Open Source SOCIAL Entrepreneurship and a Guest Post

First, apologies for the lax posting schedule and server issues recently!

Last week I had the chance to take a mini-surf trip down to Tortola in the British Virgin Islands for a few days and with the end of the north swell season upon us I could not refuse.

As far as my self-imposed AnyWired-Middlebrook Make Money Online Challenge goes, I think I am about to shift gears. During the past year I have been given a LOT! I quit my job, purchased a small business, etc… As such, I began to feel a little greedy when reading the category “Make Money.”

So my plan as it stands now will be to investigate some online [SOCIAL] entrepreneurial ideas that I have. In that way I can pay forward some of the good karma that I have received and learn about the ins and outs of making money online while generating funds for some humanitarian agencies that I would like to support. I have NO idea where this will go, or if anything will get off the ground but will certainly keep everyone posted!

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What Do You Have To Lose?

If you have been following any part of my make money online challenge series you will know that I have been trying to come up with some ways to become a full-fledged lifestyle entrepreneur by either creating some niche websites, or via affiliate marketing.

This post today is really written as a kick in the ass for myself because I have regressed from the research and action stage back to inaction.

Inaction - the lack or absence of action.

As I sit here not taking action towards my goal to generate income online, I thought that maybe there are other folks out there having similar issues even if their objectives are different.

Perhaps YOU are trying to grow personally, or maybe you would like to open a business? At some point we have all been stonewalled with one of the infinite possibilities that we are faced with on a daily basis.

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Make Money Challenge - The Ideas Are Hatching

First, I would like to formally welcome my friend from Finland, Jarkko Laine, to the challenge. Currently, he is setting the example for me…I might have started our little self-imposed challenge but he has already put some ads on his site. And according to his latest post, Jarkko is presently investigating a product (or products) that he could possibly sell. GOOD LUCK Jarkko!!

Hawksbill Sea Turtle Hatchlings
image source: culebrablog

It’s just my humble opinion, but I think unless you are developing a business or idea that is on the scale of Google you can’t be under the assumption that you are going to generate a million dollars :-(

As I have stated before (and this will be the last time), attempting to make money online is a learning experience for me. What I am attempting to do is to see if I can eventually become a fulltime lifestyle entrepreneur so that I can spend even more time traveling and enjoying my Caribbean surrounds.

Please feel free to let me know if what I propose below sounds completely cockamamie. Every one of us has a limited amount of time that we can put into our projects and personally I would like to maximize the return on my efforts.

Essentially I am hoping that the ideas that I have come up with can earn me a couple of dollars. However, I am really interested in being able to duplicate the processes so that I will be able to have a number of sites generating a couple of dollars. For example -

  • ten sites earning $5 a day = $50 a day
  • multiply $50 per day by 30 days = $1500
  • $1500 per month x 12 months = $18,000

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A Lesson in Lifestyle Re-Design: From the Suburbs to a Sailboat

Editor’s note: This is a FANTASTIC guest post from Doug Mayle. He and his wife recently quit their jobs and relocated their lives to a sailboat so that they could pursue their dream of a global sailing adventure. Currently, they can be found in the Caribbean.

Living the dream

When I look out my window, only a few feet away, I see beautiful turquoise water glowing in the illumination of a tropical sun. I have to pinch myself to be certain that I am not dreaming. The pinch makes me realize that I am quite awake and that this dream-like existence is now my reality.

My window is actually a porthole, because we live on a sailboat in the Caribbean, present location: Culebra, Puerto Rico.

SV Prudence

How did they do it?

Three years ago, my wife and I lived a life more typical of the norm in the United States. We were a dual income couple, no kids, with a three-bedroom house in the suburbs. Our journey from there to here is a fine example of goal setting and lifestyle re-design.

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Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama Where Would they Go?

Well, you might have heard, there is a little election tension up in the United States between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. For the first time in a long time in US HISTORY we have two candidates that do not fit the typical politician stereotype (i.e. white and male).

Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama

image source: son of broccoli

While I was working this morning I was wondering, there is eventually going to be a loser in this political conflict and I wonder where they will go to recover?

I know that Barack spent time in Indonesia during his childhood and that Hillary (and Bill) are fond of Martha’s Vineyard, but will they head to either of these destinations?

Maybe, the loser will decide to join the Peace Corps and really give something back, or maybe they will grab a backpack and spouse and head out on an around the world trip…? Will they retreat and recover quietly at home or a Ritz Carlton?

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In it For The Long Haul: How to Plan Your First Extended Trip

(Editor’s note: This is the first [brief] post in a series of articles that I am going to be writing on how to take your first extended trip. Also, an update, out of the gates Jarkko Laine is way ahead of me in the Make Money Online Challenge but I will have a full post of my ideas before the end of the week.)

Ponder the World 
image source: ruvjet 

Do you long to take a trip that is longer than one or two weeks?

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Lifestyle Design With a Purpose: 5 Volunteer Resources that can Help you Travel the Globe and Make a Difference at the Same Time

When I first decided that I wanted to change my work and lifestyle one of the first things I knew was that I wanted to include travel, exotic travel, as part of my experience. After a few extended trips to various countries and witnessing livelihoods like I had not experienced before, I also knew that I wanted to try and make a difference.

Many people who want to go on extended travel, I believe, would also like to give something back, if you are one of them here are 5 organizations that can help you do just that.

United Nations Volunteers UNV http://www.unv.org/

United Nations Volunteers 

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Make Money Online Challenge: Reader Suggestion Recap

I wanted to do this roundup the other day but time got away from me. :)

Quite a few people took the time to comment and or make suggestions on what they think I should do that would be most helpful for me in terms of generating some passive income. If you would like to read about the seven money making ideas that I came up with then read this post AnyWired-Middlebrook Make Money Online Challenge: Open Source Entrepreneurship first. In addition to my own ideas this is what folks had to say:

tulip
image source: marielito

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