Career Change?

Hello All. I guess the best way to start is to tell you all a bit about myself. I currently work as a full time firefighter and, whilst I am blessed to have a job that many people dream of, in reality I'm not satisfied in my current career. I'm not entirely sure what I really want to do but I feel that filmmaking, travel writing or a bit of both could fit the bill. Now, at 41 and with a family to support I'm certainly not about to quit a secure, if not handsomely paid job, to solely pursue careers that:


a) I'm not 100% sure I want to pursue and
b) Even with 100% conviction are extremely difficult to break into


Obviously, it would be crazy to quit my job with such a lack of clarity for the future. However,I really do want to find a new career that I enjoy. Even if it turns out not to be those already mentioned, I at least want to have a vehicle for trying different things until I do find what I'm looking for. A tall order indeed! However, I do think there is a way forward and this is where the advice of you guys would be much appreciated.


Now, I'm extremely fortunate in my current job where I work four days and then have four days off. Clearly, I have plenty of spare time. Before revealing my idea, for simplicity, let's assume I am made of the right stuff, business-wise. A massive variable overlooked, I know, but without this assumption it just overly complicates my questions today. Don't worry, I'll be here asking for more business-specifics later! So here's my idea:


1) Build up a business that makes a robust, reliable income in my spare time.
2) Obviously, this business would need to be very flexible in terms of hours and not being fixed to the one place. Internet Marketing seems to fit the bill nicely for this.
3) Then, once I consider this business solid enough, quit my 'day job'.
4) Hopefully, having laid some good foundations and making everything as 'automatic' as possible, I will have enough finances and some more time to be able to pursue my other career aspirations.


Now, 4) above is where I could really do with the advice. I'm not for a minute suggesting that I can sit back, do nothing and money will continue to flow in from any internet based businesses. However, my main questions are these (again, making the assumption I am made of the right stuff):


1) If I were to work hard for two years, approximately 40 hrs per week, would it be unrealistic to hope that I might build a business capable of making $80k profit per year by the end of this period?
2) At the end of this period, having worked at building in automation as much as possible, do you think it would be possible to cut my hours down to 20 per week and find this enough to maintain and develop my business so that it still achieves this figure?


Is this possible or is my head in the clouds? I'd love to hear from those of you who have managed to give up your day jobs (or are close to it).


Thanks,

Stuart