Bootstrapped – Emil’s story

Monday, October 12th, 2015 In Life of a panther By Jorn Copypanthers is all about monetizing your language assets: today the story of Emil (26). He got fed up with the cold weather in Sweden and working his but off for other people’s benefit and on their terms. He recently started his own company, and to make ends meat he also works with his writing passion, as  a freelance writer for Copypanthers.

“Nothing will ever change unless you make it happen.”

“Being born and raised in Stockholm, Sweden, I know the true definition of long, cold winters. My entire life I’ve been thinking to myself; Almost year-round I’ve listened to my friends and family complaining about the weather and work situation. Why don’t they do anything about it? Nothing will ever change unless you make it happen. I was determined that I wouldn’t live my life like that. Working my butt off for a boss I don’t like and who doesn’t appreciate my work. Doing long, tedious hours for someone else’s benefit while I only get the crumbs for my hard work.”

“My biggest passion has always been language and writing.”

“After living in a few different places, I settled in Oslo, Norway, a few years back. I got stuck at a dead-end job that only made me depressed because I didn’t do what I loved. My biggest passion has always been language and writing. Writing music, where I can truly play with words, or writing articles that I’m interested in. Not having the time or energy to do what I wanted with my days, I got really fed up. I was exhausted every day from hard labor, waking up to an annoying alarm clock that hated me, and I hated it right back. I never saw the light in the tunnel during this time. Having no proper education, it was hard to see how I could turn this around. I felt caught in the system.” “At this point I met my lovely girlfriend and companion. She offered me a new perspective on things, presented me to a new way of thinking. Taught me that I don’t have to be a slave under this system that I hated so much: Working all your life for someone else only to get into serious debt, being forced into the educational system by people who don’t know what’s best for you at all.”

“We wanted to start up our own company”

“One day I sat in our living room is Oslo, when my girlfriend asked me: Do you want to move to another, more exciting country? Within a split second I said yes. Without a doubt in my mind. Of course we’re leaving. We started doing research on where to go. Since we wanted to start up our own thing and yet live comfortably, we looked into taxes, climates and where living is cheap. After extensive research, we took a quick trip to Bulgaria. It has one of Europe’s best tax systems and a start-up friendly environment. After only a few days, we felt amazed with this paradise so close to home. Everything was perfect. Friendly people, the Black Sea coast and long, white beaches in an urban mix. Life was so different here, it would fit our purposes perfectly.”

“A few months back my boss would have killed me if I showed up for work in my underwear at 12 o’clock in the afternoon. Today this is my reality.”

“Without any formal education, only a burning passion for writing, I started to freelance for Copypanthers while working on our own projects in my spare time. A few months back my boss would have killed me if I showed up for work in my underwear at 12 o’clock in the afternoon. Today this is my reality. I set my own hours, work from the sofa, one of our huge balconies or in a nice café whenever I feel like it. I freelance a few hours a day and focus on our projects the rest of the time. It has been a bit tough to get settled in, of course, but so far I have not regretted this decision for one second. Now knowing that there is always a path to change your life if you’re willing to fight for it, I would encourage anyone who feels the same way about things that I did, to take the same leap. As long as we have our computers, we could work from any location that has a decent internet connection.”

“As long as we have our computers, we can work from any location that has a decent internet connection.”

“When I’m writing this text in our (almost) panoramic view living room, my depression is long gone. It’s been replaced with an enticing lust for life and exploration. Working for ourselves has been the best decision we ever made. For the first time in my life I feel truly free. Free to dedicate my time to what I think is worth it, free to go wherever I want whenever I want to. Not to mention the freedom and excitement that comes with moving to a new country, learning a new language, alphabet and meeting lots of interesting people.” If you feel the same way that Emil and his girlfriend have, this could work just as well for you as it did for them. All it takes is for you to make that first, scary step into the unknown. Or you could keep complaining about how things never get any better, because they never will unless you make it happen. The change starts with you, and you only.

“Start monetizing your language assets as well”

Follow Emil on his blog: fourflipflops.com, and sign up at Copypanthers to start monetizing your language assets.