Right now, I earn about $310 a day online or about $120,000 a year.
Some days it’s a bit more, some days a bit less.
More importantly, I’ve built this income, without:
  • A college degree
  • Family support
  • A large network
  • Any “startup” capital
  • “Real” job experience
Now, before I start explaining how I do it (and how you can replicate my results), I want to share a quick disclaimer.
What I’m about to teach you is FREE.
I’m not selling a course, promoting affiliate offers, or trying to scam you into my MLM.
I’m not going to make any vacuous promises about how “easy” it is or how “amazing” being a laptop entrepreneur is.
That’s a load of horse shit.
There’s nothing easy about making real money online.
And any guru who claims that there is, is lying (and likely trying to sell you something).
Right now, I work 50–60 hours a week. I’m always connected to my work and deal with 10X the amount of anxiety and stress that the average office employee faces.
I just took my first vacation in five years.
I’ve invested more than $40,000 in my professional growth and education.
For more than three years, I never made a penny over $25,000.
But little by little, I learned how to make a real living from my laptop.
It wasn’t easy. It’s still not. So if you’re hoping to make $10,000+/month working only a few hours a week, just fuck off now.
What I’m about to detail is a step-by-step formula to go from $0 to $100,000 a year in 18 months.
It will take time (but it doesn’t have to take you five years like it did for me).
It will take hard work.
It will require that you make sacrifices.
In fact, most of you reading this—even though I’m sharing this for free and laying out everything I learned building a 6-figure career as a college drop out—won’t implement what I’m about to teach you.
You’ll give up the second it gets hard, go back to your shitty job, and settle for a mediocre career that feels like a cage.
No judgement here. This is simply the pattern I’ve observed over the years.
However, for the 2–3 of you reading this who are serious about changing your situation and building a life on YOUR terms.
This is how you do it.
I can’t wait to hear about your success.

Months 1–3: Foundation

Let me get something out of the way…
During the first few months of your forays into online money making, you aren’t going to make a single penny.
Depressing, I know.
But this formula requires modest sacrifices on the front end so that you can enjoy massive benefits on the back.
In this first few months, you’re going to devote at least 3 hours a day (the more the better) to developing a marketable skill.
Which skill?
The answer is: It depends.
There is no right or wrong answer here. But there are a few guidelines that you can follow to make a more informed decision.
First, I encourage you to focus primarily on “Right brained” skills.
In 2019, humanity has begun to outsource logical “left brained” tasks to machines—who can execute these tasks faster and easier than we can.
In the same way that the Industrial Revolution shifted humanity into an era of employment driven by logic and reasoning (think software engineers, code analysts, financial planners)…
…The modern “AI Revolution” is shifting the job market away from hard left brained skills and towards softer right brained skills.
  • CPA’s are being replaced by apps on our phones
  • The brunt of the programming industry is being outsourced to countries in Asia
  • The medical field is being disrupted by various health monitoring technologies
Everywhere we look, we are seeing the decline of logic-first skills in favor of emotion-first skills.
Specifically, skills like:
  • Design
  • Negotiation
  • Writing/Story telling
  • Videography
  • Sound engineering
  • Even “play”
I would encourage you to pursue a track that machines can’t (yet) do.
This will offer some modicum of protection against obsolescence (however, you should always seek to evolve and diversify your skill sets as society and technology evolve).
A few of the best industries/niches are:
  • Copy writing (specifically story-centric copy)
  • Ghost writing (books/blogs/SEO)
  • Sales page design
  • Sales
  • Social media advertising
  • Branding
  • (Creative) video editing
  • Interior design
  • Coaching
The knowledge needed to develop these skills is freely available and the barrier to entry is incredibly low (almost anyone—regardless of experience—can find someone who is willing to pay them a modest fee for any of the aforementioned services).
Select a skill that compliments your personality (for example, as an introvert, sales would be a terrible industry for me—but writing works out just fine) and in which you have some degree of competence (growing up I was always at the top of my writing classes and started my career with a slight advantage).
Then get to work.
Read all of the best books on the subject. Sign up for SkillShare and take every class they offer. Watch YouTube videos. Listen to podcasts.
Work your ass off to become an expert in your given field.
With a month of consistent effort, you can easily invest 100–200 hours in your chosen skill.
And from here, you’ll be ready to begin the money making phase of your journey.

Months 3–6: Outreach

Now that you’ve developed your skill set to a marketable extent, it’s time to begin monetizing it.
Or rather, begin the process of monetization.
To get started, you’re going to create an Excel sheet and begin filling it out with at least 250 potential clients with whom you would like to work.
I recommend using “best of” roundup posts (e.g. the best podcasts or best personal development blogs etc), Instagram (find someone you’d like to work with and then look at the people following them), and your in-person network.
Fill out the sheet and then, begin reaching out to at least 10 prospects a week.
To do this effectively, you need to stand out from the sea of competitors sending blase emails and making obnoxious cold calls.
So here’s what you’re going to do.
First, you’re going to identify a way that you can provide value to the prospect in question BEFORE they pay you.
If you’re an email copywriter, then write a few killer sales emails.
If you’re a graphic designer, create a mockup of a page they have that could use improvement.
If you’re a branding expert, share a few simple ways they could instantly boost their status and gain more social proof.
Then, record a 30-second video and send it to them via direct message or email using this script:
“Hey THEIR NAME, I’m NAME a [insert profession] and I wanted to reach out today for two reasons. I’ve been following your work for a while and I LOVE what you are doing. [Insert specific thing about their company that resonates with you]. I noticed that [something relating to your services] could be improved and I wanted to offer my help. I took the liberty of creating [sample of work] and I’d love to give it to you for free if you think it would help. Just fire back a quick DM and I’ll send you over [work]. Thanks for your time! Talk soon.”
So, using writing—specifically email copywriting—as an example, this script would go something like this:
“Hey Craig, I’m Austin Gillis, a professional copy and ghost writer and I wanted to reach out today for two reasons. First, I’ve been following you for a few months now and I LOVE the work that you’re doing. Your content on time management has been incredible and it’s already helped me double my productivity while working less. I’ve been subscribed to your email list for a while and after receiving your recent promotion for the upcoming Perfect Life Retreat, I noticed that there’s some room for improvement in your email copy and I wanted to offer my help. I took the liberty of creating two story-driven sales emails for your event to help you fill more seats and I’d love to give them to you for free. I’m not asking for anything in return, just thought I’d offer my help. If you’re interested, just fire back a quick DM and I’ll send over those emails for you to check out! If not, then Thanks for your time, and I look forward to hearing from you!”
That’s it.
Yes, this will take a lot of work.
Yes, some people will use your services and then tell you to “fuck off”.
Yes, you will “waste” some effort on people who don’t respond.
But this is the system. If you put in the work, it will work.
The script works. If you send this out to ten people a week, you can expect at least half of them to respond and likely 1–2 to discuss working with you further.
And this is where people blow it.
In fact, about a year ago, I blew an email copywriting gig with Ryan Stewman, the Hardcore Closer (who runs a $15m/year business) because I didn’t follow the system I’m sharing here.
Once someone has responded to you and seen firsthand the quality of work you’re able to deliver, the next part is crucial.
You’re going to offer them a 7 day free trial of your services. No more, no less.
After the trial has concluded, you are now in a position to ask for compensation.
At this point in your journey, I encourage you to low ball. Offer your services at a deep discount and, as Gary Vee says, “Eat shit for a few months so you can eat caviar for the rest of your life.”
If you will do this and go above and beyond for your clients, you can make real money online.
But this is just the beginning.

Months 6–9: Expansion

After working with your first client(s) for 90 days, you’re going to send each of them an email that goes like this:
“Hey NAME,
We’ve been working together for almost three months now and during that time I’ve helped you achieve [specific results].
In the coming months, I’m sure that we’ll be able to create even BIGGER results in your life/business and I can’t wait to be a part of that.
I’m reaching out today because I’m looking to grow MY business and I would greatly appreciate your help.
Do you know of anyone in your network who could benefit from the services I provide? If so, could you please copy and paste the email below and introduce us?
Thanks,
Name”
The “email below” that I refer to is a simple script that makes getting referrals easy.
Here’s the deal.
Your clients are busy. And no matter how amazing you are at your job, they aren’t going to give you new clients unless you actively ask for them and make it EASY for them to say yes.
So in your email, be sure to include the following script that THEY can use to refer clients to YOU.
“Hey Name,
I wanted to introduce you to my [copywriter, designer, sales person] YOUR NAME.
Over the past few months, they’ve helped me [insert specific result].
YOUR NAME,meet REFERRALS Name, one of my friends/business assosciates, etc.
Referrals name, I remember you mentioning that you needed help with [something related to your skill set] and I think YOUR NAME would be a great fit for the job.
I’ll let you two take it from here.
Best”
So in the real world this would look something like this.
“Hey Jamie,
I wanted to introduce you to my Editor and copywriter, Austin. Over the past few months, Austin has helped me 5X our email revenue and increase our organic traffic by nearly 50%.
Austin, please meet Jamie, one of my close friends and clients.
Jamie, I remember that you mentioned you needed help with your new lead indoctrination sequence and I think Austin would be a great fit for the job.
I’ll let you two take it from here.
Best.”
If you will send this to all of your clients, you can quickly acquire 2–3 new clients in under a week.
Because you are entering into this new relationship from a place of strength and credibility, the free trial is no longer necessary and you can easily charge 50–200% more than you’re charging your current clients.
Simply rinse and repeat this for a few months and you’ll be well on your way to a 6-figure laptop income.

Months 9–12: Replication

After you’ve been at it for 6–9 months, it’s now time to begin replicating your efforts through strategic outsourcing and hiring.
In my career, I have a personal assistant who does everything that is not essential for me to do.
I’m a writer. I need to write.
I don’t need to upload emails, format blog posts, or respond to calendar invites.
She does all of that for me at the modest rate of $700/month.
Once you hit your personal cap—the point where you can no longer increase your income without working 50–70 hours a week, it’s time to begin replicating yourself by bringing on new team members.
Start with an assistant and work your way up from there.
There’s plenty of great content available on this topic so I won’t dive into this too deeply (especially considering that hiring/delegating is my biggest weakness).
But suffice it to say that once you cap out, it’s time to bring on new help.
Realize that the money you are “spending” by hiring new people is money that will come back to you in the future.

Months 12–15: Commission

After you’ve been working for about a year, this is when things start to get exciting.
Now, you can re-negotiate your contracts with your existing clients.
And while you can and should change your rate to reflect the value you are providing, there’s an even better way to start making more money without working more.
Commission.
With strategic commission you can make an extra $1,000-$5,000 a month without doing any extra work.
For example, I have a client who pays me 10% of all email sales that are generated.
A few months back, I helped with a $25,000 product launch and, as a result, I earned an extra $2,500 for NO extra work.
I simply negotiated my relationship so that I was paid in direct proportion to the amount of money I generated for my client (which happened to be quite a bit).
If you can implement this with ALL of your clients (a 5–10% commission is typically where you will start), you can easily add 20–30% to your bottom line without doing any extra work.
And yes, you CAN ask for commission from the beginning, but in my experience, it’s an easier sell once you already have a track record of generating proven results.

Months 15–18: Abundance

If you’ve followed the system up until this point, by the time you hit month 15 you WILL be making $100,000+/year.
And from this point, you have freedom. You have options.
You can create an agency and have other people do the work for you.
You can wrap everything you’ve learned up into an information product and sell it.
You can start consulting or coaching.
You can do whatever you damn well please.
I hope that you’ll implement what I’ve shared with you today and get REAL results in your life and business.
The system I just taught you works.
It’s worked for me and hundreds of other people.
And if you’re willing to put in the effort, it will work for you too.