DWould you like to make a fortune with Bitcoin? please do not worry. TikTok's legion of personal finance influencers is bringing you a cunning new money-making scheme called the Young Indian Method (Yim). Here are some popular ideas: Start a business offering services like video editing or graphic design, but outsource all the work to India or other places where you can find cheap labor. And they rake in huge profits from exploited workers. genius!
Now, before I dust off my pitchfork, I should note that it's not clear that all im evangelists are completely serious. This concept seems to have been created as a joke by an influencer. It's a satire of how fellow American startups openly brag about maximizing profits by paying overseas workers as low as possible. And clearly, it's not just the startup fraternity who are making money by exploiting cheap labor. It's like the basis of capitalism.
But satire and reality are becoming increasingly indistinguishable. Im may have been coined as a joke, but many social media influencers are trying to capitalize on this idea and sell guides on how to make money this way. Technology news site 404 Media recently purchased one of his guides and found it full of dehumanizing language and murky ethics. “Don't be afraid to slack off, waste time, or weed out poor quality Indians in your team,” was the bit of advice. “Remember, they can be easily replaced. They are just like soldiers.”
The Yim isn't the only questionable business advice online. Social media is full of self-proclaimed “financial gurus” promoting shady (and sometimes downright fraudulent) get-rich-quick schemes. Real estate has been a popular topic among these people for some time. AI is currently attracting attention. Scammers and financial influencers sell how-to guides that promise untold riches by letting ChatGPT do all the work for you. It's easy to scoff at the people who fall for these scams, but it's easy to see why they have such a passionate audience. The idea that hard work and ethics pay off is an increasingly difficult sell in a world where scammers always seem to win.
