From Depression Caused by an Investment Scam to Earning a Total of 200 Million Yen on “note” and Achieving FIRE: The Story of a 24-Year-Old

He started a business while in college but failed to achieve any notable success. Driven by desperation, he fell victim to multiple investment scams and ended up with 15 million yen in debt. The stress led to depression, causing him to repeat two years of college.Determined to start fresh, he tried job hunting but was rejected everywhere. However, a paid article he published on “note”—his last-ditch effort to turn his life around—went viral, generating 37.71 million yen in sales in a single day—  

This might sound like just another “run-of-the-mill success story.” But Rakko, the protagonist of this tale, has thoroughly analyzed the factors behind his success and fully revealed his know-how in his book. Furthermore, he draws on psychological approaches to address the hurdles that cannot be overcome by simply sharing his know-how.  

Why do side hustles fail to deliver results? And why can’t people even take that first step toward starting one? Let’s take a look at Rakko’s money hacks, which are built on a relentless focus on “reproducibility.”

[Profile: Rakko]

He started a business at age 19 but failed to succeed, ending up with 15 million yen in debt. He developed depression due to stress and hit rock bottom, with all his job searches ending in failure.From there, he found a way forward on the digital content sales platform “note.” Using his unique marketing methods, he set a record by generating 37.71 million yen in sales within 24 hours of publishing his first paid article. He has continued to generate stable income since then, with cumulative sales exceeding 200 million yen. He achieved “side FIRE” at age 24 and has since moved to Poland.While continuing his note business, he is also developing brick-and-mortar businesses locally, such as restaurants and beauty salons. His hobbies include walking his dog, weight training, martial arts, learning English, building campfires, and traveling the world. He is the author of *The Ultimate Side Hustle: note × AI, Taught by a Pro Who Generated 200 Million Yen in Sales* (KADOKAWA).

15 million yen in debt from business failures and fraud  

His first venture was a retail business. He sourced products from China and sold them on domestic flea market apps, achieving some success. However, he saw no prospects for the business to grow, and there was absolutely no guarantee he could make a living from it in the future. So, he dabbled in various businesses, such as blog affiliate marketing, but failed to achieve the results he had hoped for.

“I didn’t understand the essence of business at all; I just kept jumping into whatever seemed like it might make money. And because I was looking for a quick way to make money, I got involved in investing in unlisted stocks and real estate—and ended up getting scammed.”For some reason, I was in a rush back then… even though there was absolutely no need to be. As a result, I lost not only the money I borrowed from my parents and friends, but also all the funds I had secured through loans,” (Mr. Rakko / same below)

The debt he incurred from the investment scam amounted to approximately 15 million yen. For a college student, that is an astronomical sum.

37.71 million yen a day! Making a comeback on “note”  

It was in that pitch-black darkness that he found a ray of hope in “note.”’note’ is a content distribution platform launched in 2014. Currently, users can post not only text but also audio, photos, and videos. It’s also possible to monetize content through paid subscriptions, and while it’s popular among individual creators, an increasing number of companies are creating accounts to use it as their own media platform.

“I found out that an acquaintance was making money on ‘note,’ so I did some research on my own. It turns out you can start with zero initial costs—as long as you have a computer and a smartphone, you can write and sell articles from anywhere. That’s why the profit margin is incredibly high. For someone like me, who was in debt and had no capital, ‘note’ was the only and best option.”

Let me get straight to the point. When he published his first paid article—which he had thoroughly researched and prepared—it sold at an astonishing rate immediately upon release, generating 37.71 million yen in sales on the very first day.

The Side Hustle Trap! Don’t Rely on Your “Strengths”

Why was Rakko able to achieve explosive success on Note despite having neither name recognition nor a track record? The reason is that he succeeded in finding the “right answer” when it came to “selecting a genre”—deciding what to write about.

“Even if you consistently share useful information, it won’t translate into sales unless you attract attention. Deciding what kind of articles to create and publish—the selection of your article genre—is the first and most critical factor in your success.”  

When it comes to selecting a genre, isn’t the first thing that comes to mind for many people “their area of expertise”? Whether it’s work-related or a hobby, if it’s a genre you’re good at, you should at least have more “material to write about” than in other genres, and above all, the likelihood of providing useful information to readers increases.

Rakko says that choosing a niche you’re good at is the trap beginners fall into most easily.

“If you prioritize your area of expertise, your content tends to become self-indulgent or self-contained. Even if you can differentiate your information, it won’t translate into revenue unless there are readers who are interested in that genre.To succeed in monetization, it’s essential to approach content creation from the perspective of serving your readers. You should prioritize the number of interested readers and the intensity of their interest above all else.”

How can an unknown individual without a niche become an “expert” who attracts readers? And what are the clever customer acquisition strategies—utilizing X (formerly Twitter)—that led to cumulative sales of 200 million yen, along with the psychological approaches to breaking through the “barrier of inaction” that so many people face?

The full details of this highly reproducible, concrete know-how—which continues to generate stable revenue to this day—are covered in depth in the paid version of [FRIDAY Subscription].

■ Click here to purchase *The Ultimate Side Hustle: note × AI, Taught by a Pro Who Generated 200 Million Yen in Sales*