How to get rich.

Why I'm slowly (but surely) turning Honey Copy into a product business... (And, I'm not just talking strictly in terms of money.) If you work hard enough (and get lucky enough), you eventually reach this rotten place where 40% - 50% of every $1 you make goes to the IRS. With this, a question arises... "Why am I working my ass off at 70+ hours a week to only take home 50% of everything I earn?" The answer, of course, isn't to make less money. Nobody in their right mind would purposefully make less money so they can pay fewer taxes. But, you certainly find yourself reflecting on how much time you're trading to make the money that you're earning (especially if %50 of it is going into a savings account you can never touch labeled "Fuck the IRS"). Everybody wants more money. But, in their pursuit for more money, they seem to forget about time, which is a bit bizarre considering that, unlike money, time isn't something we can sell a few widgets and earn more of. If you think I'm full of horseshit applauding time over money, answer me the following... "Warren Buffett is 90-years-old and has a net worth of $100 billion –– would you trade places with him?" Fuck no you wouldn't. So, the pursuit shouldn't be to make as much money as possible. But, instead, make as much money as possible with as little time as possible whilst doing something you genuinely enjoy. It was this realization that ultimately led to me transitioning [Honey Copy]( from strictly a freelance business to a freelance/ product hybrid business a few years back. I increased rates and I took on fewer clients at these higher rates and I began utilizing the hours I had freed up in my week to build products that could make money for me while I slept without me constantly having to trade my time. (I'm A-okay with coughing up 50% of my income for the greater good, I just don't want to be doing this coughing whilst spending 70+ hours a week glued to a screen.) Today, these products (a mix of courses, poetry books, paid communities and paid newsletters) make up approximately 50% of my income... * [Snow Cones]( my copywriting guide. * [$100k]( my freelance guide. * [One Minute, Please?]( my first book of poetry and prose. * [Quarantine Dreams]( my second book of poetry and prose. * [After Her]( my third & latest book of poetry and prose. * [Chasing Hemingway]( my uber-bad-ass paid newsletter. * [Moscow Mule]( (a tip of sorts, for my work). This brings me to the end of this massive spiel and with it, a closing question (you'd swear I'm Socrates today)... Should we, as a society, reframe our thinking regarding the individuals we consider to be "rich"? While Warren Buffett might be worth more money than God, he feels far poorer to me than the indie creator doing what she loves for no more than 40 hours a week, spending the money she's earning on meaningful life experiences and, ultimately, valuing her time and her youth over her net-worth. By [Cole Schafer](. P.S. Speaking of time and money, at the bottom of this email, I've highlighted three badass companies looking for talent. They apparently pay well, too. [Say hey on Twitter.]( This is the best damn sentence I've read in a hot second. Fat City by Leonard Gardner is swollen and bulging with hard-hitting prose that, at times –– at least for me –– felt overwhelming and dreadful. The novel tells the story of two boxers chasing their dreams and getting the shit kicked out of them every step of the way. One of the more guttural sentences in the book was a behemoth that went something like this… *Gardner is typing now* “In the midst of a phantasmagoria of worn-out, mangled faces, scarred cheeks and necks, twisted, pocked, crushed and bloated noses, missing teeth, brown snags, empty gums, stubble beards, pitcher lips, flop ears, sores, scabs, dribbled tobacco juice, stooped shoulders, split brows, weary, desperate, stupefied eyes under the lights of Center Street, Tully saw a familiar young man with a broken nose.” [Reads like you got hit in the nose.]( How to read more books in less time (according to Stephen King). I was already a reader before I picked up Stephen King’s On Writing. However, after reading his strong unwavering stance on writers dedicating ample time to reading, I became voracious in the way I tear through books. Stephen King gives the following advice to writers who aren’t overly keen on reading, along with a tip or two on reading more in less time... [Fewer dog-ears.]( How to be happy, again. Happiness has forever been elusive to me –– like those white rabbits with diamond teeth and sapphires for eyes and gold pleated ears the money-hungry are constantly chasing after. Yesterday, however, I caught the bastard by the ears and held him at eye level, letting him bitch and moan and kick his big fat feet until he wore himself out completely and then I threw a leash around him and I told him he was staying with me whether he liked it or not and he has yet to leave my side. When I caught the son-of-a-bitch, I was lying in a bed overflowing with pillows and linens and comforters, my girl glued to me, her arms wrapped around me, her face and chin resting on my chest. It was here where the realization struck me… “I’m happy.” At first, it felt foreign to me, like something I didn’t deserve. But then, not unlike a hot bath that burns the skin at first then turns to warm as you find the courage to sit still, it felt good. It was 8:30 a.m. on a Wednesday. I was supposed to leave at 7:30 a.m. carried by my Red Wings and my ambitions –– an early start to achieve a “productive” workday. But, she talked me into lying there with her a little longer and then a little longer after that and before I knew it, we were making coffee and breakfast and having a good morning chat and I didn’t find myself sitting down to write until 10:30 a.m. And, I was happy –– I was genuinely happy. I’ve reflected and I’ve realized that so much of my life has been spent chasing productivity and more productivity to cram 80+ hours worth of work in a 50 and 60-hour workweek. For years, I’ve wondered why it’s been so hard to achieve this level of productivity, while at the same time finding happiness. Pulling out of her long driveway, waving goodbye to her, the answer came to me. Maybe we get what we give our energy to. If we give all our energy to money… we get money. If we give all our energy to sex… we get sex. If we give all our energy to productivity… we get productivity. If we give all our energy to work… we get more work. And, at twenty-seven, I’m in this place where I want to give all of my energy to the things that make me happy. These things are writing (without giving up the living), reading (without giving up the experiencing), cooking, drinking, running, exercising, dining with friends and sleeping in late every now and again with this gorgeous green-eyed Texan that never gets tired of asking me out to breakfast. I let you know if the theory holds true. But, I digress. [Wrinkles in the right places.]( Some featured sweetness this week on the Honey Copy Job Board... Ascend, an online leadership program for women, is hiring a content director. [You should apply here](. Ogilvy, the advertising agency started by my favorite adman of all time, is looking for a copywriter in Miami. [Pack your sunscreen](. Vimeo, the slightly cooler (but smaller) version of YouTube, is on the hunt for an intern copywriter. Baby-faced? [Start here](. [There are more where these came from...]( P.S. If this newsletter made you weak in the knees, you can share it with the world by selecting one of the four icons down below... [Send it.]( [Send it.]( [Tweet it.]( [Tweet it.]( [Share it.]( [Share it.]( [Post it.]( [Post it.]( Copyright © 2021 Honey Copy, All rights reserved. A while back you opted into a weekly email called "Sticky Notes". Remember? If not, you can always unsubscribe below... and risk breaking this writer's heart. Our mailing address is: Honey Copy 3116 N. Central Park Unit #1Chicago, IL 60618 [Add us to your address book]( Want to change how you receive these emails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](.