#88 - Reflecting
3 min read

#88 - Reflecting

What I’m Reading

Why I’m QUITTING Airbnb is an interesting breakdown by a YouTuber going through the figures of running an Airbnb business. It’s reflective of the increasing regulation we’re seeing worldwide.

Resource of the week

I’ve put together a 7-day free email course which will be ready next week. So if you’ve been on the fence about kicking your BTL journey off this could be the time. Just sign up for Property Academy’s newsletter.

Quote

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”

Seneca

Thoughts

So today is my birthday and since it’s also nearing the end of the year, I’m in a reflective mood. In my videos and in my journaling process I often ask myself the question of what advice I would give my younger self. Now this is not meant to be generic advice because what is excellent advice for one person could be terrible advice for another, for example telling someone to be more outgoing in general would be silly if they are already partying every day but just what an introvert needs. So these are just my personal ramblings and learnings. 

The first one is trusting my gut more and learning to be comfortable with uncertainty. It’s natural for us to be risk averse, I think stems from our evolutionary background for us to stick with the sure thing even though it’s not something we enjoy a lot, or excites us just because it’s easy and safe. The younger you are the more important this is. As a young man, I was quite opinionated on a lot of things but now looking back on it I was wrong more often than not when I actually tried things myself. The problem is you are unique so if you listen to other people’s experiences of something it might not reflect your own. For example, going clubbing in uni. Everybody used to equate how smashed they were with having a good time. It wasn’t until a lot later I realised that queuing up in the freezing cold to get treated badly by rude bouncers and painful hangovers wasn’t fun for me, but everyone told me I was having a good time so I thought I was. So to trust my gut feel when making life decisions. I’ve always seen myself as a logical person but sometimes there are too many unknowns and logic only takes you so far.

The second one is staying nimble. Not blowing my money buying a lot of stuff and accumulating liabilities like a car or even a house (yes, a big mortgage is a liability). There’s also a big cultural pressure for young people to move out of their parents’ house when they’ve finished studying which I don’t think is always logical. Sо either staying home or renting cheaply. By keeping your commitments as low as possible you’re free to pursue a wider range of opportunities and the stakes are lower. Not so easy if you’ve got thousands of pounds a month in mortgage and car payments you have to service every month. When you have decided and you are sure, you can lay down roots.

Another one is to think about what the endgame is. I had a phase where I poured hours and hours grinding this game to the point where I was no longer enjoying it. Same with careers, instead of increasing my effort, to look around at those further along the road and ask myself if being in their position excites me. If the answer is no I know I need to pivot as soon as possible.

The last one is to have fun. I’ve always been quite hard on myself and don’t allow myself to be happy a lot of the time if I don’t hit arbitrary milestones. Cliche as it may seem, we’re only here for a finite amount of time, something that’s becoming clearer as I get older and time goes really fast. Years down the line, you might look back on today and wish you enjoyed it more. So balancing things, understanding that just because I’m working on my goals it doesn’t mean I can’t do it in a way that I’m having fun along the way.

What about you? Any pieces of advice you’d give yourself? I’m curious to know. Just hit reply.

Hans