There are so many ways to make money. You can sell something, offer a service, build a brand, create content, or solve a problem for someone.

But I think I've been asking myself the wrong question.

Instead of “How can I make money?”

Maybe I should be asking:

“What value am I actually creating?”

I've started looking at the things I've tried differently.

With ATUS, for example, I don't just want to sell footwear. I want to build something people can recognize and trust. Something that actually means something beyond just selling a product.

And with writing, I'm realizing that words can be valuable too. A good piece of writing can help someone explain an idea, present their business better, or connect with people.

Looking back, I think one thing I got wrong was focusing too much on what I could get from an opportunity.

I didn't always ask what I could actually bring to it.

Now I'm trying to change that.

What can I create?

What problem can I solve?

What can I make better?

What can I learn that might become useful to someone else?

I don't have everything figured out. I'm still trying things, learning, and figuring out what I'm actually good at.

But I think these are better questions to be asking.

Because money can be the result.

But value is what gives it a reason to exist.

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As a student, I wanted to earn something for myself. I wanted to be independent. I just didn't know what path would get me there.

At one point, I considered going into something illegal. I won't go into the details, but eventually I walked away from it.

It was stressful, and I started asking myself a different question:

“What else can I do?”

That question took me down a lot of different paths.

I discovered airdrops and made a little money from them. I looked into crypto. I tried different online opportunities. Some worked for a while. Others didn't.

Then I started thinking bigger.

I didn't just want to make money anymore.

I wanted to build something.

That's when I came up with ATUS.

At first, it was just a name. I didn't even have a clear plan for it. I started using it on my social media, and eventually I began wondering what I could actually build around it.

That question led me to footwear.

I started ATUS Footwear Collection, selling shoes and sneakers.

I had the ideas. I had the excitement. But getting something started and getting people to actually buy into it are two different things.

It didn't work out the way I hoped.

So I stopped.

Then I tried car dealing.

That didn't work out either.

For a while, it probably looked like I was jumping from one thing to another.

Maybe I was.

But every attempt taught me something.

I learned that having an idea is easy.

Doing something with it is where things get real.

Then AI caught my attention.

At first, I was just curious. But the more I learned, the more I realized I couldn't afford to ignore it.

AI is changing how people create, work, solve problems, market businesses and build things.

So I started learning.

I learned how to use AI to create websites, images and videos. I started learning about prompting and how to communicate with AI properly. I began experimenting with different tools and finding out what they could actually do.

And the funny thing is, the more I learn, the more I realize how much I still don't know.

But I'm okay with that.

Because now I'm not just looking for the next way to make money.

I'm trying to build skills.

I'm trying to understand business.

I'm trying to understand technology.

I'm trying to figure out what I'm actually good at, and what I can become good at if I keep working on it.

Eventually, I found Substack.

And I decided to start writing.

Not because I've made it.

Not because I have some perfect formula for success.

But because I've been trying, failing, learning, changing direction and trying again.

Maybe someone reading this is in that same stage.

Maybe you don't know exactly what you're doing yet.

I don't either.

But I've learned something along the way:

You don't always find your direction before you start moving. Sometimes you find it because you started moving.

So that's where I am now.

Still learning.

Still building.

Still trying.

But this time, I'm documenting it.

Let's see where it goes.

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