My-Biggest-Financial-Mistakes---Pursuing-a-Lifestyle-of-Leisure
00:00:00.000 | Welcome to radical personal finance a show dedicated to providing you with the knowledge skills insights and encouragement
00:00:04.880 | You need to live a rich and meaningful life now while building a plan for financial freedom in ten years or less
00:00:10.820 | My name is Joshua sheets today. I'm going to continue this series
00:00:15.280 | called my biggest financial mistakes my biggest financial mistakes again, I've
00:00:22.040 | Done a lot of introspection and analysis over the past six to twelve months in my own life, and I've made a list
00:00:29.200 | It's quite long of my personal biggest financial mistakes the things that have cost me more money than
00:00:35.640 | anything else and
00:00:38.360 | I've been sharing those with you little by little and in no particular order just in the order that I feel like I want to
00:00:44.680 | talk about them
00:00:45.920 | and today's
00:00:47.920 | Mistake is is actually quite simple. It is simply this
00:00:56.800 | One of my biggest financial mistakes has been
00:01:00.880 | having a selfish focus on
00:01:04.160 | myself and my own lifestyle goals
00:01:08.400 | Rather than being willing to focus on
00:01:12.400 | serving others I
00:01:15.240 | Think here a little bit of background will help you to understand this. I
00:01:21.360 | Could have also titled this particular podcast
00:01:26.320 | Episode how I feel like I've been bamboozled by the financial independence movement
00:01:33.080 | Because it's taken me
00:01:36.360 | Quite a while to work through and experience enough to be sure of what I'm actually saying to you
00:01:43.560 | by way of background
00:01:46.200 | When I was younger I
00:01:51.600 | Wanted to be financially independent I wanted to be financially free and
00:01:56.920 | I spent time reading things and listening to people who promised financial freedom
00:02:04.360 | Who promised that I would be able to achieve my goals?
00:02:08.760 | I read personal finance literature and personal finance literature taught me that if I would put money in my IRAs and
00:02:15.960 | contribute faithfully and invested into stocks that someday I would be a
00:02:19.640 | Wealthy millionaire and have a lot of money and then I would be able to retire I read
00:02:23.640 | and listened to
00:02:26.120 | literature and things that that people talked about that helped me to have that goal of financial independence and while I've
00:02:32.160 | personally made fun of and pilloried for many years the
00:02:37.320 | scam of retirement
00:02:40.120 | The reality is it affected me deeply
00:02:43.920 | The idea that even though I made fun of it right the Merrill Lynch ad with the gray-haired couple walking calmly down the beach
00:02:51.520 | I made fun of it. I still it was still held in my mind as a vision
00:02:58.000 | something that I wanted and
00:03:00.560 | as I worked my way through the world of employment, I
00:03:03.720 | Systematically grew to want it more I started as a teenager
00:03:09.920 | Consuming mainstream personal finance books that talked about the value of retirement in your mid-60s
00:03:16.120 | Then I started working in
00:03:18.320 | Then I started working in
00:03:21.800 | Financial services in 2008 I joined a financial services company
00:03:27.820 | I started selling life insurance disability insurance long-term care insurance. I got my securities license. I started selling investments
00:03:35.120 | Became a financial advisor and started doing comprehensive holistic financial planning at the time
00:03:40.720 | And when I was doing that I was working in a business model that was structured
00:03:46.120 | based upon that that
00:03:49.200 | mainstream
00:03:51.560 | understanding of retirement and so I of course had those goals one of the ways that the company that I worked for attracted me was
00:03:57.520 | by talking about their pension programs and I I knew people that
00:04:02.280 | Were very wealthy and had a great retirement
00:04:05.080 | Lifestyle, it seemed awesome. It looked awesome
00:04:09.000 | And so I worked at that then along the way I became exposed to what is now known as the fire movement
00:04:16.920 | I found out that if I could save money
00:04:19.880 | More money then I could reach my goals even faster
00:04:25.000 | I
00:04:26.080 | Discovered the idea that I didn't have to wait until I was 65 to retire that I could retire
00:04:31.800 | perhaps 35 or 45 or 50 or 30 or 25 if I worked really hard and
00:04:38.160 | as I
00:04:41.040 | Discovered those concepts they became very very attractive to me and
00:04:46.920 | I started to work on those and I started to save and I started to really
00:04:53.000 | Invest myself into that approach and I've shared with you many of those ideas here at radical personal finance
00:04:59.800 | Along the way I discovered what I considered to be an even faster path. The faster path was
00:05:06.720 | Entrepreneurship as I was working through my own
00:05:10.040 | financial independence
00:05:12.280 | planning I thought well, why should I wait and
00:05:16.640 | Wait to be a millionaire and just save and invest to become a millionaire
00:05:21.600 | when I could live a millionaire's lifestyle with the right kind of lifestyle business and
00:05:27.280 | I started building a lifestyle business now at the beginning it was radical personal finance
00:05:33.640 | it has since been radical personal finance, but I do some other things as well and
00:05:37.680 | my goal along the way was to build a lifestyle business and
00:05:41.680 | Originally my goal in building
00:05:46.400 | Said lifestyle business was six figures from a laptop
00:05:49.000 | All right
00:05:49.720 | because I thought what are all the things that I would do if I were financially independent and I created this vision this this goal of
00:05:55.160 | Kind of how I would live my life
00:05:59.080 | I engaged in these visioning exercises and I I thought it through and I became very clear on how I would live my life
00:06:05.680 | And I thought if I make six figures from a laptop with a very small
00:06:10.600 | Number of hours worked per week
00:06:13.440 | That would that would be great
00:06:15.960 | I never wanted to not work entirely
00:06:18.720 | That's that's that's never been a priority of mine, but I always wanted just to work a little bit, right?
00:06:22.800 | Maybe not four hours a week
00:06:24.400 | But maybe 24 hours a week seems pretty ideal for me for 24 hour 20 hours 24 hours a week
00:06:29.840 | Four days a week six hours a day. However, you slice it right for years
00:06:33.880 | I've wanted to and plan done actually to a good degree
00:06:37.720 | I haven't done it purposefully but work three months on take a month off work three months on take a month off
00:06:44.040 | I've always been attracted by this
00:06:46.040 | Kind of 50% effort 50% lifestyle because it has seemed to me to promise all of the things that I have wanted
00:06:53.240 | You know the the personal goals of things like not having to set an alarm clock to wake up in the morning
00:06:58.600 | Being able to live wherever I want in the world not having a tremendous having tremendous time freedom
00:07:03.600 | I don't like to be constrained by a calendar where I have to be places at a certain time
00:07:07.960 | And so this these these at least we're all have always been the elements of kind of my dream life of how I would like
00:07:15.280 | to live
00:07:16.760 | Part of that has also been that I wanted minimal stress
00:07:19.760 | Having had employees in the past. I determined I don't want to have employees. I don't want to have to
00:07:27.880 | Supervise people. I don't enjoy
00:07:30.400 | Supervising people. I don't enjoy managing
00:07:34.280 | Employees and I said, okay, I don't want that. And so I've I've over time I've made decisions
00:07:40.560 | I could have expanded and hired employees. I didn't want to do it. I also
00:07:43.720 | didn't want the responsibility right when you take responsibility of
00:07:47.640 | Paying people money then when you run out of money
00:07:51.600 | It it hurts a lot more when you know that other families are
00:07:56.080 | Relying on you and on your work. It's a tremendous amount of pressure
00:08:01.240 | I've always been pretty capable and never worried too much about running out of money for myself because I've got lots of backup plans
00:08:07.720 | But then of course you have people working for you and you observe and you think it's gonna hurt them a lot worse than it
00:08:12.800 | Hurts me and it it's a big responsibility. And so I said I don't want that and
00:08:16.240 | so I built a lifestyle business and
00:08:20.280 | I
00:08:22.840 | Told myself and I that it was awesome because it is it is right
00:08:27.400 | There's no there's no arguing that it's it's nice to have a lifestyle business
00:08:31.040 | it really is and I've told myself that that would be kind of the the ultimate that was as that was as big as as
00:08:37.480 | my
00:08:39.520 | It was as big as I could see right that was as big as I could see but what I have realized over the past
00:08:44.720 | year
00:08:46.400 | Especially is that that's always been a selfish goal. It's always been about me
00:08:52.800 | It's always been
00:08:55.200 | about me and what has happened is when you have at least when I have when I have had as
00:09:00.920 | As I have a selfish me focused goal
00:09:06.080 | Then it makes me worry
00:09:08.840 | About making it too big some people don't worry about that
00:09:13.800 | But there are some people aren't affected by that, but I personally have have have often been
00:09:19.720 | Affected by that right? Maybe you want to have a nice car
00:09:22.180 | Well, I look at it and I find it hard to justify why I should want the nicest car in the world
00:09:28.120 | right if what why if a if a
00:09:30.440 | If a car gets me down the road
00:09:33.320 | Then it's good enough
00:09:35.680 | But maybe I want a nicer car. Well, how much of a nicer car do I want? Do I want a Toyota Corolla?
00:09:41.760 | Do I want a Lexus? Do I want a Tesla?
00:09:45.800 | Do I want a Ferrari or do I want a Bugatti right?
00:09:48.880 | There's a big difference between these vehicles and you look at it and you think well, I don't really
00:09:53.800 | Not really a Bugatti guy. I don't I don't even fit in those most of those supercars. Although to be fair
00:10:00.120 | I haven't tested them all maybe there's one that's big enough for me
00:10:02.560 | And so you think that's not really me and then what's the goal is the goal to have one or is the goal to have?
00:10:07.660 | A fleet is the goal to have 15 of them and some people have that that sense of ambition that sense of desire that that
00:10:14.680 | Endless lust for more more consumption, but I've never really had that
00:10:19.800 | partly due to my background partly due to my worldview partly due to my
00:10:25.560 | Looking at that and just consciously saying like this is stupid. Why not be content?
00:10:31.440 | You know, why not have enough to
00:10:36.120 | Channel John Bogle right with enough or to channel the scriptures right godliness and contentment is great gain
00:10:44.480 | and so
00:10:45.840 | I've cultivated a sense of contentment. And so what I've told myself is
00:10:52.000 | Philosophically, all right if Joshua if you're content and then you have enough you have enough money
00:10:57.880 | I've never I've not found myself limited much by lack of money
00:11:01.080 | So you're doing fine
00:11:02.680 | And so you should just enjoy enjoy take your make your 24-hour work week and and go with it
00:11:09.040 | but
00:11:10.720 | That has resulted in my producing last that has resulted in my working less because I've often been under motivated to
00:11:17.800 | to
00:11:20.440 | To achieve more from my own ends
00:11:23.440 | So what's changed
00:11:28.800 | What has changed for me is I
00:11:32.600 | Have finally become willing to embrace a sense of responsibility
00:11:40.280 | Related to
00:11:42.280 | service and
00:11:44.000 | I have embraced on a deeper way than ever before
00:11:48.640 | the reality that I have a
00:11:53.000 | responsibility to serve I
00:11:56.440 | Have been given much and therefore much is required of me and I'm that much that is required of me
00:12:07.160 | For me to achieve that for me to do that. It's not enough for me to just engage in
00:12:13.720 | Lifestyle business. It's not enough for me to engage in
00:12:18.120 | kind of hanging out hanging out and doing just enough and
00:12:22.200 | what a tragedy it would be for me if I wasted some of the most important years and
00:12:29.680 | God willing decades of my life
00:12:32.280 | hanging out
00:12:36.000 | Now it's taken a while for me to be willing to say that without hedging in a public way
00:12:42.840 | Because I have found
00:12:46.240 | the siren song of
00:12:48.440 | financial independence very attractive I
00:12:51.800 | found that siren song of of
00:12:54.920 | the beach lifestyle
00:12:58.120 | very attractive and
00:13:00.560 | I don't wish to condemn others for the decisions that they have made
00:13:04.240 | I I've said I don't I haven't quite gotten it for a number of years
00:13:08.440 | But I have often felt like I need to try it out
00:13:12.440 | Who am I to criticize someone else for the decisions they make if I haven't tried it out and the more that I have tried
00:13:18.960 | It out the more I have realized it's it's it's not for me. It's not fulfilling. It's not
00:13:24.840 | I wish I could have learned this at an early age
00:13:30.200 | one of the jobs that I've had in my life that is just
00:13:33.360 | Taught me this lesson and gave me a good reference point when I was in high school
00:13:39.640 | I had a job working in an office for a friend of mine and
00:13:43.200 | He was giving a high school student a summer job
00:13:46.160 | and so he just basically brought me into the office and told his office manager here have Joshua work for you and
00:13:52.600 | the office manager
00:13:55.800 | Didn't quite know what to do with me. She hadn't necessarily been looking for an employee
00:13:59.480 | she was just giving
00:14:01.320 | giving the boss's friend a
00:14:03.520 | Job, and so they kind of gave me some things to do but not a lot and at the time
00:14:09.640 | I could come into work every day and I was supposed to answer the phone
00:14:12.880 | But the phone very rarely rang and there were a few errands that I could run for them
00:14:16.800 | But they didn't really embrace the idea of teaching me a lot or training me a lot
00:14:20.960 | And so I've sat at the desk and I read novels all day every day. I
00:14:26.680 | Love to read novels. I had great novels to read but I felt like I was useless. I felt like what's the point?
00:14:31.960 | why am I sitting here reading and
00:14:33.960 | I learned that just because something is fun doesn't mean that that's what you want to do all all the time doing something
00:14:41.080 | That's fun is great
00:14:43.080 | when it's a
00:14:44.720 | Break from the work and I've had other experiences that have shown that to me, but I think I was still
00:14:55.480 | Engaged with the idea that well, maybe it's just that I didn't have enough autonomy, right?
00:15:00.480 | Maybe it was that with my summertime work
00:15:03.680 | Maybe it would have been fun if I hadn't had to stay in the office, right?
00:15:08.920 | maybe that maybe it was fun maybe reading novels would have been more fun if I could go to the cigar lounge every day and
00:15:14.840 | Smoke cigars and read my novels there from 10 a.m. To 4 p.m
00:15:19.880 | And maybe it would be fun if I didn't have to worry about paying 15 bucks for a stick of tobacco
00:15:24.680 | Because I had so much money and I was actually financially independent and it would be fine
00:15:28.880 | and so I've I've had these lessons along the way thus my
00:15:33.440 | oft-stated discomfort with
00:15:36.240 | Many aspects of the financial independence movement, but I've often wondered maybe I just haven't experienced enough
00:15:41.140 | Maybe I just don't have enough money. Maybe it's different if I had a couple million bucks
00:15:45.660 | Maybe it'd be different if I were in a different society a place that I liked more
00:15:49.560 | Maybe it would be different if I had a nicer house
00:15:51.460 | Maybe it would be different if my my personal hedonism were or more appropriate to me and the way that I want to live
00:15:58.360 | Well, I'm here to say that it's not and
00:16:04.920 | Pursuing lifestyle
00:16:11.520 | Has never been a
00:16:15.380 | Has not ever been fulfilling for me
00:16:17.680 | meaning
00:16:20.100 | pursuing lifestyle just well if I could just get a little bit have a little bit more money or have a little bit more freedom
00:16:26.360 | or have a little bit more a
00:16:28.360 | Little bit more
00:16:31.620 | Fun be in a more more beautiful place
00:16:34.140 | Then I'll be able to do it, but I don't find it. I don't find it enjoyable
00:16:41.900 | I don't find it. I find it not fun and
00:16:46.300 | What it has become clear to me is
00:16:51.700 | Those activities those lifestyle pursuit activities are most rewarding
00:17:00.500 | When they are an interlude
00:17:06.380 | For your other moments of work and of contribution and of service
00:17:11.820 | An ice-cold drink is best after a long day's work
00:17:22.300 | And I've reached the point where
00:17:28.380 | That has become clear enough for me
00:17:31.660 | by
00:17:34.740 | philosophical introspection and by practical experience for me to be willing to
00:17:40.860 | reject
00:17:43.900 | building
00:17:45.860 | Lifestyle so-called lifestyle to the extent that it costs me service
00:17:52.240 | How does this relate to money why is this a financial mistake well because when I have pursued lifestyle I have always
00:18:03.940 | labored under the
00:18:05.940 | Constraint of what's enough?
00:18:08.820 | All right, if you could live on
00:18:11.380 | $50,000 a year or a hundred thousand dollars a year. Well, then enough is
00:18:15.620 | 25 times your expenses and so two and a half million bucks in the bank. Boom
00:18:20.500 | You're good. Fifty thousand dollars a year two and a half million bucks in the bank. You're financially independent
00:18:24.180 | 100,000, you know
00:18:26.980 | Fine, you're good four million
00:18:29.020 | So as
00:18:33.420 | I've I
00:18:35.420 | Get that math
00:18:37.580 | Totally messed up. You know what? I mean? I was alluding the 4% rule. Forgive me
00:18:42.020 | The math totally totally did not come out right there
00:18:46.340 | 25 times annual expenses so 50
00:18:51.300 | 100,000 a year
00:18:54.980 | You need two and a half million bucks
00:18:58.420 | The point is that you're always looking at it saying was just just enough right just enough
00:19:03.320 | so I need just enough and while I don't deny that contentment is a virtue that I wish to
00:19:10.860 | That I wish to appreciate I think that contentment
00:19:16.300 | can be seen can be something that keeps people from pursuing more and that the pursuit of more is
00:19:22.980 | Deeply gratifying
00:19:28.020 | That the pursuit of improvement is
00:19:30.500 | fundamentally an important part of the human condition I
00:19:35.380 | Still struggle to put this into words. I've thought about this concept for
00:19:42.900 | Months and months and months and months and I don't know how to
00:19:46.420 | Express it more clearly. I've written it out for myself. I've thought it out. I've talked it out
00:19:51.220 | I'm doing it publicly, but if I were to put it into a concise
00:19:54.780 | statement
00:19:57.620 | I would simply say that
00:19:59.620 | There are some things in life that don't get old
00:20:08.020 | So, for example, can you experience
00:20:13.500 | Deeper connection with people that you love and care about I don't find that that gets old
00:20:18.940 | You can
00:20:25.220 | simultaneously
00:20:26.860 | enjoy
00:20:28.380 | What you're doing enjoy where you are while looking forward to experiencing more if you gather your
00:20:35.700 | good friends around your table and you share a great meal together full of
00:20:42.860 | amazing food and fun conversation and rich connection
00:20:47.180 | You come away from that time
00:20:50.060 | So thankful for the depths of relationship that you have enjoyed and the love that you have shared with one another
00:20:56.700 | Looking forward to the next time of being able to do more of that
00:21:00.260 | There are other things in life that are the same way you do a lot of it and
00:21:07.220 | You do more of it and it feels really good
00:21:11.740 | What I don't think is one of those things is
00:21:16.260 | Taking it easy or having a break or
00:21:22.700 | Goofing off or doing all the things that you want to do
00:21:26.060 | there are other things in life that are best in moderation and I guess what I have I
00:21:31.740 | Guess what has become very clear to me over the past few years
00:21:37.020 | Simply that if you pursue
00:21:40.260 | lifestyle
00:21:43.020 | That's what and and and that life and by lifestyle here. I mean if you pursue
00:21:48.220 | Disengagement if you pursue I'm just gonna hang out
00:21:52.220 | It's not one of those things that can be done more of without damage
00:21:58.900 | It's rather one of those things that is wonderful in small doses
00:22:03.340 | Whereas service work you can do more you can serve more effectively you can work harder
00:22:11.100 | That's one of those things that is like love like relationships. That's one of those things that can go deeper on
00:22:17.220 | So what does this mean practically? How am I correcting this particular thing?
00:22:22.240 | Well, I have made some changes
00:22:25.560 | that
00:22:28.560 | I'm becoming I'm willing to
00:22:32.640 | give up
00:22:35.160 | some of my personal freedom some of my lifestyle and
00:22:38.640 | A in order to work more and to be able to serve others more in various ways
00:22:44.160 | much of this related to business, but not all but I'm willing to
00:22:48.480 | Give up some of my freedoms and give up some of my
00:22:51.620 | indulgences in order to serve others more
00:22:55.120 | Part of this has to do with a recent travels. I started traveling and for some reason it was kind of a mini retirement
00:23:02.160 | You'll notice I said was I have ended for now our
00:23:05.960 | Global tour. I ended it prematurely for the moment because of the
00:23:12.260 | coronavirus restrictions
00:23:14.840 | partly due to my not being able to get into some of the places that I'm very keen to get into at the moment partly
00:23:20.320 | Due to just the frustration of dealing with it. There's nothing that'll break a father's heart
00:23:25.000 | Then seeing your children
00:23:28.240 | Subjected to invasive medical testing that is not fun
00:23:32.680 | and now if it's necessary you do it because you know, that's what's best for them, but I just
00:23:36.240 | So tired of seeing my two-year-old my four-year-old my six-year-old and my eight-year-old. It's not such a big deal
00:23:41.920 | But just seeing them cry with having swabs stuck in their noses so we can get on an airplane
00:23:46.240 | It's brutal and I'm I don't want to do it anymore
00:23:49.440 | So part of his Kovan partly also is that Asia is still shut down
00:23:54.560 | I was planning to be in Asia this winter and the places that I want to go
00:23:57.840 | I can't get into and so I've ended our travels for now
00:24:00.820 | and
00:24:02.960 | I've rented a house back in the United States. I've moved back to the United States
00:24:07.740 | I don't know that that will be forever
00:24:09.100 | But for now in order for me to serve people effectively, I can't be across the border. It's just too difficult
00:24:15.080 | I haven't been able to to do things that are important because of the the difficulties with the travel restrictions
00:24:22.840 | so I've rented a house in Florida and
00:24:24.840 | I'm in the process of moving my family back into that house. And one of the things that I'm doing with it is I'm simply
00:24:31.960 | Committing myself to
00:24:35.360 | work
00:24:36.920 | To work now. I'll share with you. Honestly, what is
00:24:41.200 | You know what my experience is with that but what I mean by I'm committing myself to work is I'm giving up on
00:24:50.200 | The the freedom the I don't want to work too much. I'm giving up on the I don't want employees
00:24:57.280 | I'm gonna hire employees. I'm going to take on that responsibility again. I'm gonna take on calendar appointments again
00:25:04.640 | I'm gonna do those things and because I don't want to
00:25:09.280 | Sorry to steal this from other people, but I don't want to die with my music still in me and I feel like the pursuit
00:25:15.400 | As I have pursued quote-unquote what I'm calling the financial independence lifestyle
00:25:21.600 | There's that that hasn't been
00:25:24.160 | What I have wanted
00:25:26.840 | And so I'm grateful that I have had the chance to try it out
00:25:31.040 | I'm one who likes to test things. I'm one who likes to verify things
00:25:34.880 | I'm one who likes to know for my for myself is the pot actually hot
00:25:38.840 | I have one of my children is like this
00:25:40.680 | I see so much of me in him you'll tell him something and he just wants to see wants to find out for himself
00:25:46.240 | And so I'm grateful that I've had the good fortune to be able to try things for myself
00:25:52.160 | But I believe that there is more fulfillment in working
00:25:58.040 | Than there is in resting. I believe that there is more fulfillment in service
00:26:04.080 | Than in being served. I believe that there is more
00:26:07.760 | fulfillment in a lifestyle that
00:26:11.680 | prioritizes
00:26:15.080 | Labor and growth and impact rather than a lifestyle that
00:26:19.320 | prioritizes rest and
00:26:22.760 | Relaxation and an
00:26:26.520 | inward focused selfish lifestyle and
00:26:29.040 | How does this apply financially well if you're going to work and if you're gonna serve then that means that
00:26:38.320 | You're gonna make a lot more money
00:26:41.160 | As long as you're not as long as you are working in an area where money is
00:26:45.080 | Where money is exchanged as a measurement of value?
00:26:48.580 | My wife her work with my children is not measured in terms of value
00:26:54.520 | There are many professions and worthwhile
00:26:57.240 | sources of labor
00:26:59.200 | you might have an aged parent that you are caring for or an ailing relative that you're caring for and those
00:27:05.640 | Though that that hard work that labor is not going to be denominated in
00:27:11.080 | financial terms
00:27:13.360 | but
00:27:14.440 | Most areas of labor can effectively be denominated in financial time terms and the more people that you serve the more money that you make
00:27:22.360 | And so it's been good for me to experience the things that I have experienced
00:27:27.840 | I've enjoyed our little mini retirement over the past few months traveling the world and taking my children and doing cool things
00:27:34.880 | And having great adventures with them
00:27:37.960 | but I
00:27:40.320 | Want at this point? I want more work and I want
00:27:44.040 | More service more labor more responsibility more impact
00:27:50.880 | Much more than I want more personal freedom more lifestyle, etc
00:27:56.360 | I've asked myself
00:28:00.080 | Well, Joshua, do you need to change things that you've said publicly? Are there any?
00:28:05.640 | Episodes of radical personal finance that you need to repudiate. Is there anything that you need to adjust?
00:28:12.440 | The answer is I don't think so I
00:28:16.160 | Don't think that there's anything
00:28:19.680 | fundamentally flawed
00:28:21.680 | with
00:28:23.360 | The pursuit of financial independence. It doesn't have to be at odds with
00:28:26.640 | financial independence, you know financial independence versus
00:28:30.320 | versus work I don't think that
00:28:33.360 | Having personal freedom has to be at odds with saying well, I I I'm willing to give up personal freedom
00:28:40.520 | In fact for years I have said I believe that those who?
00:28:44.360 | Those who
00:28:47.840 | You value the though the people who seem to have the strongest
00:28:52.440 | Point to say are those who?
00:28:56.920 | Know the opportunities that they're giving up. For example, let's think of a relationships, right?
00:29:03.240 | maybe I'm let's say that I come into a relationship and and
00:29:07.720 | I'm a very unattractive person. Maybe I'm
00:29:12.640 | very obese and
00:29:15.320 | physically handicapped and just emotionally incompetent and I'm a jerk to all around me, etc
00:29:21.720 | And then by magic someday I find a woman who says, you know what?
00:29:26.560 | I'll accept you Joshua and is willing to go into a relationship with me
00:29:31.840 | And so we go ahead and get married
00:29:35.240 | How's she gonna feel knowing that she was the only one in the world who was willing to accept me and my brutish?
00:29:42.920 | Personality and my ugly behavior and my boorish mannerisms, etc
00:29:47.720 | it'd be very different in terms of her confidence in my love for her if she knows that I'm
00:29:55.560 | Someone who was attractive physically attractive emotionally attractive
00:30:00.480 | kind had lots of options and
00:30:03.680 | Then I chose to enter into a relationship with her. That's gonna put a very different
00:30:10.960 | feeling on you if you're chosen to do something versus if you're just the only person that says yes and
00:30:17.440 | So relating that kind of same level of thinking
00:30:21.240 | When people give up things people give up freedom then they can make a more focused decision as
00:30:29.040 | I've taught over the past year as my survive and thrive during the coming economic crisis course where I teach internationalization always said
00:30:36.640 | to make a plan
00:30:40.160 | That allows you to escape from a crisis does not mean that you have to leave during the crisis
00:30:47.440 | It's just simply to know that you have the choice to leave during the crisis and I think that a lot of us
00:30:54.720 | Will feel better about our decisions knowing that we're making those decisions voluntarily
00:31:00.800 | By choice rather than being forced into it. That's that's how I feel is I don't regret
00:31:08.040 | Building additional layers of freedom for myself. I still appreciate freedom
00:31:12.600 | I desire to to engage in a free lifestyle in the future
00:31:17.840 | but if I
00:31:20.280 | choose to surrender
00:31:22.280 | Some aspect of my own personal freedom to gain something else that I want
00:31:27.220 | it makes me feel better doing that knowing that that's of my own choice and
00:31:33.840 | that I'm making a conscious decision rather than feeling like it's out of my out of my grasp and so I
00:31:42.040 | Don't think that there's any
00:31:45.600 | Fundamental disconnect between what I have shared
00:31:48.600 | And what I teach and what I've articulated in this particular
00:31:53.560 | Podcast for you for me. It's more a matter of
00:31:59.640 | Am I willing to build a bigger business am I willing to hire employees am I willing to
00:32:05.720 | Chain myself down to some degree to one location. Am I willing to
00:32:12.480 | To do those things. Am I willing to work outside my house?
00:32:17.480 | Am I willing to commit to a calendar? Am I willing to get on an airplane and travel for business more, etc? And
00:32:24.320 | As
00:32:27.360 | I'm willing to do that then of course that will result in a far higher income and that's something that in the past I
00:32:34.200 | Didn't want I didn't value I didn't feel it was necessary
00:32:37.400 | I didn't want it because I didn't want the corresponding losses of freedom
00:32:41.200 | but now I see that as I desire more service if
00:32:47.000 | My focus is on service. It's going to require more work from me and
00:32:53.200 | I'm willing to do that. But then of course effective service
00:32:57.440 | Will be rewarded by far more financial gain
00:33:01.960 | So that's one of my mistakes I share that with you part of it's just a way of me telling you
00:33:08.600 | Some of the changes why am I quitting working? Oh, I'm I quitting traveling right now
00:33:13.000 | It's not that I can't continue to travel. It's that I feel like I'm wasting my time. I feel like I'm wasting my precious time
00:33:19.440 | It's like okay. I've been traveling for months. I've done some work along the way, but it's like
00:33:24.760 | What's the point? What's the point? Why just bounce from one place to another? I don't that's not
00:33:31.360 | I've gotten antsy and frustrated because the logistics of traveling harm the logistics of working and even
00:33:38.780 | As I've shared, you know a couple months ago
00:33:41.600 | I was doing a lot of traveling and I
00:33:43.360 | Booked a house in France for a month getting to be able to sit down and work
00:33:46.880 | Which is such a relief because it felt like okay, finally
00:33:49.520 | Finally I can get some work done and I just felt felt that and so what I'm doing now is a continuation of that
00:33:56.360 | Where I'm canceling the travels now
00:33:58.900 | At least on an ongoing basis setting up a household and there's this
00:34:04.080 | for me kind of an intense sense of
00:34:07.760 | Relief about doing that. It's there's an intense sense of okay. Finally I can I can stop playing around
00:34:15.200 | I can get to work and it feels really good in my head to be willing to do that. I
00:34:21.080 | Encourage you if you are in the other side
00:34:25.480 | It's good to get a chance to to take a break, right if you're feeling like Josh
00:34:31.280 | I've been working non-stop for 10 years. I appreciate that. I've served others
00:34:34.360 | I've worked and this has been great, but I need a break take a break. Take a sabbatical take a rest
00:34:40.120 | All right, give give yourself a rest if the land itself can benefit from being furloughed for a time
00:34:47.880 | Then you yourself
00:34:50.280 | May need a time of rest
00:34:52.280 | But then if you find that your rest period was enough don't be scared to get back to work
00:35:04.200 | That's where I'm at
00:35:09.160 | I'm ready to work.