We all that one decision to make, it's a good decision and I love what I just read

Wooohooo this is my favourite series of all time. Your total honesty makes it compelling and your determination to get over these issues means you are highly likely to succeed.
Iam no expert but Iam pretty financially savvy and willing to offer advice and help if required.  All the best. Roll on tomorrow.

No lambos? This is indeed a sorry state of affairs

I'd say forget the Lambo.  Goals like that are illusions and take you into dark places.  They're not motivational.  If anything, they remind you of the huge gulf between where you are and where vanity wants to take you.  

Better idea:  be humble.  Your goal is simple:  to be a little bit better at something than you were yesterday.  Think of yourself as a craftsman, and your task it to keep improving your talent for whatever craft you have chosen.  This is an enormously more powerful goal, because it keeps you moving, always moving forward, always moving in the right direction.  

Whenever you feel down, you risk slowing or stopping your activity.  If you feel that coming on, just say to yourself:  "I should be working on task X, but I'm avoiding it for some reason.  So I need to pick the easiest thing to do that would contribute to task X, just to get me moving again."  And before you know it, your spirits will improve.  Just the simple act of working on something, anything, will give you a sense of purpose and accomplishment, and things catch fire from there.

I'll be following this in earnest. I've been hoping to find on the blockchain a cluster of DIY finance for folks like you—and myself (in terms of biography; I have no plans on writing a series like this at the moment)—who are trying to make it in this economy, people who want to offer a lot, but who come from nothing. I'm from rural Alabama,  got my first round of nutrients from WIC, and now I have the cultural capital needed supposedly, but no wallet that can be used to convert it into real money. You know the IRL networking game: "Come on in, but the drinks are really expensive! Can you keep up? If not, see your way out, because your social labor is what you need to be offered the chance to labor." At least that's how it is in elite academic circles.

Anyway, in many ways I'm pursuing a non-academic route of employment b/c that institutional timeline isn't made for somebody like me, the first in my family to get a BA, much less a PhD. So I'm accepting hard truths as well. I know that a ten-year calendar towards financial security isn't going to fly if I am going to have to support my family when my father retires (he's a small business​ owner, boss of 1, himself, doing hard manual labor; he has no retirement plan because he sees no horizon of retirment even if his body will give out eventually, and my mother has several health complications​ as a result of a life ravaged by poverty, and so she hasn't had a career to draw from for old age.

Now I've reached the end of my comment and feel like I've written a post! But thanks for your honesty about this *process.* I think it's def part of the ecosystem here that is driving the best content. We gon' hustle.

I look forward to the series and the effects it has as you achieve the goal of "financial freedom"; however, I suspect you ill find, in the end there is no so nirvana.  You may be financially secure but free I am not so sure.

Great article - this is definitely a topic that's been on my mind lately since I'm living it right now! Looking forward to the series

wow man. this is a very sincere post and a hell of a theme to talk about. not a lot of people tend to do that.. the horrible thing is that "money" as a theme often bares a hint of unpleasantness when it's talked about, especially from a personal point of view. i'm really glad that you're demystifying it by making it transparent like that.. it's a brave and sincere thing. Really hoping it will work out for you, and I will definitely follow up the thread. Cheers brother!

If you suddenly lose joy in someone you are passionate about then there is something wrong which over rules that joy. Maybe social pressure to succeed or commitment. I think feedback is the most important thing that there is if you want to become better. Failing is actually not really failing if you learn and take the experience as an addition to you to overcome them but it depends I mean failing bigtime with knowing on forhand is not smart.. but I respect the balls if someone does that. I was thinking to maybe find a cool thing for writing about in the beginning aswel trying to do somethng but I came to the conclusion to do what you like the most is the best thing but to keep momentum up and lift on with the energy other people have for something can be a good way to do that. :) 

Hi friend... Have you ever tried to sell your music at https://audiojungle.net/ ? This may seem obvious but, just letting you know :) Wish you the very best on your journey. :)

Matt, do you have accounts on LinkedIn and Twitter?  They could help give you more exposure.  The LinkedIn profile would profile more info about you, and show that you have a network.  If you don't have a network of associates, don't worry, you can grow one over time.  

Inside of each article that you write on Steemit, put your name and the date near the top.  You might add a job title for yourself too (e.g., Cryptography Trade Analyst).  At the bottom, add links to three other articles you wrote on Steemit and which are on the same subject as what you just wrote about.    

Finally, when you're done with the article, post links to it from your LinkedIn and Twitter feeds.  

So why am I suggesting this?  All of this cross-linking will give you a bit of search engine optimization (SEO).  Google's bots will think that your article is being cited by others, so they will put your article higher up in their search results.  

Also, the byline will mean that Google will return your Steemit articles if someone searches on your name.

id definitely be following you on your quest to financial freedom bro! kudos to you for being open and allowing us readers to have a peek into your life. im sure someday with determination and patience, you will get there. it may not be easy, the road may be bumpy and hard to maneuver at times, but you WILL get there. looking forward to your posts bro..