In order to maintain my Target Monthly Income, I only need to sell 5 ebooks a day.
That’s not a part time income – 5 ebooks is all it takes for me to live what I feel is my current dream lifestyle.
That’s Impossible
Firstly, let me say I am natually a very frugal person and secondly that TMI is what I need to live comfortably in my next destination, Thailand. Obviously Thailand is a very cheap place to live. I would have to triple that figure to live the same lifestyle in Australia or the U.K.
Know Your TMI
I’ve done the calculations, reserved my housing and locked in the price I will pay and know how much I will need to spend on food, utilities etc. It was this calculation which formed my Target Monthly Income.
But seriously, Just 5?
Yes, just 5 a day. Do the calculations. When you break down your TMI into a Target Daily Income, things suddenly become a lot clearer. The first time I did this, it was amazing. My eyes were opened and suddenly everything became clearer. I now had such a managable target that I can hustle towards each day.
Break it Down
This is my best advice – if only ever read one post on this blog, let it be this one.
If you don’t know exactly how much money you need to make each day, and are planning to live the lifestyle of your dreams – you’re a fool. There I said it. And I only say it because I was once a fool as well.
If you set yourself a daily target (or even weekly) you can’t hide behind an excuse of ignorance. Are you just building a blog and hoping that money will someday appear?
Diversify
Selling 5 ebooks a day sounds easy, but I honestly don’t believe that I can realisticly keep this up in the long run. Therefore, don’t just count on the one income source. But just like I broke down selling ebooks, do the same with other income sources.
Its a Challenge
Its so much easier to be ignorant and ignore the reality of actually having to make an income. You could follow the advice that so many bloggers give – build an audience first monetize later. Or you could open your eyes and actually face the harsh reality of what it takes to be an entrepreneur.
Seriously, open your eyes! (oh and leave a comment 
)
18 Comments
Of course the challenge is to actually sell 5 books a day
Of course it’s not an excuse to not try until you reach that goal.
yes that is also a challenge (and needs another blog post to explain how I do it).
Have you set yourself a TMI Oscar?
I have a TMI and I’m looking for ways to lower it. As soon as I’m completely location independent I’d like to move for a few months in thailand or similar places.
Great post Anthony. I am always amazed how we can deceive ourselves about how much money we need to live on…some people never think about it and always work in a 9-5 they hate, because they don’t think about being creative and living on a bit less. Knowledge is power!
I’m not sure which to do first, write an ebook or move to Thailand!
.-= Milo´s last blog ..Gaseous Brainstorm: Is Blogging Just for Old Buggers? =-.
well I guess it depends if you currently earn enough to live off when you’re in thailand. Definitely set yourself a timeframe though
I never set my TMI but I know what mine is. Hmm, I guess in that sense I have set mine, and I am currently making as much as I need so it’s all good.
Are you talking about selling 5 of your flipping blogs ebook? Something interesting to think about is doubling the price of your ebook, then you only need to sell 2.5.
And to be honest, your ebook seems to be excellent value. Everything I’ve seen from you so far has been top-notch so asking $18 for it would probably be cool.
A bit of a tangent there, but knowing what you need is something that has helped me a lot. The more clarity you can get in your life, the better.
I can easily get bogged down feeling like money is an obstacle. When that happens I usually sit down with a pen and a piece of paper and break everything down to see the real situation. It helps a lot.
Clarity for all!
.-= Henri Junttila´s last blog ..How to Generate Ideas Out of Thin Air =-.
That is a great way to look at it Henri! We can either increase our quantity or our price. I am looking at setting monthly targets for March, so this is going to be really handy, because daily targets are much harder to try and make excuses for!
.-= Tom | Build That List´s last blog ..The Aweber Code….And Why You Need To Promote It! =-.
I have considered rasing the price, and will be, but not quite to $18. I promise there is method to my madness.
straightforward and simple advice- I love it.
It was also surprising to me, just how little I wanted and needed when I finally calculated my TMI. When I thought about it in terms of selling an e-book and various affiliate sites, I realized that the dream income is surprisingly reachable. It’ll take hard work-yes, but reachable.
Keep it up Anthony!
Yeah agree with Ben.
Very straightforward and simple advice.
With my current outlook on monetizing I think working out my TMI would be really helpful. Well feedback when I know.
Thanks Anthony
.-= Ben´s last blog ..Time is not this giant, big, green monster that’s out to get you! =-.
Nothing is impossible if we believe and act on our goals. I believe you will accomplish your goals, just keep on going.
.-= Walter´s last blog ..Never give up =-.
Thanks Walter!
I’ve never really thought about the TMI. What I have for the past year is to keep track of every single peso that I spend. Instead of TMI, I guess, I have a TME (target monthly expenses.) LOL. Thankfully, I’ve learned how to spend less and finally pay off all my debts back in September.
More than just the expenses though, I guess I’m going to look at my TMI now.
yeah expense tracking is part of TMI – if expenses are out of control you’ll have no hope of reaching a target.
So true. Breaking things down into sizeable chunks is much easier to obtain than a huge target. This is good for everything.
Good luck on selling the ebook. 5 Doesn’t seem too tough. I do agree that raising the price may be a better and faster way to achieve this. $9 seems pretty cheap for a book. This small price may also have a negative impact. Some may think it’s not worth much. Raising the price may make it seem more credible. Good luck with your plan. I’ll continue to watch how it goes.
Yeah Im definitely thinking about raising the price. Just working designing a new sales page now.
I’d probably rise the price to
27.90
but offer it for a limited time
or for the next 20 ebooks
for only 14.95.
Then you could extend the offer for another
xx number of books or until [date]
What you think?
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[...] I have no idea how the corporate world works, and that’s a wonderful thing. I don’t need to worry about “getting that promotion”, or the global economic crisis or how to short stocks through a hedge fund (as you can see I have no knowledge in finance). All I need to worry about is how I’m going to achieve my Target Monthly Income. [...]