One model that turns your “where I am → where I need to be → where I’d love to be” into three real numbers — and names the thing that gets you up the rungs.
You already wrote the shape of this yourself. This lesson does two jobs: (1) give you the vocabulary for what you’re trying to do, and (2) make you compute your own three numbers, because right now they’re the biggest blank in your plan.
You sell time for money: income = hours × rate. It has a hard ceiling (hours in a day) and it switches off the moment you stop — a missed paycheck, an illness, a burnout. That’s exactly the fragility you described. At 43 with two boys and too many night-hours, the ceiling and the off-switch are the whole problem.
The escape isn’t “work harder.” It’s leverage: income that keeps earning when you’re not in the chair. Naval Ravikant’s framing — four kinds of leverage:
“You’re not going to get rich renting out your time.” — Naval Ravikant, How to Get Rich (nav.al/rich)
The point for you specifically: as a developer you own the printing press for two of the four (code & media) and they’re permissionless — nobody’s approval needed. Your equity bets (Incarts 8%, 1stly 15%) are a play for code-leverage + eventual capital-leverage. Good instinct. We’ll pressure-test the economics in a later lesson.
Your three milestones, made precise. Each rung is a number, not a vibe.
Income ≥ essential monthly expenses. You’re slightly below this line today — that’s the first thing to close.
Survival + a cash buffer (3–6 months of expenses) + saving every month. A missed paycheck or emergency becomes an annoyance, not ruin.
Your investments throw off enough to cover your life. Work becomes optional. There’s a known number for this — the calculator finds it.
Rough monthly figures are fine — order of magnitude beats blank. Nothing leaves this page; it’s plain JavaScript in your browser.
Three quick scenarios. Click an answer for instant feedback.