🚀 5 Lessons That Made Me $1.2M at 27

At 22, I got fired. At 27, I made $1.2M in a year.

Joey Rich

Apr 12, 2025

I use Monarch to track my finances. Highly Recommend.

5 Lessons That Made Me $1.2M in a Year at 27

At 22, I got fired.
At 27, I made $1.2M in a year.

Not because I worked the hardest.
Not because I was the smartest.
Not because I had some genius business idea.

I just stopped making the same mistakes that kept me broke.

I realized that most people aren’t stuck because they lack effort.

They’re stuck because they:

❌ Solve the wrong problems
❌ Stay in the wrong vehicle too long
❌ Make high-risk, low-reward moves

Here are 5 lessons that I’ve learned along the way:

1️⃣ Success Happens in Cadence, Not All at Once

A high-contrast black-and-white aesthetic image symbolizing progress happening step by step. The image features a futuristic, digital representation of stepping stones or ascending levels, with a figure moving through each stage, glowing softly as they advance. The scene is minimalistic, sleek, and modern, with a clean, high-tech feel—similar to AI-generated concept art. No words, just a powerful visual that conveys the idea of sequential success.

When I first got started I wanted financial freedom, passive income, and a dream business

But the problem is I wanted it all at once.

That’s why I failed.

I tried to skip steps instead of solving the right problem at the right time.

So typically rather than trying to figure it out, I sought out mentors

Why try to figure it out when there’s somebody with the outcome I want and all I have to do is follow their foot steps

This is my usual first step when I’m stuck

I was finally able to take things 1 step at a time when a mentor taught me the lesson

You can have everything you want, just not all at the same time

So that’s what I started doing

When I was broke, I didn’t chase passive income even though I REALLY wanted passive income

I chased cash flow instead by doing high ticket sales and earning a commission

When I had cash flow, then I started focusing on how to invest my money to earn passive income

Lesson #1:
Success isn’t about doing everything at once—it’s about knowing what to do first.

2️⃣ The Right Vehicle Is More Important Than Effort

A high-contrast black-and-white aesthetic image symbolizing 'The Right Vehicle Is More Important Than Effort.' The image features two figures: one running on foot, exhausted and struggling, while another rides a sleek futuristic motorcycle, far ahead in the distance, effortlessly zooming forward. The person on the vehicle should appear human, not alien, wearing a modern, sleek helmet and gear. Motion blur enhances the sense of speed and progress, creating a stark contrast between effort vs. efficiency. The background emphasizes distance and movement, illustrating how the right vehicle accelerates success. The style is minimalistic, modern, and high-tech, fitting the AI-generated concept art aesthetic. No words, just a powerful visual representation.

When the crypto market crash I lost majority of my investments and unfortunately my active income

With the drop of income I needed a way to earn cash flow before I deplete my savings

Following another framework my mentor taught me (alongside the previous one)

Always go with the least amount of effort, least amount of risk, and most amount of upside

So with that in mind I started looking for sales roles since all I have to do is utilize my skill of influence and earn a commission without taking the risks that the business owner takes

This is another key lesson (more below)

I ended up taking a sales role selling a biz-op offer and was working 12 hour days

Which to me was ridiculous at the time since I was used to 2-4 hour work days

Now, in previous sales roles I was earning anywhere from $10k/month to $30k/month so I had a baseline of what I knew my skillset could bring

With this opportunity, working 12 hour days, the most I made was $6k in a month

Now, I was grateful to have cash flow again, but I knew there was a ceiling to the opportunity so I started looking for a different vehicle (place) to earn income

Luckily, my friend Aaron who I previously taught my sales framework to created a company called ATN, and asked me to take a couple of calls

So I took a weekend and took calls

And BOOM

I closed $8k in commissions working about 5 hours in total

Compare that to the 240 hours I put in with the biz-op offer making $6k

When take happened…

I instantly provided my notice to the biz-op offer

Lesson #2:
Most people don’t have a work ethic problem—they have a vehicle problem.

3️⃣ Never Go All In Without Validating First

A high-contrast black-and-white aesthetic image representing 'Never Go All In Without Validating First.' The image features two figures at the edge of a cliff: one is cautiously testing the stability of a bridge or stepping stone before crossing, while the other has already leaped into the air without checking if there is solid ground ahead. The scene emphasizes the stark contrast between strategic, calculated action and reckless risk-taking. The style is minimalist, modern, and high-tech, fitting an AI-generated concept art aesthetic. No words, purely visual storytelling.

One to know what stupid looks like?

At 20 I got SOLD the dream of being a digital nomad, making laptop money, and getting RICH quick

My dumbass quit my full-time personal training job because I bought a course on Amazon FBA, dropshipping, and affiliate marketing

And thought I was going to get rich without making a dime

Then guess what happened?

Within about 6 months, I was broke.

I had to sell my car, sell my clothes etc. to pay for the bills and debt I accumulated.

After that, I never made that mistake again:

I went back to my personal training job and THEN I tried out ONE business model

I tested affiliate marketing on the side and started making $2k-$4k a month on the side before even thinking about quitting my job again

When I was a CSO for a 8-figure company which I wanted to leave

I made sure I found an opportunity where I was securing at least $10k/month in income for 3 months before quitting

When I wanted to leave the biz-op role I validated ATN (company I’m currently the president/CSO in) with an $8K weekend before going all in.

Lesson #3:
Most people stay broke because they take big risks with unproven ideas

4️⃣ Asymmetric Bets: Minimize Risk, Maximize Upside

Calculated bets - by Alex Su - Off The Record

Remember the story above?

My mentor, taught learned a life changing framework:

✅ Least amount of effort
✅ Least amount of risk
✅ Most amount of upside

Instead of starting my own business from scratch,

High effort
High risk
High upside (but with the tradeoffs of effort/risk)

I partnered with a winning one (ATN) and took a % of net profits.

Low effort (doing sales)
Low risk (already proven business)
High upside (get percentage of all sales)

Before I make any decisions I ALWAYS run it through this lens because it has provided me with a low-stress and happy life

Lesson #4:
Most people fail because they make HIGH-risk, LOW-reward moves.

5️⃣ Never Stay in a Losing Position Just Because of Time Invested

Most people stay in bad jobs, bad businesses, and bad investments just because they already put time into them.

That’s how people STAY broke.

I walked away from:

❌ An 8-figure company where the product sucked.
❌ A high-ticket sales job as soon as I found a better opportunity.
❌ Crypto the moment the market collapsed.

I don’t care how long I’ve been in something.

I only ask:

“Knowing what I know now… would I start this again today?”

If the answer is no, I’m done.

My personal resources (time, money, energy) are better spent elsewhere

Lesson #5:
Never let your past investments force you into bad future decisions.

🧠 Final Thought:

The truth is—making $1.2M in a year wasn’t about doing more.

It was about making better decisions.

I stopped clinging to bad vehicles, chasing every opportunity, and repeating broke behavior just because I was “already in too deep.”

The 5 lessons above aren’t just advice—they’re filters I now use to make every financial decision.

Want to build wealth faster and with less stress?

Start using the same filters.

Because the goal isn’t just to get rich once.

It’s to Live Rich—on your terms, for life.

Joseph Villagracia

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