How Skillshare Helped Me Finance A Nicer Apartment

by Scott - 8 Comments

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I love a lot of things about Skillshare. But today I’d like to highlight what it’s done for my finances and purchasing decisions.

Most people’s income is static with the exception of a year-end bonus. This yearly income determines their monthly budget. I.E. If I made $48,000 I’d have a little over $2500 a month after taxes to spend on rent, groceries, entertainment, bills, etc.

In this situation, purchasing decisions are a zero sum game because our income is capped. If I’m moving and want to spend an extra $200 on rent, that means I’ll have $200 less to spend on entertainment, tank tops, Dos Toros etc. The bottom line is we’re forced to make sacrifices.

Skillshare
What’s amazing about Skillshare is that it has made my income dynamic, alleviating the zero sum perception that once occupied my purchasing decisions.

Let me explain:

I recently moved to an apartment that costs a few hundred dollars more each month. Assuming a fixed income, most young people would have to adjust their lifestyle to afford this upgrade. Not me! I’m just teaching another class every month to supplement the difference. I don’t have to change my lifestyle; I just need to do something I already love doing an additional 2 more hours a month.

You can apply this same type of decision making framework to any purchase. Saving up to go to OktoberFest? Instead of cutting back consumption, increase income-generating output.

Skillshare

What’s incredible about Skillshare is that the additional labor (if you want to call it that) needed to generate significant income really isn’t time-consuming, especially if you’re teaching a class where you’ve already created the assets. Granted you need to teach a class where the demand is high enough that you can sell it out with frequency, but if you can the rewards are tremendous.

I can go to OktoberFest for 5 days by teaching 4 classes ( < 8 hours!). That’s a Saturday.

Here are some other cool ways people have taken advantage of this dynamic income.

Alex Taub teaches Business Development classes and gives a piece of the additional income to his wife to buy something nice. What a sweetheart!

Derek Flanzraich teaches a class on organic growth and has used the income to help finance some indulgences for his company Greatist. He used the earnings from his last class to buy a laptop stand, keyboard, and mouse for each member of his team.

Steven Yang, a member of the Skillshare team, teaches about how to break into the startup scene and has actually documented all the things he’s bought on a blog call “I Taught I Bought“.

Helping people learn and meeting new people are definitely the best parts about teaching a Skillshare class. But removing the zero sum mindset when purchasing indulgences here and there ain’t so bad either : ) So yeah…if you’re aren’t teaching a class, you should probably get on that.

Some other posts I’ve written on Skillshare in case you’re new to the platform:

Guerilla Tactics: A Skillshare Case Study

Thoughts on the Knowledge Economy

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