The Hustle

Yesterday I talked to a buddy of mine who hates his job.

HATES it.

He's off today for the Juneteenth holiday, but tomorrow, as he put it, he'll be back in the "hell hole."

He's a smart guy.

Capable.

Figures shit out and gets shit done.

Except for one.

He can't figure out how to get out of the job he hates that he's trapped himself in.

This morning I'm finishing packing my office to get the cabinets, carpet, and ceiling tiles pulled out next week, and I found this ashtray.

Y'all remember these?

Ashtrays at McDonald's.

And, lest you think I'm some packrat or hoarder who's kept one of these with me since the 80s, I bought it on eBay last year.

Cost me $10.48

And before you even ask, never mind why I bought it; that does not matter.

Maybe I'm a little odd for buying an old disposable ashtray, but I'm not the only one!

I just checked, and the seller has sold 428 of these.

The list price is $5.

Shipping is $4.50.

I don't know what he paid for his inventory, but it shipped in a cheap padded envelope with a regular stamp - $0.63.

So say he paid $5 for the ashtray, and the total shipping cost was $1. He's still making $3.50 each.

That's just shy of $1,500 this guy has made selling old, disposable aluminum ashtrays.

But he didn't pay $5 each.

A quick Google search shows you can buy them all day for $1 each in small quantities. So if he paid $1 and sold them for $5, he's made $2,140 on the product in addition to his shipping.

$3,640!

From ashtrays!

If America is the Land of Opportunity, then the Internet is the Galaxy of Opportunity.

When my buddy says he's trapped in his job, I call bullshit.

Trapped implies that there's no way to get out.

That there's nothing he can do.

But this other guy is over here making thousands from selling what most people would consider trash.

There's a difference between the eBay guy and my friend, and it has nothing to do with a job.

It's the hustle.

One's making excuses while the other is making it happen.

But with the opportunity that is the Internet, there are no excuses.

At least, not any good ones.