefully I have given you some guidelines and pointed you in the right direction so that you can do your own research and draw your own conclusions.

Hope that helps.