I went grocery shopping last week. After I finished loading the groceries into the trunk, I pushed the cart back to the cart shed to return it. Upon returning it, I pop the buckle back into the cart lock and out comes a loonie, a one dollar Canadian coin.
As I was driving home, I thought to myself: what if I helped people return their carts and received a dollar for every cart?
So I did the math.
Say I can return a cart in 60 seconds or 1 minute. Every hour, I’d return 60 carts which amounts to $60/hr. And say I worked 8 hours a day. Everyday, I’d make $480. So how long will it take to make a million dollars?
$1,000,000 / $480
= ~2083 days or about 6 years
I found this thought experiment a little fascinating. I mean, $60 an hour ain’t too shabby. That's an annual salary of about $124,800!
Here’s another, potentially simpler way: the population of Toronto is 2.93 million as of this writing, but to simplify it, we’ll round it up to 3 million.
If you get a dollar from 1 of 3 people you meet within the city, you’d make a million bucks.
I think it really puts things into perspective. Alone, a dollar isn’t worth all that much. But received at scale, we’d be rich. For my fellow business owners and entrepreneurs, keep on keepin’ on! It’s just a matter of time till you make a million dollars! Not that this should be your primary goal. I mean, true wealth is hidden within the intangibles: health, love, and knowledge.
And who knows, maybe next time, you might just see me at the grocery returning carts.
💵 Balance: $18387 (🔻 $80)