Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#21

Post by petercooper » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 9:23 PM UTC

vaksel wrote: post #6

petercooper wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have good news for you! You can easily live on $15,000 a year in many areas of the United States and you would have all the disposable free time you wanted (if that income was passive, like the $100k you mention).

free time isn't all its made out to be. Boredom sets in after about a week.

You're right there. All of the retired people I've seen look really old and worn down.

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#22

Post by markessien » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 9:37 PM UTC

Anybody who does work just so that he can one day not work, will find his contentment threshold pretty quickly. He will find a satisfactory job with enough free time and will stop dreaming.

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#23

Post by fallentimes » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 9:52 PM UTC

petercooper wrote: post #21

vaksel wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

free time isn't all its made out to be. Boredom sets in after about a week.

You're right there. All of the retired people I've seen look really old and worn down.

You should meet my Grandparents. My Grandma especially is a firecracker. She's done more this past year than some do in a decade.

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#24

Post by kalvin » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 10:08 PM UTC

Having created something that's made life (offline, RL) better for a huge, broad swath of people.

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#25

Post by unalone » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 10:42 PM UTC

Once you feel like you can do other things, any other things, without feeling that you're taking a risk in doing what you feel like.

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#26

Post by bprater » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 10:50 PM UTC

fallentimes wrote: post #10

petercooper wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have good news for you! You can easily live on $15,000 a year in many areas of the United States and you would have all the disposable free time you wanted (if that income was passive, like the $100k you mention).

I'm actually living on 15k per year right now. Free time + stuff to do + safety net + support family = ~100k per year. YMMV. But thanks for the good news anyway. :)

It would be cool to learn more about how you budget it, assuming you pay for some kind of housing. My rent is more than $15k/year.

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#27

Post by bprater » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 10:52 PM UTC

DenisM wrote: post #19

$15 milllion net worth after tax, or $1 million yearly income, whichever comes first. Today's dollars, adjusted for inflation.

I'd say that is pretty accurate. We need a new version of "wow, he's a millionaire".

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#28

Post by bprater » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 10:54 PM UTC

Angostura wrote: post #12

I'm not a typical HN reader/user. I'm a one-man consultancy outfit, helping businesses sort out how best to use Internet technologies for internal and external collaboration. I also help untangle knotty workflow problems, you get the picture. "Making it", as far as I am concerned is having a steady stream of people coming through my door through personal recommendation with really interesting problems - enough in fac…

Awesome, you are in a good place if you love your work. And because you love it, it'll continue to pay dividends for you.

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#29

Post by flashgordon » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 10:55 PM UTC

vaksel wrote: post #6

petercooper wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have good news for you! You can easily live on $15,000 a year in many areas of the United States and you would have all the disposable free time you wanted (if that income was passive, like the $100k you mention).

free time isn't all its made out to be. Boredom sets in after about a week.

you are right.. but who said anything about not doing anything?? id travel, spend more time with my family (actually may be have a family first :D), focus a lot more time on my violin...

Re: Ask HN: What do you consider "making it"?

#30

Post by netcan » Sun, Nov 30, 2008, 11:27 PM UTC

fallentimes wrote: post #11

paulgb wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It depends if you define "free time" to be "time you don't have to do anything" or "time you don't do anything".

Thanks Paul - that's how I was defining it. I'm not going to just sit on my ass and watch Southpark. I have a whole list of projects I want to work on, places I want to go, hobbies I want to try.

and watch southpark