How I Got There
The Before
Three years ago, I was 35 years old, living in my childhood bedroom at my parents' house in Southern California, and delivering Chipotle orders to pay my phone bill.This wasn't the plan.
A year earlier, I'd sold my logistics company. Nothing life-changing—mid-six figures after a decade of grinding. Enough to take a break and "figure out what's next."Except I had no idea what "next" meant.
My parents are immigrants from the Philippines. I'm one of nine kids. They worked their asses off their entire lives so we could have opportunities they never had. I dropped out of college at 19 because I thought I was smarter than the system. Built a business. Made it work. Sold it. I was supposed to have figured it out by 35.
The Shift
There was no lightning bolt moment. No guru appeared with the answer. No course changed my life. One night in November 2021, after a particularly soul-crushing DoorDash shift (delivered to my old office building, which felt like a cosmic joke), I was too tired to do anything productive.
I'd been researching automation tools for weeks. Not because I had some master plan. I was just curious and bored and tired of feeling like I was wasting my life. Started messing around with some software I'd read about. Set up a basic system. Didn't think much of it. Went to bed.
Woke up the next morning to an email notification. Someone had bought something. $47.It wasn't life-changing money. But here's what was different: I hadn't done anything. I was literally sleeping. The system worked without me.
That was the seed. For the next two months, I made maybe $200 total. Almost quit four times. It felt stupid. My parents definitely thought I was wasting time. My friends were asking if I was okay.
Current Reality
Fast forward to today. I've been traveling full-time since early 2022. Currently writing this from a cafe in Lisbon, though by the time you read it I might be in Bali or Mexico or who knows where. My typical day? I wake up when I want—usually around 7am because I'm annoyingly a morning person. If I'm near good waves, I surf. If not, I walk around, find a cafe, drink too much coffee.
My "work" consists of: checking dashboards to make sure systems are running, responding to messages (maybe 20-30 per day), and occasionally updating or fixing something that breaks. That's it. Maybe an hour in the morning. Sometimes another hour in the afternoon if something needs attention.
No meetings unless I schedule them (rare). No deadlines unless I set them. No alarm clocks. No commute. No office. No pants required. I haven't set an alarm in eight months.Revenue averages $20-25K per month across three different digital product streams. Some months hit $30K. Some months dip to $18K. It's not flashy, but it's consistent, and it doesn't care where I am or what time zone I'm in.
But here's the difference that matters:
I choose when and where
If I want to spend three weeks in Bali and barely open my laptop, I can. The business doesn't fall apart. Income still comes in. Nothing burns down. If I want to take a random Tuesday and surf all day, I do. If I want to work on a Saturday because I feel like it, fine. If I want to fly to Brazil on Wednesday, I book the ticket.
That's the freedom I was actually looking for. Not "never work again." Not "make millions on the beach." Just the ability to design my days around what I want to do, not what I have to do.
What This Actually Looks Like
$20-25K/month
Average monthly revenue across three income streams. Some months higher ($30K), some lower ($18K). Built over 18 months, maintained with minimal time.
~10 hours/week
Time spent checking systems, fixing issues, responding to messages. Not counting travel time as "work" because I'd be traveling anyway.
30+ countries
Since leaving the US in early 2022. Currently in Lisbon (or wherever by the time you read this). Business runs from anywhere with WiFi.
Zero alarm clocks
Last set an alarm: 8 months ago for an early flight. Structure my days around surf forecasts and energy levels, not meeting schedules.
