diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 32495751..2a9a0537 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -9,9 +9,9 @@ init:
 	@echo "Installing essential tools..."
 	sudo apt-get install -y curl git
 	# Check for the existence of the configuration file before using it
-	@if test ! -f 'config_file'; then \
-		echo "Error: Configuration file not found"; \
-		exit 1; \
+	@if test ! -r 'config_file'; then \
+		echo "Error: Configuration file could not be read"; \
+		exit 2; \
 	fi
 	# If the configuration file exists, source it
 	@source config_file
diff --git a/config_file b/config_file
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..69e50a8d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/config_file
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+# Set environment variables
+export PROJECT_PATH="/path/to/project"
+export DEPENDENCY_PATH="/path/to/dependencies"
+
+# Set other configuration settings
+export DEBUG_MODE="true"
+export LOG_LEVEL="INFO"