Aussie writer with 1B+ content views in 10 years | I teach people to use writing online to create career opportunities | Let's connect: tim@timdenning.com

I quit my eCommerce startup with 100+ employees. Then got depressed, developed an eating disorder, and got a minimum-wage job in a bank. I now work for myself and make 7-figures writing.

I'm not that smart and have no college education. The way I used the internet made the difference.

And going to a Tony Robbins event changed my mindset. He taught me to go from being a victim to be in control.

This led to:

• 1B+ content views
• Financial freedom
• Book deal with a major publisher
• Meeting my heroes (like Tony Robbins)
• Quitting my banking career forever in 2021
• Multiple successful businesses fuelled by obsession

My mission: Help 100,000 people start online businesses. 

My beliefs that drive everything I do:

- Anything is possible
- Positivity above all
- Ego is the enemy
- Challenge the status quo
- Chase obsession, not passion
- Always be kind, grateful, and a good person

How can I help you?

• Social media audience building
• Starting or growing an online business

Join my email list with 200,000+ other high performers for more helpful insights:
https://timdenning.com/start-social-hustle-linkedin-bio/

I interviewed 50 people who quit their jobs in 2024.

Here's what nobody tells you.

━━━━━

They didn't quit for more money

38 of them took pay cuts. Some massive ones

The software engineer who went from $180K to doing one-off writing gigs. The CMO who became a pottery teacher. The investment banker selling surfboards

Everyone said the same thing: "I'd do it again tomorrow"

━━━━━

The pattern that shocked me:

**The 3-month mark**
Everyone hits it. Pure terror. Bank account screaming. Partner questioning. Parents "concerned."

There's a twist: The ones who made it past month 3? They never looked back.

The ones who returned to corporate? All quit before day 90.

━━━━━

What they actually quit:

• Sunday night anxiety (47/50 mentioned this)
• Asking permission to live their lives
• Meetings about meetings about nothing
• Pretending to care about Q3 targets
• The soul-crushing commute
• Being "on" from 9-5 regardless of actual work

Not jobs. They quit the entire system.

━━━━━

The money truth nobody admits:

Month 1-3: Hemorrhaging cash
Month 4-6: Ramen profitable
Month 7-9: Matching old salary
Month 10-12: "Why didn't I do this sooner?"

But 23 of them said something that stopped me cold:

"Even if I never matched my salary, the freedom is worth more."

━━━━━

The unexpected side effects they reported:

• Marriage improved (32/50)
• Lost weight without trying (28/50)
• Stopped needing anxiety meds (19/50)
• Kids said they're "different" (better) (41/50)
• Sunday became just another day (50/50)

One guy: "I didn't quit my job. I quit dying slowly."

━━━━━

Their biggest regret?

Not the money lost
Not the security abandoned
Not the benefits forfeited

49 out of 50 said the same thing:

"I wish I'd done it sooner."

The 50th? She wished she'd been bolder

━━━━━

What made them pull the trigger:

• Health scare (12)
• Kid asking "why are you always tired?" (8)
• Passed over for promotion (7)
• Random Tuesday breakdown (11)
• Watching someone die with regrets (6)
• Just... done (6)

Not grand epiphanies. Just moments of clarity.

━━━━━

The skill they all developed:

Comfort with uncertainty.

Corporate trains you to fear the unknown. Quarterly forecasts. 5-year plans. Predictable misery.

These 50 learned something better: How to surf chaos.

━━━━━

The advice they'd give their past selves:

"Your backup plan is a prison"
"Start the side thing NOW"
"The fear never goes away, jump anyway"
"Corporate security is an illusion"
"Your kids need you present, not rich"

My favorite: "Stop asking for permission to live your own life"

━━━━━

None of them had it figured out
None of them were "ready."

All of them are more alive than when they had "secure" jobs.

━━━━━

To anyone reading this from a cubicle:

That feeling in your chest? It's not anxiety.

It's your life asking for permission to begin.

What's stopping you from escaping the rat race? 👇
♻️ Repost if you know someone who needs to read this

Join my Substack: https://lnkd.in/gMkRFmj9

Tim Denning

Insecure people sabotage their colleagues. High performers amplify them.

The difference determines your entire career trajectory.

━━━━━

Worked with two managers. Same company. Opposite philosophies.

First manager: Took credit for my ideas. Blocked my promotion. Kept me small so he'd look bigger.

Second manager: Put my name on everything. Introduced me to his network. Pushed me into rooms I didn't belong in yet.

Guess which one is still a middle manager? Guess which one is now a CEO?

━━━━━

The scarcity mindset that kills careers:

"If they win, I lose."
"There's only one promotion available."
"Their success makes me look bad."
"I need to be the smartest person in the room."

This thinking keeps you small. And alone. And stuck.

━━━━━

What high performers understand:

Your colleague's win is your win.

They get promoted? You're known as someone who develops talent.
They crush a project? Your team's reputation rises.
They leave for something better? They become your advocate elsewhere.

Rising tides lift all boats. Sinking ships drag everyone down.

━━━━━

The VP who changed my life never competed with anyone.

She'd forward opportunities that weren't right for her.
She'd introduce competitors to clients who needed them.
She'd celebrate when her team members got poached.

"Every person I help up pulls me up with them," she said.

She's helped 50+ people become executives. They all still take her calls.

━━━━━

Low performers hoard:
- Information
- Credit
- Connections
- Opportunities
- Recognition

High performers share everything. They know success isn't finite.

━━━━━

The compound effect of celebrating others:

Year 1: You're the supportive colleague
Year 2: You're the connector everyone trusts
Year 3: You're the leader people want to work for
Year 5: You're the hub of a powerful network
Year 10: You're unstoppable

Every win you celebrate creates an ally. Every success you block creates an enemy.

━━━━━

Watched a director kill his own career by undermining his team.

Took credit for everything. Blamed them for failures. Blocked their transfers.

One by one, they left. Started companies. Joined competitors. Rose to power.

Now they're all VPs and CEOs. He's still a director. At the same company. Wondering why he's stuck.

Your team's success is your success. Their failure is your failure to lead.

━━━━━

Want to spot a future leader?

Watch who celebrates loudest when someone else wins.
Watch who shares opportunities they could keep.
Watch who builds bridges instead of walls.

That person will run companies. The others will wonder why they don't.

━━━━━

Stop seeing colleagues as competition.

Start seeing them as future co-founders, advisors, references, clients, partners.

The person you help today might hire you tomorrow.

Who was the last colleague you helped win? 👇
♻️ Repost if lifting others lifts you

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Most people grind 40 years at a job they hate.

So they can retire at 67 and finally "start living."

If they make it that long.

━━━━━

Met a guy last week. 66 years old. One year from retirement.

Stage 3 cancer diagnosis.

"I was so close," he said. "One more year and I could've traveled."

40 years of waiting. For nothing.

━━━━━

The retirement lie we all bought:

• Suffer now, enjoy later
• Trade your best years for a pension
• Postpone happiness until 67
• Work yourself sick for "security"

Meanwhile, your knees give out. Your energy tanks. Your spouse becomes a stranger.

You saved all that money to enjoy a life your body can't live anymore.

━━━━━

I watch 30-year-olds planning for retirement like it's the f*cking promised land.

Contributing to 401ks while skipping their kid's soccer game.
Working weekends to boost that pension.
"Just 35 more years," they say.

35 years of Sunday night dread. 35 years of "not now, I'm working." 35 years of waiting to live.

For what? To be the richest person in the nursing home?

━━━━━

The people who get it do this instead:

Mini-retirements throughout life. Not one big one at the end.

Take 3 months off at 30. Travel for 6 months at 40. Start that business at 50.

Use your energy while you have it. See the world while you can walk it. Play with your kids while they still want you around.

━━━━━

"But I need job security!"

Your job isn't secure. Ask anyone laid off after 20 years.

Your health isn't guaranteed. Ask anyone with an unexpected diagnosis.

Your retirement isn't promised. Ask the 66-year-old with cancer.

The only thing guaranteed? Right now. Today.

━━━━━

Stop banking on someday.

Someday you'll travel. Someday you'll write that book. Someday you'll learn guitar. Someday you'll actually live.

Someday is a scam sold by companies that need you to believe happiness can wait.

It can't.

━━━━━

To everyone killing themselves for a retirement they might never see:

Take the trip now. Start the side project now. Have the experience now.

Your 67-year-old self doesn't want your money.

They want your memories.

What are you postponing until retirement that you could start today? 👇
♻️ Repost to share this idea with your network.

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You're only as successful as the leader you work for.

The wrong boss will bury your talent. The right one will 10x it.

━━━━━

Worked for 2 CEOs. Same role. Same company. Different universes.

First CEO: Made me doubt everything. Killed every idea. 2 years of stagnation.

Second CEO: Saw potential I didn't know existed. Pushed me into opportunities that terrified me. Tripled my impact in 6 months.

Same me. Different leader. Completely different outcome.

━━━━━

Look for these leadership traits that actually matter:

𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘆
Not the corporate poster kind. Real empathy.

Your kid's sick? "Go. We'll handle this."
You're struggling? "What do you need?"
You made a mistake? "What did we learn?"

The best boss I had cried when he had to lay someone off. Still sends them job leads 5 years later.

━━━━━

𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀
Kindness isn't weakness. It's strength with restraint.

The leader who could destroy you in a meeting but chooses to coach you privately.
Who has every reason to take credit but highlights your work instead.]

━━━━━

𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀
Great leaders don't have all the answers. They find them.

"I don't know, but let's figure it out."
"Never done this, but here's how we'll try."
"No budget? Let's get creative."

My best boss turned a $0 budget into a $2M project by trading favors, borrowing resources & pure hustle. Taught me about making things happen.

━━━━━

𝗔 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗼𝗽𝗵𝘆
Real leaders know: Employees with stable families build stable companies.

They don't glorify missing bedtime.
They don't reward weekend warriors.
They don't mistake burnout for dedication.

Had a boss who sent people home at 5 PM. "Your kids won't remember this project. Go."

His team outperformed every workaholic department by 2x.

━━━━━

𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀

The best leaders I've known:
- Take customer calls themselves
- Work support tickets monthly
- Visit clients unannounced
- Read every complaint personally

They know the real business. Not the PowerPoint version.

━━━━━

A great leader uncovers your hidden potential.

Here's what that looks like:

They give you projects you're "not ready for."
They put you in rooms you "don't belong in."
They see the leader in you before you do.

My mentor made me present to the board when I was 26. Terrified. Bombed it. He said "Good. Now you know you'll survive. Do it again."

I'm now a founder. He saw it 13 years before I did.

━━━━━

The leader test that never fails:

Would you follow them to another company?
Would you want your kids to work for them?
Do they make you better or just busier?

If it's no, no, and busier - you're working for a manager, not a leader.

━━━━━

Stop choosing companies. Start choosing leaders.

The right leader at a no-name startup beats the wrong leader at a Fortune 500.

Every time.

♻️ Repost if leaders matter more than logos

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My 4-Year-Old's Business Card Says 'CEO'

But she's only 2. And that's the whole f*cking point.

━━━━━

I'm already teaching her what corporate won't.

Not ABC's and 123's. The real curriculum:

How to fail without feeling like a failure.
How to ask for what you want without apologizing.
How to see problems as puzzles, not roadblocks.

While other parents prep their kids for employee life, I'm raising an owner.

━━━━━

Here's what I'm NOT teaching her:

• "Wait your turn" (opportunities don't queue)
• "Color inside the lines" (innovation lives in the margins)
• "Don't talk to strangers" (your network is your net worth)
• "Share everything" (know your value, price accordingly)
• "Be careful" (calculated risks beat careful stagnation)

Controversial? Maybe. But I've seen where conventional wisdom leads.

━━━━━

The corporate skills they'll teach her in school:

Sit still. Follow instructions. Ask permission. Wait for approval. Don't question authority. Memorize the right answers.

Perfect recipe for a middle manager in 2045.

━━━━━

The real skills I'm teaching her now:

**"No" is data, not rejection**
When she wants a cookie and I say no, we talk about negotiation. What else could she offer? Different timing? A trade?

**Money is a tool, not a goal**
Her piggy bank has three slots: Spend, Save, Give. She decides the ratios. Already learning money flows, not just accumulates.

**Problems are opportunities in disguise**
Toy broken? Let's fix it. Or invent something better. Can't reach something? Find a solution. Every obstacle is a chance to think.

━━━━━

My corporate friends think I'm nuts:

"Let her be a kid!"
"She needs structure!"
"What about college prep?"

Meanwhile, their kids are being groomed for jobs that won't exist.

━━━━━

By the time she's actually 4, she'll understand:

• Value creation vs time trading
• Asset building vs paycheck chasing
• Problem-solving vs permission-seeking
• Leadership vs management
• Ownership vs employment

Not because I'll lecture her. Because she'll live it.

━━━━━

The business card thing? It's not cute. It's preparation.

While other kids play "house," she'll play "startup."
While they practice being employees, she'll practice being the employer.
While they learn to fit in, she'll learn to stand out.

━━━━━

I'm not raising her to have a job.
I'm raising her to create jobs.

Not to work for the system.
But to build better systems.

━━━━━

Will she actually become a CEO? Who knows.

Maybe she'll be an artist. A teacher. A stay-at-home parent.

But she'll approach it like an owner, not an employee.

And that makes all the difference.

━━━━━

To every parent reading this:

The world needs more humans who think like owners.

Start young. Start now.

The employee mindset is learned. So is the entrepreneur mindset.

Choose wisely.

What "unconventional" skill are you teaching your kids? 👇
♻️ Repost if you're raising owners, not employees

I hired my second employee. It's another baby girl.

Today is by far one of the greatest days of my career.

Another daughter is better than any luxury car.
Another daughter is better than a million-dollar startup.
Another daughter is better  than any job title or promotion.

I used to think I knew what happiness was, but having 2 daughters is a whole other level. 

My young girls give me purpose. They're why I run my business. And the clients I work with love that I'm family first. It's part of my marketing. 

Having my second daughter born on thanksgiving is truly special. Feels like she is destined to do big things for the human race.

I'l be showing her everything I know & how to believe that anything is possible. 

I will teach her to be self-sufficient like I am, so she never has to rely on gatekeepers or an employer to thrive in her career. 

Now allow me to take some time off while I enjoy this special moment.

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The safe career path is the riskiest decision you'll ever make.

Playing it safe guarantees you'll die with regrets.

━━━━━

Met a 58-year-old accountant last week. Same desk for 22 years.

Never asked for a promotion. Never changed companies. Never tried anything new.

"I played it safe," he said. "Now I'm too old to take risks."

He's not old. He's institutionalized.

━━━━━

The myth of the safe path:

Stable job = Security
Same company = Loyalty pays off
Avoid risks = Avoid failure

Reality check:

That stable job? Gone in the next layoff.
That loyal service? Means nothing when profits drop.
That risk avoidance? You already failed by never trying.

━━━━━

Know what's actually risky?

Being 50 with one skill that's becoming obsolete.
Having a resume that shows zero growth in a decade.
Realizing you spent 20 years building someone else's dream.

The biggest risk isn't taking chances. It's taking none.

━━━━━

Two people from my network:

Sasha: Stayed at IBM for 15 years. "Safe" job. Laid off at 45. Can't find work because her skills are dated.

Mark: Changed jobs 5 times in 10 years. Started two failed businesses. Now runs a $5M company because he learned from every risk.

One played it safe. One's set for life.

━━━━━

Every risk-taker I know started terrified:

The lawyer who became a baker. Scared for 6 months. Now owns 4 locations.
The director who quit to freelance. Ate ramen for a year. Makes triple now.
The analyst who started a podcast. Everyone laughed. 100K downloads monthly.

Fear is the entry fee. Pay it or stay stuck.

━━━━━

The compound effect of playing it safe:

Year 1: Comfortable
Year 5: Bored
Year 10: Trapped
Year 15: Desperate
Year 20: Dead inside

Each year you don't risk, the cage gets smaller. Until you can't even see the bars anymore.

━━━━━

Take the f*cking risk.

Apply for the role you're not qualified for.
Start the business while you have a job.
Move to the city that scares you.
Launch the project everyone says won't work.

Worst case? You fail and learn.
Best case? You build the life you actually want.
Likely case? You surprise yourself.

━━━━━

Your deathbed won't care about your stable career.

It'll care about the chances you didn't take.

What risk have you been avoiding? 👇
♻️ Repost if playing it safe is playing to lose

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My 3-year-old daughter asked why I don't 'go to work' like other dads.

Here's what I told her about the 9-5 scam.

━━━━━

"Daddy works from the kitchen table"

She looked confused. Her friend's dad wears a suit. Takes a train. Has an office.

I wear sweatpants. Make breakfast. Type on my laptop while she colors next to me.

In her world, that's not "real work."

━━━━━

I tried explaining:

Work isn't a place you go. It's value you create.

She didn't get it. She's 3.

But watching her play while I write? That's the f*cking point.

━━━━━

What I actually told her:

"Some daddies go to big buildings to work. I stay here with you and Mommy."

What I wanted to say:

Those daddies are trading 5 days of misery for 2 days of living. They're missing your childhood for quarterly targets that don't matter.

━━━━━

The real 9-5 scam nobody admits:

• 2 hours commuting to sit at a computer (could do that from home)
• 8 hours "being present" when 3 hours of actual work happens
• Missing bedtime stories for meetings about meetings
• Asking permission to watch your kid's school play
• Sunday anxiety about Monday
• Living for retirement while your kids grow up without you

All for the illusion of "stability."

━━━━━

My daughter sees me:
- Make her breakfast AND close deals
- Build blanket forts AND build businesses
- Read her stories AND write content that pays our bills
- Dance to Bluey songs AND coach clients
- Never miss bedtime

Her normal: Daddy's always here.

My old colleagues' kids: "Daddy's at work again."

━━━━━

The conversation that broke me:

Former colleague: "Must be nice playing stay-at-home dad."

Me: Made 3x his salary last year. From my couch. While teaching my daughter the alphabet.

Him: Still commuting 90 minutes each way.

Who's really winning?

━━━━━

She'll grow up thinking this is normal:

- Parents who control their time
- Work that happens around life, not despite it
- Income without imprisonment
- Meetings in pajamas
- Lunch as a family
- Freedom as standard, not luxury

She won't know the 9-5 scam exists until she's old enough to reject it herself.

━━━━━

One day she'll understand:

I didn't quit going to work. I quit pretending presence equals productivity.

I quit trading time for money when I could trade value for freedom.

I quit missing her childhood for some boss's yacht payment.

━━━━━

My 3-year-old doesn't know what a "career" is.

She knows Daddy's here.

That's the only KPI that matters.

━━━━━

To every parent reading this from an office:

Your kids don't need your job title. They need your time.

The 9-5 isn't providing for your family. It's stealing you from them.

Am I crazy to believe in this lifestyle? 👇
♻️ Repost to share this idea with your network.

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Day 1,668 after quitting my banking job.

Nobody prepared me for the 3am panic attacks.

━━━━━

4.5 years ago today: Cleared my desk. Handed in my badge. Walked out of the bank forever.

Everyone congratulated me. "Living the dream!" they said.

Month 3: Watching my savings evaporate. Wife asking if we need to sell the car. Parents calling with "job opportunities" they found.

Nobody tells you the freedom feels like falling without a parachute.

━━━━━

What they don't mention about quitting corporate:

The identity crisis hits harder than the financial one.

For 10 years, I was "Tim from Banking." Had the title. The business cards. The predictable misery that everyone understood.

Now? I'm just Tim with a laptop and a Substack.

Some days I couldn't even answer "What do you do?"

━━━━━

The money timeline nobody shares:

Day 1-90: Living on adrenaline and savings
Day 91-180: Pure terror, considering going back
Day 181-365: First real income trickles in
Day 366-500: Finally matching half my old salary
Day 501-650: Something clicks, momentum builds
Day 651-1,668: Making more than banking ever paid me

But those middle days? Brutal. Wondering if I'd thrown away everything for nothing.

━━━━━

The unexpected side effects:

• Lost 10kg without trying (stress? freedom? both?)
• Marriage got stronger (trauma bonding over poverty?)
• Sunday doesn't make me sick anymore
• Actually excited about Mondays

The weirdest one: I stopped checking my bank balance obsessively. When you're building something real, the numbers become a byproduct, not the point.

━━━━━

What banking taught me vs what freedom taught me:

Banking: How to manage other people's money
Freedom: How to bet on myself

Banking: Risk mitigation
Freedom: Risk navigation

Banking: Looking successful
Freedom: Being successful

Banking: 60-hour weeks building someone's empire
Freedom: 80-hour weeks building my own

━━━━━

The conversation that kept me going:

My daughter, 3 years after I quit: "Daddy, why are you always here?"

Not complaining. Genuinely confused. Her friends' dads disappear every morning.

That question was worth every sleepless night, every rejected pitch, every moment of doubt.

━━━━━

1,668 days later:

I don't miss the salary. Or the status. Or the security that was never actually secure.

I miss nothing.

Because you can't miss a prison once you've tasted real air.

━━━━━

To anyone still sitting in their corporate cell:

The fear of leaving is worse than actually leaving.

The first year is hell. The second year is hope. By year three, you won't recognize the person who was too scared to jump.

Your kids need you alive, not just earning.

━━━━━

Day 1,668 after quitting banking.

Would I go back for double the money?

You already know the answer.

What keeps people in their corporate cage? 👇
♻️ Repost if you know someone who should jump

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My colleague got promoted to team lead. I got "you're not ready yet."

He was worse at the actual work. Better at managing up.

I delivered better results. Fixed bigger problems. Had the team's respect.

He scheduled 1-on-1s with executives. Presented other people's work. Played the visibility game.

He got the promotion. I got "keep developing your skills."

━━━━━

That's when I realized: corporate rewards politics, not leadership.

They don't want leaders. They want corporate's perfect enforcers.

━━━━━

Applied for team lead roles five times. Rejected every time.

"Not enough experience." Meanwhile, watching incompetent managers destroy good teams.

The feedback was always the same: great individual contributor, but not management material.

Translation: You don't play politics well enough.

━━━━━

Two years later I quit. Started my own business.

Now I lead a team of 5. No politics. No managing up. No permission needed.

Just building something real and hiring people who give a sh*t.

━━━━━

The best leaders rarely get promoted. They get frustrated and leave.

Companies optimize for compliance and ass-covering. Not actual leadership.

━━━━━

If you're great at leading but terrible at corporate theater, you'll never win their game.

Leave. Build your own thing. Become the leader they said you couldn't be.

The only permission you need is your own.

What leadership role did corporate deny you? 👇

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Treat people how you want to be treated.

Sounds simple. Most leaders screw this up daily.

━━━━━

I once watched a VP humiliate an intern in a meeting.

"That's a stupid question."

The intern never spoke up again. Left after 3 months. Now runs a startup worth $20M.

The VP? Still wondering why "nobody wants to work anymore."

━━━━━

A career is about more than a job. We're all building something that will become our legacy.

But here's what most people don't realize:

Your legacy isn't your title. It's the careers you lifted up.
Your legacy isn't your revenue. It's the confidence you built in others.
Your legacy isn't your achievements. It's how people felt working with you.

That intern remembers the VP. Not for his expertise. For his cruelty.

━━━━━

All of us are doing the best we can with the skills we have.

The new grad fumbling through their first presentation.
The manager dealing with divorce during budget season.
The CEO pretending they have answers when they don't.
The janitor keeping your office running while invisible.

Everyone's fighting battles you know nothing about.

━━━━━

Met a founder last month who built a $96M company.

His secret? He responds to every LinkedIn message from job seekers. Even when not hiring.

"Someone did that for me when I was desperate. Changed my life."

Takes him 2 hours a week. Created 50+ careers. His real fortune.

━━━━━

The business world needs more empathy, and less judgment.

Less "you should know this by now."
More "let me show you how."

Less "that's not how we do things."
More "interesting approach, tell me more."

Less "you're not ready."
More "here's how to get ready."

━━━━━

The executive who helped me when I was nobody? I still send him deals.

The boss who said I'd never make it? I don't even remember his name.

Kindness compounds. Cruelty dies with you.

━━━━━

Every interaction is a choice:

Build someone up or tear them down.
Open a door or slam it shut.
Be remembered or be forgotten.

The people you treat poorly today might be the ones you need tomorrow.

Or worse - they might be the ones writing your obituary.

━━━━━

Business isn't just business. It's humans trying to survive.

Act accordingly.

Who helped you when they didn't have to? 👇
♻️ Repost if empathy beats everything

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The hardest lessons I learned in corporate.



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I'm 39. After 10 years in corporate I learned the hard way

💔 The illusion of job security is breaking people.

I watched ~100 former colleagues learn this before Christmas (+ my wife).

They had the "safe" jobs. The ones their parents bragged about. The ones with benefits and retirement plans.

Gone. One Microsoft Teams notification. Done.

━━━━━

The worst part wasn't the layoffs.

It was watching people realize their entire identity was tied to a company that forgot their names by lunch.

15 years of loyalty. Reduced to a severance calculator.

━━━━━

I saw the same pattern in every goodbye message:

"Shocked"
"Didn't see it coming"
"Thought I was safe"

They believed the lie that trading time for money in someone else's dream was security.

━━━━━

One colleague, 20 years at the company, told me:

"I turned down 3 startup offers because this was stable."

Those startups? Two IPO'd. One got acquired for $2B.

He chose the illusion of safety over actual opportunity.

━━━━━

Here's what job security actually means:

• Your income depends on one source
• Your skills serve one master
• Your network lives in one building
• Your worth is decided in one meeting
• Your future is one decision away from ending

That's not security. That's a single point of failure.

━━━━━

The people who survived the massacre? They weren't surprised.

They had side projects. Consulting gigs. Investment income. Skills that traveled.

They didn't have job security. They had income security.

Big freaking difference.

━━━━━

Real security isn't a stable job.

It's unstoppable skills.
It's multiple income streams.
It's a network that extends beyond your office.
It's the ability to generate value anywhere.

━━━━━

The Christmas layoffs taught me:

The only job security is the security you create outside your job.

Your employer isn't your safety net. They're your biggest risk.

━━━━━

To everyone still believing in job security:

That stable job is quicksand.

The longer you stay, the harder it is to leave.
The more you earn, the more you need it.
The safer you feel, the more vulnerable you become.

━━━━━

Build your escape velocity now.

Not when you need it. Not when you're ready. Now.

Because the illusion only breaks when it's too late.

What are you building outside your 9-5? 👇
♻️ Repost if job security is dead

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Watching my friend ask permission to attend his dad's funeral proved a big salary with no autonomy is just a form of modern slavery.

━━━━━

Six-figure salary. Zero control over his Tuesday afternoon.

That's when I understood: The number on your paycheck doesn't determine your freedom. Your calendar does.

━━━━━

The 9-5 scam isn't the hours.

It's the permission slip you need to live your own life.

Doctor appointment? Submit a request.
Kid's sick? Explain yourself.
Want to work when you're most productive? Too bad.

You're not an employee. You're inventory.

━━━━━

I know executives making $500K who:
• Text their boss from the hospital
• Miss every school pickup
• Haven't had a real weekend in years
• Schedule life around "mandatory" meetings about nothing

And solopreneurs making $50K who:
• Work from Bali next month because why not
• Never miss bedtime stories
• Take Wednesdays off when the surf's good
• Build empires between school drop-offs

One group has money. The other has wealth.

━━━━━

The autonomy equation is simple:

High salary + No control = Expensive cage
Lower income + Total control = Actual freedom

Most people never do this math. They're too busy comparing salary numbers while their kids grow up without them.

━━━━━

Stop negotiating for more money.
Start negotiating for more autonomy.

The ability to say "no" to a meeting is worth more than a corner office.

The freedom to work at 5am or midnight beats any bonus.

The option to be present for life beats any promotion.

━━━━━

Your boss owns your calendar.
Your calendar owns your life.
Therefore...

You know the math.

━━━━━

Freedom isn't a number in your bank account.

It's the absence of anyone between you and your choices.

How much salary would you sacrifice for complete autonomy? 👇
♻️ Repost if this resonates

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Getting fired should be celebrated, not hidden.

It's the universe forcing you to stop playing small.

━━━━━

The HR manager couldn't look me in the eye.

"We're restructuring. Your position has been eliminated."

I smiled. Actually smiled. She looked confused.

What she didn't know: I'd already made $8K that month from my side hustle. The firing just gave me the push I was too scared to take myself.

━━━━━

Every successful person I know has a firing story:

• Steve Jobs - Fired from Apple, came back and built it into a trillion-dollar company
• Oprah - Fired from her first TV job for being "unfit for television"  
• My mentor - Fired at 45, built a $20M business by 50

Getting fired isn't failure. It's forced evolution.

━━━━━

What nobody tells you about getting fired:

You don't lose a job. You gain permission to stop pretending.

Permission to stop playing small.
Permission to stop asking for raises that never come.
Permission to stop waiting for someone else to recognize your value.

The company that fired me paid me $100K a year. I made $300K my first year solo.

They did me a favor.

━━━━━

The stages of getting fired:

Day 1: Panic. "How will I pay rent?"
Week 1: Anger. "Those bastards never appreciated me."
Month 1: Relief. "I don't have to sit in that soul-crushing meeting again."
Month 3: Gratitude. "This is the best thing that ever happened."

Most people get stuck at anger. The winners get to gratitude.

━━━━━

Here's what to do when you get fired:

• Don't panic post on LinkedIn about "new opportunities"
• Don't immediately update your resume
• Don't apply to 100 jobs in desperation

Instead:
• Take a week. Process it.
• List everything you hated about that job
• List everything you're actually good at
• Find where those lists DON'T overlap
• Build something there

Your termination letter is your permission slip.

━━━━━

Companies fire people to protect quarterly earnings.

But they accidentally create competitors.

Every person they let go is a potential founder. A future consultant who'll charge them 10x. A creator who'll build an audience bigger than their customer base.

Corporate America is literally funding its own disruption, one severance package at a time.

━━━━━

To everyone who got fired this year:

Stop apologizing for it. Stop hiding it. Stop treating it like failure.

You weren't let go. You were let free.

The only question: What will you build with that freedom?

━━━━━

I keep my termination letter framed in my office.

Right next to my first $100K month screenshot.

One made the other possible.

When did getting fired become the best thing that happened to you? 👇
♻️ Repost if you know someone who needs to hear this

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The banker who processes my $50K transfers still thinks I'm unemployed.

Not because she's rude. Because the system doesn't have a box for what I do.

━━━━━

Last week at the bank. Applying for a business card.

"Primary source of income?"

"Writing. Content creation. Newsletter."

She scrolls through her dropdown menu. Scrolls again. Types something. Deletes it.

"I'll just put... consultant?"

━━━━━

This year alone she's processed:
• Wire transfers from overseas startups
• Substack payments every month
• Course launch deposits
• Random $10K days from product sales

She sees the numbers. The system doesn't.

━━━━━

The form she's filling out:

Employment type:
☐ Full-time employee
☐ Part-time employee  
☐ Retired
☐ Student
☐ Unemployed

There's no box for "Makes 7-figures in pajamas."

━━━━━

Every financial institution does this dance:

"Years at current employer?"
"I work for myself."
"But who pays you?"
"162,000 newsletter subscribers."
"That's not an employer."

They need a company name. A steady paycheck. A boss to verify I'm real.

━━━━━

The mortgage application that broke me:

Showed two years of tax returns. Seven figures total.

"Your income is too irregular."

My W-2 friend making $65K? Approved instantly.

Me with 10x the income? "High risk."

━━━━━

What they don't understand:

My "irregular" income is more stable than their "stable" jobs.

Companies fire people. Subscribers don't all unsubscribe at once.
Bosses cut salaries. I control my prices.
Jobs get eliminated. Problems I solve don't disappear.

Their stability is an illusion. My chaos is calculated.


━━━━━

Every entrepreneur knows this:

The system wasn't built for us. It was built for the 1950s.

When everyone worked somewhere for 40 years.
When income came from one source.
When "job" meant showing up to a building.

We're playing by 2025 rules in a 1950s system.

━━━━━

She'll mark me as "self-employed/other."

The system will flag me as risky.

The algorithm will demand more documentation.

Meanwhile, I'll make their monthly salary before lunch.

━━━━━

To everyone building something the system doesn't understand:

Their confusion isn't your problem.

Keep depositing those "irregular" checks.
Keep building that "unstable" empire.
Keep being "unemployable."

The system will catch up eventually.

Or it won't. And we'll build our own.

What's the dumbest thing a bank has said to you? 👇
♻️ Repost if you've been there

Most people track every penny while the wealthy track every opportunity.

━━━━━

My dad once told me in the car:

"You're either an investor or an expense tracker. One is wealthy and the other one is always poor."

I still think about this.

━━━━━

Spent 10 years obsessing over expense apps. Categorizing every coffee. Tracking every subscription.

Meanwhile, missed three business opportunities because I was too busy calculating if I could save $50/month on groceries.

Those opportunities? Worth $500K+ combined.

━━━━━

The expense tracker mindset:
• Can I afford this?
• How can I spend less?
• Where can I cut costs?
• What's the cheapest option?
• How much did I save?

The investor mindset:
• What's the ROI?
• How can I earn more?
• Where can I add value?
• What's the highest leverage?
• How much can this grow?

One shrinks your world. The other expands it.

━━━━━

Watched a friend track expenses for 5 years straight. Saved $12K.

Another friend ignored expenses, focused on investing in skills and side projects. Made $120K extra.

Both started at the same salary.

━━━━━

The brutal truth about expense tracking:

You can only cut so much. There's a floor.

But earning? No ceiling.

You can save yourself to $10K. You can't save yourself to $1M.

━━━━━

Poor people know the price of everything.
Wealthy people know the value of everything.

Poor people ask "How much?"
Wealthy people ask "What's possible?"

Poor people protect money.
Wealthy people deploy money.

━━━━━

Stopped tracking expenses 3 years ago.

Started tracking:
• Skills acquired
• Relationships built
• Value created
• Problems solved
• Revenue generated

Bank account went from 5 figures to 7.

━━━━━

Your spreadsheet of expenses won't make you rich.

Your portfolio of investments will.

Not just stocks. Skills. Relationships. Businesses. Yourself.

━━━━━

My dad was right.

The expense trackers are still broke, just with better spreadsheets.

The investors are free.

Which one are you? 👇
♻️ Repost if this hits different

My 3-year-old just asked if I'm unemployed.

Because I make breakfast instead of rushing out the door at 7 AM.

━━━━━

5:47 AM. She's standing in my office doorway.

"Daddy work?"

"Yes baby, daddy's working."

She looks at my sweatpants. My kitchen table desk. No briefcase. No tie.

"No you're not."

━━━━━

In her world, work means leaving. Work means missing things.

Her friend's dad leaves before she wakes up. Gets home after bedtime. That's "real work."

I'm here doing 6-figure months in gym shorts while she colors next to me.

But to her? I'm just... here.

━━━━━

The conversation that gutted me:

"Why don't you go to work like Emma's daddy?"

Because Emma's daddy is trading her childhood for a corner office he'll retire from when she's 30.

Because Emma's daddy asks permission to attend her school play.

Because Emma's daddy is building someone else's dream while his own kid grows up without him.

━━━━━

What working from home actually looks like:

• Client calls with Bluey in the background
• $20K deals closed between snack time and naptime  
• Strategy sessions interrupted by "daddy watch this!"
• Building an empire from a laptop while building block towers

Chaos? Yes.
Worth it? Every f*cking second.

━━━━━

My daughter will grow up thinking this is normal:

Parents who control their schedule.
Work that bends around life, not the other way around.
Daddy at every recital, game, random Tuesday afternoon.

She won't understand the 9-5 prison until she's old enough to never enter it.

━━━━━

One day she'll realize:

I wasn't unemployed.

I was unconventional.

And that made all the difference.

━━━━━

To every parent grinding in a cubicle:

Your kid doesn't care about your LinkedIn title.

They care that you're there.

What would you trade to never miss another bedtime? 👇
♻️ Repost if this hits different

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We celebrate quitting jobs.

But only after it works out.

━━━━━

LinkedIn's full of quit-your-job victory laps.

"Left my 6-figure job to sell candles. Now making millions!"

What about Mary who quit to start a bakery and lost her house?
Or Michael whose app startup ate his savings and his marriage?

We don't repost those stories.

━━━━━

The quitting stories that go viral:

• Day 1: Terrified but free!
• Month 6: Ramen profitable!
• Year 2: Just hit 7 figures!

The quitting stories nobody shares:

• Day 1: What have I done?
• Month 6: Moving back with parents
• Year 2: Taking any job that'll have me

Both are real. We only celebrate one.

━━━━━

I know 12 people who quit their jobs last year.

3 are crushing it.
4 are surviving.
5 went back to corporate.

Guess which 3 I see on my feed every day?

━━━━━

The success stories all say the same thing:

"Should've done it sooner!"
"Best decision ever!"
"Why didn't I jump earlier?"

The ones who went back? Silent.

Like they failed some test the rest of us passed. Like their courage expired at the 6-month mark.

━━━━━

Here's what we don't talk about:

Sometimes quitting IS the wrong move.
Sometimes the timing sucks.
Sometimes the idea doesn't work.
Sometimes you're not ready.

And that's okay.

But we've made quitting so binary. Hero or coward. No middle ground.

━━━━━

My first quit failed spectacularly.

Burned through savings. Stressed my family. Went crawling back to corporate after 8 months.

Nobody wanted that story.

My second quit worked. Now everyone wants to hear about my "courage."

Same person. Different outcome. Only one gets celebrated.

━━━━━

We need both stories.

The victories to show what's possible.
The failures to show what's real.

Because right now someone's reading quit-p0rn at 2am, thinking they're weak for staying at their job.

Maybe they are. Or maybe they're smart.

━━━━━

Before you quit based on someone else's success story:

They're not showing you the full picture.
Just the ending they want you to see.

━━━━━

Sometimes staying is the brave choice.
Sometimes quitting is running away.
Sometimes you need the job to fund the dream.

All valid. None celebrated.

What story about quitting are you not telling? 👇
♻️ Repost if this hits home

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