Defying Odds
Introspect on early 20s perseverance
Before diving into reflections earlier in this decade of age I’m experiencing, it’s best to enlighten on where I sit in the middle of such. With time flying at light speed the past 4 years, there’s a fleeting aura in the air. My decisions seem more defining than ever lately, seeking to grasp the disparity that comes with time evaporating like the ice in March. There comes wisdom in recognizing that clinging to future results does nothing but assist the expeditions of evaporation. Our priorities shift as well, which both softens and sharpens the edges in goal pursuit. I’ve been guilty of making some incredibly interesting decisions the past 4 years, from aligning with ‘new age’ spirituality as some would say, participating in Kundalini Yoga, meditation, Hapé, sound baths, and overall ceremonial practices . . to stepping back into the ebbs and flow of real estate finance, whilst having an ongoing internal conflict with such. At times, the idea of pursuing very loose living standards, like my ‘friends’ who have gone on to leveraging/cultivating relationships to live fairly organically in places like Hawaii, Dominican Republic, India, Egypt, Greece, Costa Rica, Etc. You get the gist. Who doesn’t love the concept of being near the equator, bathing in the sun, and living off the ever present fruits hanging off nearby trees. I’d be lying to you if I told you I wasn’t on the fence of either trimming ganja in humble county/Shasta CA to position for an exit to one of these lifestyles, or returning back to my pre-covid grind. Honestly speaking, it’s hard to take an inner standing on what is best in this timeline. You can digest whatever information you want and follow any rabbit hole that exists, at the end of the day, you should do what makes you feel your absolute best, assuming that is not some malevolent, abusive, demonic sort of behavior that has negative effects on others. That said, I will say that getting back to where I was 20-22 is way more challenging now that I have an amazing spouse, who has been present for some difficult times for me and supported me through them, even though I was less than desirable to be around, purging at an exponential rate, whilst working 5-5+ 5 days a week, which was a great lesson in itself on taking ownership rather than fractional commissions on 45-90 day horizons, at the mercy of multiple third parties, including negligent leaders. Speaking less on and continuing to value-add, here is the heat.
Circumstances = Difficulty Level
Obviously, it’s a lot easier to position yourself for opportunity early in your twenties than it may be at 35 with kids. That’s assuming that you’re either A) starting out in a new field or B) Wanting to start your own business in a field you’ve garnered experience in. With that said, not everything in this post will be value-add to those who are ahead of me and managing some youngin(s) running amuck. I do hope, however, the perspectives will gain you some take home and to the bank value.
Taking Time and Multiplying Returns
In a competitive environment, which is essentially every court we step onto, we have . . . you guessed it, Competitors - those wanting to get us all naked and exposed. burn our businesses to the ground, in some cases. Now you can think this is care bears and everyone’s got their logo / motive right there on their chest, but this is poker baby and the stakes are much higher than blasting a rainbow bridge in the sky to another cloud. This could mean mistakes = plummeting to the ground.
Now how do we side step peril? or better yet, how can we be offensive and preventative in the wakes of such possibilities / doom?
Pure, unadulterated, thorough work.
For the average adult who is presently toddler corralling and hustling, I commend and respect you, as my future, god-willing, will present me the same beauties in life. Continuing to my 20-22yrs of age methodologies for success. Simple but effective.
Intrapreneaurship Focuses
Working outside office hours (the most critical)
Personally, I had a 55 in. whiteboard mounted to my wall, which held active pipeline + stages and/or hurdles to leap + a rarely used bulletin board
Mind, Body, Spirit
At that time, I was aligned more with living foods, smoothie and salad heavy + GBOMBS or OMAD, depending on the day. Cycling my vintage peugeot for ~ 45 min daily and lifting for the same amount of time, at any given period. Never been huge on running, and always lacked in spiritual practice minus my slight hiatus that was revolutionary but also intimidating. My relationship with those practices now is more limited.
Hydration + Supplementation
It’s safe to say that most of us USA citizens are in states of lack, for one reason or more. More critical than ever is the importance of hydration and supplementation in the age of depletion / manipulation. Take back your power.
Getting Shit Done
In some areas, I fucked this up and my peers wanted to hang me from the gallows often. I can’t blame them, picture the kid who walks to work with a half gallon of distilled water, raw fruits, raw salad, either a smoothie or a juice, and likely ripped. +/- 100 sticky notes on my desk and misallocating my focus, by killing deals through neglect, because working for a direct lender, you can typically tell within 3-5 business days of the file opening who is NGMI. Sorry not sorry. Hope you found funding elsewhere.
Prioritizing
Putting yourself first is an art form. People like to argue balance and have some sort of opinion about what and how, just do you and find dynamics that work best for you. Digesting / seeking advice is frivolous if you’re never going to implement. Don’t waste others time either if your priorities/flow has yet to be recognized within.
Implementation = Equity
Unfortunately, the only reason to ‘work’ in any given industry, if you’re stepping out of the bubble and begin to grasp the higher perspectives, is to build equity and assets. You’re likely working for a business that operates from these key focuses. The question is whether you’re able to participate in the upside personally. In some circumstances, it doesn’t really matter. Such as real estate brokerage. If my splits remain equitable then I don’t mind operating my business within yours, while leveraging your resources to do so at Y% back to you when I produce a commission, those dynamics are pretty cut dry but not always so stay keen to any changes or fine print your shop may implement, to avoid being taken advantage of and pivot.
Not Everyone is built for success, that’s okay too.
Listening to the founders podcast discuss the zeckendorf book, it was clear through a quote shared that success is one principle. The ability to save money or not. Whether you’re making $1,200 a month or $12,000 a month, if you’re living at 95% of your income and not making any room for intellect in budgeting and saving, then you are doomed to living the way you are now without any horizon of exit. Whether you’re building to hold or building to sale or building for someone else hoping you’ll become the desires you wish for - you should keep a percentage of your focus always on you.
Recipes for success are a dime a dozen, same way OnlyFans models believe they’re worth your dime when post-nut clarity is more of a confirmation of mental stability than what it takes to simp over some random internet thot spilling thousands for nothing. If you want to cold plunge your nutsack into ice while staring at the sun from your lawn while butt ass naked full lotus, then by all means, I’ll give you the respect, if you’re not also scamming others to coach them on doing some weirdo shit, which is the main reason I don’t ‘friend’ my guru’s so much and really am about to block them all from any/all platforms cuz that shit is more toxic than a lot that comes to mind.
FIN.
