Working in tech since 2013, I had earned earned over $1million by 2021 with my salaries and a mini-exit combined. I've not had any income in the 5 years since1, though that'll have to change again soon2.
Having already earned my first million dollars from the tech industry, I've not been in a rush to make another given my relative state of safety as a Norwegian citizen. I've deemed my money better spent on helping another 1000 people make their first $1million.
This is not a guarantee nor a get-rich-quick scheme. I don't have the faintest idea how to replicate the circumstances that led to my good fortune, all I'm saying is I've got mine and I wanna do what I can to help you get yours.
In my experience, one million dollars is enough to change anyone's life for the better, but not so much that it corrupts them.
One million dollars is not "f-u" money, it's "I'm working on a thing here; wanna help?" money. It's "hey, let's dream together" money.
Having lived the life for the past five (37 really3) years I can safely say money can buy happiness, so long as you don't get so much of it that you can too easily afford to stop caring about other people.
Here's the plan
It's a very simple plan. First, I'm gonna make a company. A really Good Company.
Roomy exists to regenerate the digital commons;
by creating liberatory communication technologies that maximize user agency;
grounded in open protocols that guarantee interoperability and personal data ownership;
through a democratically governed corporation with diverse ownership, absent any singular individual in a position of overriding power.
That's gonna make a million dollars for at least 50 people, co-workers and partners alike. Easily 500 or more if it lasts for decades.
Simultaneously, I'm gonna invest in other people's companies. Right now I can only invest my time4, but if the company works then part of its remit as a purpose-locked venture will be to reinvest a sizable chunk of its profits into other values-aligned ventures in the Open Web and Digital Commons.
..and that's pretty much the whole plan. Make a bunch of Good Companies together, equitably and to no one individual's grossly disproportionate benefit.
In the end a thousand Good People will have made over a million dollars each; enough to start paying it forward. On and on it goes until everyone's got theirs.