A Million Dollars In Five Years? A Bet to Change My Life.
- Oliver Neighborly
- Oct 1, 2016
- 3 min read
By October 12, 2021 I will have 1 million dollars.
I get a wide variety of responses from people when I tell them this. Some look at me with disinterested bemusement, others with mild sympathy. Mostly, people just look at me like I am crazy.
Not that I can blame them. I mean, I have no job, I live in my parent’s basement, and I have never come close to making a million dollars, or much money at all for that matter. It is completely understandable why someone would doubt my ability to achieve this. Yet, despite these, plus numerous other obstacles standing in my way, I am determined to achieve my goal.
So determined, in fact, that when my friend told me that she did not believe I could do it, I had to interrupt her.
Taken aback but intrigued nevertheless, my friend let me continue.
“I propose a wager.” I said, as she eyed me with suspicion. “If you are correct and I am unable to make a million dollars in five years, then I will admit defeat and you will take me to dinner to console me on my failure.”
“What happens if you win?” She asked.
“If I win and prove that I can make a million dollars in five years, then I will take you and my family with me to Walt Disney World, where we will all celebrate my accomplishment and my 32nd birthday.”
“Is there a catch?”
“Just one. If you lose the bet you have to let me film you saying that you were wrong and allow me to post it online.”
“So, basically, I have to eat my words.”
“Correct.”
“Hell.” She said with a laugh. “If you take me to Disney World, I’ll say whatever you want me to say.”
So, with a shake of the hand, our bet was made and history was set in motion. However, despite her having every reason to wish for my success, I could tell that she still doubted that I would be able to do it.
She thinks that a million dollars is way too large of a number to arrive at in the short span of just five years.
But I don’t.
I mean if you think about it, a million dollars really isn’t that much in the grand scheme of things. Athletes are paid millions of dollars every year. The newest Marvel movie is sure to make millions of dollars its opening weekend. Millions are gained on the stock market in a matter of moments. There are millions of ways that millions are gained, spent, and lost every day.
To be honest, the only reason that I even chose a million dollars was because it is the arbitrary large number that everyone wishes for. Sure, a million dollars might be able to buy me nice clothes, cars, houses, and other luxuries, but these are not the things that I am seeking out. In fact, there is really only one thing that I pursue in this quest.
My Freedom.
Or at least more of it.
I want to free from the slavery of a paycheck. I want to be free to pursue my own goals and ambitions. Most of all, I want to be free of my fear, so that I can work on being the best possible version of myself at all times.
You see, I have realized that the only thing that has been holding me back, is me. I am the one responsible for my shortcomings, for my lack of focus, lack of personal responsibility and lack of self-discipline. I have been standing in my own way for far too long and it is time for me to move forward and prove what I am capable of.
Prove that I can do whatever I want to do and be whoever I want to be. Prove that my life is more than just a constant struggle to pay bills. Prove that I, and I alone, am the master of my own destiny.
Because if I do prove this, than there truly is nothing that I cannot do.
I am Oliver Neighborly, and this is just the beginning.
I want to hear your opinion. Do you think it is possible for someone to go from practically nothing to a million dollars in just five years? Let me know in the comments below.
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