What are /r/fatFIRE's favorite Products & Services?

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Surprised it hasn’t been mentioned yet, but definitely check out the White Coat Investor. Not a physician myself, but have heard great things about the book (4.8/5 with 1,200+ reviews) and understand the forums are very active.

>>The jets and all that other crap seem like a better value renting. > >Huh? $3 million in total wealth isn't much, especially for that. Please, don't do that. I strongly recommend that you read The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy.

Yeah, that bit made me laugh. $3m isn't even remotely close to private jet territory. Try $300m. Lol

Most people that receive a large windfall like this do not fare well OP. At all. Be extremely careful with this money and do not tell anybody. Check out the "Windfall" section in the /r/personalfinance wiki. Also check out /r/fire and /r/fatFIRE.

You will need to find a new mission in life. I had to as well. After falling a bit into a hole I realized I can find joy in building things without money as incentive. I still like to be successful but now I take things easier and it is actually a lot more enjoyable to work (again). I didnt work for two years but since a few months I'm back building businesses and it seems being so easy going I do even better than before. I recommend you find something where you can see yourself making progress. Also jump head first into socializing with things like meetup.com. It is time now to keep living your life like you did just a bit more relaxed. Enjoy!

Don’t make health and fitness goals, make health and fitness habits. There is a big difference

Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones https://www.amazon.com/dp/0735211299/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_RZJFRV3CD36ZG81V66KX

A bit of a tangent, but I never thought I’d enjoy reading books about accounting, but here are two good ones that showed me what’s possible, inspired me to hire a quality CPA, and helped me know the questions to ask when interviewing them.

“Tax-Free Wealth” by Tom Wheelwright

“What Your CPA Isn’t Telling You” by Mark Kohler

I'm getting some great ideas from this thread. Most of my efforts have been around digital security. Generate strong passwords, use a password manager. Use a good vpn, shoutout to Mullvad for supporting wireguard (no affiliation). Up to date linux laptop with full disk encryption (really no downside). Browser has uBlock origin, privacy badger, https everywhere, etc. White noise machine to help with sleep and cover, ehem, extracurricular activities.

There's a theory of psychology that due to the millenia of generations of survival of the fittest, our brains are hard wired to worry. It's only been for the last few generations that a good portion of the human population could live without having to be on guard constantly against death by wild animals, starvation from crop failures/not finding food to hunt, small wounds becoming infected and killing you, etc.

Those of us alive today are the descendants of the ones who DID worry enough about the dangers in the world to survive through them long enough to have kids and keep them alive too. The ones less inclined to worry would have survived less often. So you could say many of us were bred through natural selection to be peak worriers.

Today our world no longer requires this level of worry, but we're stuck with brains which are built to be anxiously aware. Our brains will create those feelings even when our lives do not require any worry at all.

I read a great book on Stoicism a few years ago I really enjoyed. I think it definitely helps keep these anxious feelings in perspective. Step 1 for me is to accept that those feelings are entirely normal and not something I need to fight agains. u/cagarsalvagemente you might enjoy this book!

https://www.amazon.com/Guide-Good-Life-Ancient-Stoic-ebook/dp/B0040JHNQG

I am not high profile but I do all of these things. As someone that runs a tech security business, let me tell you that you need to take this seriously. People generally have no idea how easy it is to hack/spy on someone. This applies to people like you but quite frankly should to everyone. Few additional things I would consider on the top of my head.

• Abandon regular texting app and start using Signal for everything personal / important.
• Use a protonmail email address.
• Install 1password on your devices, replace all of your passwords by strongly generated ones, store them on 1password. You should not be able to remember any of your passwords and they should all be stored in a digital vault. I’m willing to bet some of your passwords are crackable in less than a minute by standard dictionary attack.
• Activate MFA everywhere. This eliminates so much of the threats.
• Definitely use PO boxes. Not just any service, pick one that is HIPAA compliant. In any case, that will eliminate so much junk mail.
• Consider using 2 separate phones. 1 for work, 1 personal.
• Consider using a VPN service like NordVPN to make your web browsing secure.

• It’s a controversial subject, but I’d recommend owning a gun, learn some self defense for you and your family.

• Once you have security measures in place I would consider hiring professionals to audit you. Many pentesters (red team) out there that will ethically stalk you and analyze your privacy so you understand every angle where you are vulnerable.

There’s so much more I could say here but I think the last point is the most important. Take your privacy seriously get guided by a team of professionals that will educate you.

Schwab's is called "PAL" Pledged Asset Line.

https://www.schwab.com/pledged-asset-line

Better than margin. I've heard you can talk and try to negotiate down the interest rate when they give you one.

I just shared this elsewhere but it seems relevant here...

I never thought I’d enjoy reading books about accounting, but here are two good ones that showed me what’s possible, inspired me to hire a quality CPA, and helped me know the questions to ask when interviewing them.

“Tax-Free Wealth” by Tom Wheelwright

“What Your CPA Isn’t Telling You” by Mark Kohler

Read this: How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free: Retirement Wisdom That You Won't Get from Your Financial Advisor by Zelinski, Ernie J.

You take a loan based on your assets. E.g..if you have $2M in stocks, you can potentially get a loan for $1M off of it depending on what it's in.

If it's in GameStop you may only qualify for 10% of the asset. The SP500 you can get 65%, bonds: around 90%. So if you default they can not only take your house but your stocks as well, so you end up with a better rate than a traditional mortgage as well.

https://www.schwab.com/pledged-asset-line

I know you said Dad wasn't around since you were 4, but it is never too late to restart a relationship - either with dad or his relatives.

I hear you about not having family, as now they are wracked with jealousy at your success. People are people, with their bias etc.

I'd recommend acting differently with them, to not talk about money at all nor things related to it (your vacations or new whatever), but to talk about them and the things they are concerned about.

If they continue to treat you badly just because you are not broke, well it's time then to communicate with them in a different way. Perhaps a regular letter or email to update them on how you are doing. You've got to change the dynamic.

You won't be the only one who has had to reduce communication with family members over jealousy and money.

A while ago when moving away from SoCal to the East Coast (family is all still in SoCal), I read a book called 'The Intentional Family'. It opened my eyes to the possibilities to where I could build a new family in a new place.

Your siblings / relatives will always be around, and their relationship with you can (and will) change with time. People do mellow out with time, and also mature a little. (Or at least you can hope so!)

Another point of view: https://www.schwab.com/resource-center/insights/content/choiceology-season-7-episode-1 TLDR you value the same more if you did it. Choose enjoyable acitivities and view diy as an experience instead.

You give them $X. They pay you $y/month for the rest of your life guaranteed. There's lots of variations, but that's the basics.

Schwab has a calculator that will tell you Y, given X and some parameters (age/sex/etc)

https://www.schwab.com/annuities/fixed-income-annuity-calculator

The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need wikipedia link, here's the Amazon page.

I got the $1.5MM by using this annuity calculator

Not as safe as a government pension, but safer than investing it. I figured it was a reasonably fair comparison, but I admit that it undervalues the security of being backed by the government

Funds borrowed are not taxed... https://www.schwab.com/resource-center/insights/content/3-ways-to-borrow-against-your-assets

So instead of selling and taking a 20, 30, 40% tax hit you just borrow money at 3 to 5% interest.

Build model car engines. Here is a set that I recently purchased and am having some fun with. There's also a flat 6 porsche boxermotor model available from the same company: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07LDC9MJW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

High functioning brain occupancy, acts like a sort of meditation by consuming your focus on a task that has a direct end goal. The best part for me is how everything has its place, is purposeful, and necessary for the big picture to work. Unlike work which is usually just a bunch of imperfectly solvable problems (and sometimes just mitigating damage and fallout), this is a closed-end, completable project with a very satisfying ending.

lived in an older house for years. shower head extension bars make a world of difference. Takes 2 minutes to install and works on any shower head.

Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Adjustable-Shower-Extension-WaterPoint-Polished/dp/B07CZDVZ6R/

Calvin Klein modal boxer briefs are the best men’s underwear. I have tried them all over 20 years at 200 lbs and at 150 lbs. I don’t give a shit about the brand name. Fight me.

Calvin Klein Men's Body Modal Boxer Briefs-Multipack https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FE7F8G/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_XGKSPQGTEJ70WM21ATQB

"If You Can" is the best cheaply-available primer on index investing - the likeliest, easiest, and safest way to make money on the stock market. Google "If you can book" and it should pop up, or go here to buy it for a dollar https://www.amazon.com/If-You-Can-Millennials-Slowly-ebook/dp/B00JCC5JKI. Some people have uploaded it for free, too, if you search for it.

I used to use pia, but they got bought out by a super sketchy company. Nord got hacked a while back and lost their private key. Mullvad is pricey at $6 / month but they are a no bs service. I like that. They also aren't blocked by Amazon or Netflix so I'm always on the VPN now. Oh, and their mobile client is efficient and easy on the battery.

Didn't realize Mozilla used Mullvad. They currently don't support Linux (even though Mullvad does?) which is a deal breaker.

If you're very detail oriented, and are the kind of person who remains detail oriented under financial stress (your wealth, markets, real estate and your business often tank at the same time as you get margin called), and don't mind paying attention to your portfolio in retirement, I guess?

Also, ppl overweight recent history and expect equity risk premia to be much higher than they should, so I certainly wouldn't term this a slam-dunk - especially since you're getting taxed on the long side (to varying degrees, depending on dividend policy and realized capital gains) and may not be able to deduct all of the short side.

1) make sure you have enough surplus that you don't get hit by a margin call at the worst possible time. At a bare minimum, make sure you have portfolio margin.

2) Don't expect that a low-interest rate environment to persist indefinitely. margin rates are variable, not fixed. If benchmark rates get higher and higher, this strategy is not as advantageous.

If your portfolio has also done poorly at those points in time, you may most want to pay down your costly margin loans (by selling down investments) at an inopportune time.

3) focusing on your tax'n'interest issues only: -I'm ignoring AMT issues while focusing on interest writeoffs, but note that this is fairly complex, especially after TCJA (even if AMT is harder to hit now)

-will you itemize deductions, given the high standard deductions post TCJA?

-you'll need to have enough net investment income to cover your interest expenses. Note that qualified dividends and LT cap gains generally won't count:

"This normally includes ordinary dividends and interest income, but does not include investment income taxed at the lower capital gains tax rates, like qualified dividends, or municipal bond interest, which is not taxed."

Ego is the Enemy might be a worthwhile read.

I think I formerly had a big ego. I realized this was not who I wanted to be and gained more self respect trying to live a life of humility and curiosity.

>shoulder

I had to go through this too. It's easy for me to get bored. I would suggest reading A Man's Search for Meaning. It helped change my perspective. https://www.amazon.com/-/es/Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_2?__mk_es_US=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&dchild=1&keywords=victor+frankel&qid=1620306098&sr=8-2

Thank you for this great post, will definitely check this book out!

Couple of other books (that aren't directly related to investing) I highly recommend are:

• Thinking in Bets by Annie Duke
• Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

These books lay out the importance of luck in the outcome of all the decisions and Annie emphasizes how important it is to separate the outcome of the decision from the reasons for your decision making. It has definitely changed how I view my decisions. Sometimes based on the facts you had at the time you make decisions but the outcome of the decision you made could have been disastrous. But it does not mean you made a bad decision.

We condition our future decisions on the past outcomes and that might not necessarily be the right approach. I've learned to keep a log that says why I made a certain decision to always remember and learn what I did wrong in my decision making and separate it out from the results.

This is ny company - https://www.maonrails.com

Started it at the beginning of 2016 while working full time. It's now generating enough revenue that I could comfortably quit my job and maintain the same lifestyle. I have no employees but do contract on occasion.

Some of my story here - https://www.indiehackers.com/interview/18e3b54250 (this is from over a year ago, I've more than doubled my revenue since)

I'd be happy to answer any specific questions you may have!

I am in a handful and am increasing my allocation to about 20-25% of NW and selling some direct real estate investments to fund the syndications.

My first several were single deal Multifamily syndications with a friend - ok but nothing great.

I recently joined a couple online groups for syndication investors - very helpful DM me if you want. They have great deal flow and thoughtful other investors and share DD on sponsors and deals.

For the new stuff - I’m betting on the jockey not the horse as too hard to evaluate all the horses. But some people analyze every deal (horse in the analogy). I prefer funds to individual deals for diversification - with investments spread across multiple sponsors and property types.

Here is a book on evaluating as well.

The Hands-Off Investor: An Insider’s Guide to Investing in Passive Real Estate Syndications https://www.amazon.com/dp/1947200275/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_WJ11TE6P9B2RNNJNTPZH

Hmm I haven't read that one. You're talking about this, right? https://www.amazon.com/ONE-Thing-Surprisingly-Extraordinary-Results/dp/1885167776

No fluff response:

That book doesn't exist.

Zero to One might be the closest to what you're asking for, but I hesitate to even say it because your post is pretty misguided IMO. I'd bet there's not a self made billionaire in the world that attributes even 1% of their rise to a book they read.

>I want to reach $1-10 Bil in 8 years max.

You and me both, brother.

Many brokers have additional insurance coverage. For example, Schwab has Lloyds of London if there was some sort of major fraud going on that SIPC didn't fully cover: https://www.schwab.com/legal/sipc-account-protection

In general, though, don't put all eggs in one basket...

Here's an inexpensive way to dip your toe into a financial advice product and see if this makes sense for you: try something like Schwab Intelligent Portfolio Premium. You get unlimited advice from a CFP for a flat $30/mo. fee ($300 setup fee). Seems like a small price to make sure you get a solid foundation for your future. They'll probably set you up in their robo offering, which is also pretty solid.

Keep in mind if you do a pledge asset line from IB or Schwab you'll "only" be able to borrow up to 70% of the total assets at best. If you are concentrated in higher risk stocks the loan amount is lower. For example, I have a bunch of TSLA and they'll only loan 25% of the value.

https://www.schwab.com/public/schwab/banking_lending/pledged_asset_line.html

Delaware in the US and its relatively straight forward for international owners to create an entity there. Stripe has a whole program called Atlas which provides lots of details on it (you may also be able to join the Atlas program and have them do it all for you) https://stripe.com/atlas

The role of luck in becoming wealthy is, well, underrated.

Yes it is when preparation meets opportunity, but there is massive survivorship bias at work here.

Check this piece out, from Technology Review (MIT): If You’re so Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich? Turns out It’s Just Chance. Here's the original research paper on a preprint server for you, entitled "Talent vs Luck: the role of randomness in success and failure".

There really is something to the saying, "I'd rather be lucky than good".

I am not HNW nor am I alone but I did meet my wife online. I also am not good looking and am a different person than what most women find attractive.

It is hard to meet people! Physically you can only meet people within eyesight from you, so you if you mix in online dating you have more options and better chances. I say go for it! When it comes to a "quality partner" you need to define what this means to you. I'm 42 so I can say that at 39, and especially working with people, you know what a quality person is and it has nothing to do with money. There are tons of quality people that are average.

The question is, are they single! That is the hard part. IMO you can start on Match.com and if you want to pay for a high-level service you can do that, you have the means. Match.com is good because there is a fee so its not complete spam.

It is hard to meet people! Physically you can only meet people within eyesight from you, so if you mix in online dating you have more options and better chances. I say go for it! When it comes to a "quality partner" you need to define what this means to you. I'm 42 so I can say that at 39, and especially working with people, you know what a quality person is and it has nothing to do with money. There are tons of quality people that are average.

Here's a good collection of reviews: https://www.sitejabber.com/reviews/nomadcapitalist.com

My suggestion, avoid giving any money to the guy, he's not particularly competent in his field.

I've had a call with him and got the feeling that I'd be taken for a ride, the reviews above confirm that.

His blog material is a good high level read, but a guy with no immigration law experience, whose biggest business prior to this was a pool cleaning company doesn't strike me as the person to handle immigration issues.

That aside, find a local immigration company with great reviews if you want the right mix of quality / price.

If you want the high price / global feel, you can't go wrong with the following: Henley and Partners, Arton Capital. You'll notice a huge difference between them and the likes of Nomad Capitalist even with a five minute glance at their respective linked in employee pages.

A good source I've find for high level immigration program news is https://www.imidaily.com/

I highly recommend that you look into effective altruism before making a decision. It may give you insights that enable you to scale the amount of good you're able to do with this money by many orders of magnitude. I can recommend the book Doing Good Better as an introduction.

You have the resources to do a tremendous amount of good, and I hope you'll take some time researching on how to maximize it.

I'm not looking to write a long post and I didn't really get the details fully understood, but I'll say two things. And I really don't understand how good the company or the start up people are outside of the company.

You don't really know much yet. Mentorship is most important. Soak everything up like a sponge. Learn as much as you can from people and take calculated risks. Relationships also matter. Building good relationships is important because if someone thinks you can help them and you're good and trustworthy they'll think of you for things. Relationships above, below, AND at your same level. Find the people worth investing in and build relationships. Also here's a book.

You also need to draw a map from where you are to where you want to go. Do it in detail. Money. Titles. Work life balance. At which time in your life. Age. Marriage. Kids. All of that $#@&. Then you use that as your compass for future decisions. I don't know if this is the right opportunity for you or if you're getting compensated well or appropriately. But it's good you asked a question about experience and mentorship vs compensation. It shows you are good at asking relevant questions.

One last thing. Make sure to find mentors outside of your current situation. For example, if you wanted to ask this question to the people you work for, obviously their answer would be biased. But if you asked them this question in 5 years when you were at a different company, then their answer would be less biased. (And hopefully in your best interest... especially if you did right by them and they truly want you to succeed.)

Good luck.

I like the two MJ Dmarco books. Cuts through the usual “become a millionaire finance books”bullshit which are all similar.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0984358102/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_imm_V704NCVK7V9H6MY3M14K?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0984358161/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_imm_4N7456HS0J6EPJNX4KRY

I would read The Psychology of Money. It's a quick read. The parts I found particularly interesting are those about the difference between getting wealthy (which you seem to be good at) and staying wealthy (which you hope to do). If you are asking for a sanity check, you probably already suspect that your current investment pattern is not for you. But I don't know you, so I can't say that for sure. It's not for me.

Oops, newer edition: https://www.amazon.com/Venture-Deals-Smarter-Lawyer-Capitalist-dp-1119594820/dp/1119594820/ref=dp_ob_title_bk

I recently came across a website called

This one - I didn't see a need for a handrail: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V7F8QYK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

​

I've only had it for a couple of months so I can't speak to reliability, but so far so good. They recommend oiling it every 6 months (it comes with oil and a little are in the treadmill where you put the oil in - looks super easy but I haven't done it yet).

> We will be 17 feet above sea level which is basically the Mt Everest of Miami and so no flood insurance necessary.

uhh....

hurricane storm surge level plus wind waves can easily top 17 ft

https://www.wunderground.com/prepare/storm-surge

Thanks for my pointers. I am pretty sure the deduction associated with form 4592 is what the link I posted is referring to, since it mentions for personal returns the interest deductions are reported on schedule A, which indeed requires attaching form 4592 in some cases.

The 4592 instructions seems to confirm that if I use loan proceeds to purchase securities that return taxable investment income that I can deduct against ALL of my ordinary dividends. On a 1.25M @ 2% that's a 25k deduction that would save me north of 10k federally.

Here's another resource I've been looking at: https://www.schwab.com/resource-center/insights/content/investment-expenses-whats-tax-deductible

My main reservation is the "downsides that are not immediately obvious" mentioned by u/HiReturns, but for 10k+ per year I think it might be worth it and will have to talk to a tax lawyer.

All the big brokerages do this. You don't need to be a private banking client either. Discount brokers like Schwab offer credit secured by your portfolio.

https://www.schwab.com/pledged-asset-line

IB doesn't provide a PAL, just margin loans. They are not exactly the same thing, but close.

PALs don't have quite the advantage you might think, they are callable. See Schwab's PAL under "What are the risks?"

> Schwab Bank may demand immediate payment of all or any portion of the outstanding obligations, or require additional cash or securities to be added to the Pledged Account maintained at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.

An advantage that a PAL has over IB is that in practice you will be given a warning and a chance to add additional funds before they sell your collateral to reduce your leverage, though by the terms of the agreement that cure period is optional and they could call the loan at any time.

You really are going to have a tough time beating IB's rates though - if you want to go this route then the best thing is to:

1. keep your leverage low. Calculate how big of a drop you can sustain before a margin call and tune that depending on your risk tolerance (eg taking 5% of your portfolio value would never have been called in the history of the US market, taking 50% would be called for your typical 30% market crash)
2. monitor the market and add funds as necessary

OP /u/GenericHam you need to recognize this from the investor point of view, and I'm saying this as I've had a similar experience as /u/dukeofsaas - serial years of plugging away at different shiny things in my own industry vertical, and now am an early-stage investor in startups.

Until you have worked at six or ten startups will you have sufficient odds of hitting something that has a nice payout. Until then, well it's a roll of the dice with every one, as luck has a huge, HUGE impact on whether or not a venture is successful. (And if you want a source on that, take a look at this Technology Review piece and this research paper it refers to.)

One other thing: the only thing you can control is whether to continue in the current role / company if you believe the following: it's the right people, the right technology, at the right time, in the right market.

If you get any one of these things wrong, you're gonna have a hard time. All the best to you.

I'd say:

BND: Yield 3.13% (http://www.morningstar.com/etfs/ARCX/BND/quote.html) Avg Eff Duration 6.15

CD: Yield 3%

Eff Duration 4.75

They look basically the same. BND has a tiny MER. The CD has less liquidity. BND has a tiny bit more risk (noting it's mostly govt bonds).

Munis are a different beast. Their attractiveness really depends on your state and tax situation. I'd caution that past defaults are not predictive of future defaults. Many areas have pensions obligations that will be really, really grim if the market falls significantly.

As you and others mention, you do not qualify for direct Roth contributions due to your income.

You also do not qualify for the tax benefit of a Traditional (Pre Tax) IRA. However, you can still place post tax money there and perform a conversion to Roth. This is referred to a ‘Backdoor Roth IRA’ and is perfectly legal.

The gotcha to look for is whether or not you have any money in a Traditional IRA already (from previous years). If so, the conversion is going to incur taxes. This is the ‘Pro Rata’ rule. It too is avoidable, by rolling your old IRA into your current 401k.

https://www.schwab.com/resource-center/insights/content/backdoor-roth-is-it-right-you

Here is what I would talk to them about.

I would let them know that you are considering purchasing a Tesla and you were wondering if there were any ways you could reduce the price using tax law.

I imagine there are several ways to go with this. If you went with a Roadster then that could be put into a business and expensed some way or if you got the heavier tank Tesla truck (or whatever they call it), you could do something similar to the link I sent you with the accelerated depreciation.

These would offset your real estate income and could reduce the cost of the cars. One would probably reduce the cost more than the other.

When you get to where you are, taxes become an important part of understanding how to FIRE and to spend.

I personally would not buy either. I would prefer to continue to grow assets and INCOME on those assets over time until the point at which that I had a hard time spending a quarter to half of my after tax income without going on trips or a car or house or what.

Remember, that it is easy to increase your spending and create a new baseline. It's a lot harder to do on the income side.

Here is a book to read to understand some things as it relates to what you can deduct as a small business owner.

book

Make it a goal this year to better understand how taxes can be used to your advantage.

Hopefully that helps and let me know how your meeting with your tax person goes.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1260026647/ref=cm_sw_r_em_api_glt_fabc_SMWW0NV0WQSRC3CMWRA2 This book is a bit old now, but I read it forever ago and it’s stuck with me. What this book does is explain WHY you want different asset classes in your portfolio and what is the purpose of rebalancing. You can find plenty of model portfolios online for free, but this guy will explain why with lots of historical data to back it up.

Umm... Get IVPN for your phone and get on binance... Cuomo is a prick, don't let him ruin your ability to make money

Mostly long term holds, I'll back out of the position when I see the market cool but these days it's just as profitable to buy the dips

I think that the cast iron pan is worth its weight in gold. A good one can make a good dish incredible. I use mine to make rabbit stew and damn it comes out amazing every time I use it.

Get yourself one of these for the scrubbing of the pan.

Do both. Here's a book recommendation to validate that it's done quite often.... One Person/Multiple Careers

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0446696978/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fabc_Pl67FbV4KBTMB

The book has plenty of real world examples of people who have been great in two fields simultaneously.

Ditto.

Required reading for those considering moving to The Villages (or any age-restricted community):
Leisureville: Adventures in a World without Children.

I recommend the book complete family wealth. I recently read it and it does a decent job talking about this very issue. One of the best reads I have found on living in and being a part of a family with generational wealth.

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Family-Wealth-Bloomberg-Hughes/dp/1119453216

"Work Less, Live More", Nolo's guide to "semi-retirement". It made the transition less dramatic - the idea you could work a little, and let your savings do the rest. Also taking a look at what you could do with the wealth you've already got can be eye opening. Amazon link:
https://www.amazon.com/Work-Less-Live-More-Semi-Retirement-ebook/dp/B01N9YCPY0

First Bank of Dad is a great book on this.

It recommends quite a few different techniques than mentioned here. Among them:

. don't make your kids save but pay them ridiculous interest so that they will (up to apoint). firstkidbank.com . don't make your kids give to charity but give money to charity and match theirs if they do. . never pay for chores. chores are what we all do to keep our house and family running. if you pay for chores, at some point thei'll call your bluff and stop doing them to forgo the money. :-(

i strongly recommend considering the book: https://www.amazon.com/First-National-Bank-Dad-Foolproof/dp/1416534253

For being an empathetic and amazing leader, I always recommend the book Lincoln on Leadership. For learning how to be comfortable saving while everyone around you is spending, read The Millionaire Next Door.

Also... don't underestimate the mental regenerative powers of reading without a purpose, for pure joy. It's nice to check out sometimes.

Book recommendation that kind of answers your question in a very roundabout way

https://www.amazon.com/How-Fail-Almost-Everything-Still-ebook/dp/B00COOFBA4

> A combination of mediocre skills can make you surprisingly valuable

If you believe these studies, you quickly end up with the idea that literally nothing matters when it comes to parenting.

This book documents this pretty thoroughly. For one example, Korean orphans from the Korean war was adopted into families in Minnesota randomly. When researchers checked up on how those kids did decades later, they found zero correlation between various metrics and the schools that the kids attended. Rich public, poor public, private, catholic, all the same outcomes.

The list of studies that the book names is long and exhaustive, all driving to the same conclusion: for biological children, your kids will resemble you; what you do largely doesn't matter. For adopted children, you will almost certainly have a kid with somewhat random stats. What you do still won't matter.

If you are a parent that cares about academics, your kids will care about academics. Because, well, your kids will resemble you.

its sort of a remix of 'Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It...and Why the Rest Don't' ; from Traction the concept of Visionary , Operator is enlightening

For companies rapidly growing 'High Growth Handbook'is also good the book is online for free

Read Nomad Capitalist

Nomad Capitalist: Reclaim Your Freedom with Offshore Companies, Dual Citizenship, Foreign Banks, and Overseas Investments https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09F6RX17D?ref_=cm_sw_r_apann_dp_WTKXZ6Y18SYPMGWEK1E4

I found [William Woodson's])https://www.thefamilyofficebook.com/william-woodson) book "The Family Office: A Comprehensive Guide for Advisers, Practitioners, and Students" to be very informative and a great overview of family offices. Book Link

With the assumption that you don't have significant investing experience or interest in spending a lot of time on investing, I strongly suggest you read this book: The Simple Path to Wealth: Your road map to financial independence and a rich, by JL Collins. Link below.

Simple Path to Wealth

Simply invest in an index fund and a bond fund, rebalance yearly and you are on auto pilot for life. I've done Monte Carlo analysis on this strategy with a 4% annual rate and the outcome is a 99.5% success probability over a 60 year span.

If your interests or skill set changes over time, you can always change how you invest money.

Passive investing coupled with your very successful small business is a great strategy ... you get to focus on the thing you are best at.

Congrats on your great financial success!

So the battery in a typical RV setup is 2x AGM or lithium ion batteries, which run each about 100Ah at 12V. That means they store about 1000 Watt-hours. The smallest AC system runs at about 600 Watts. So therefore technically a fully charged battery could run an AC for an hour or two if it was doing nothing else, but A/C also uses way more watts on startup (> 1500) and your inverter prob. can't handle it.

I used to have a pretty swanky build with an A/C. The A/C only worked when I ran the generator (which is quite rare to have on a van... and loud/obnoxious.)

MOST off grid people just use a low powered ceiling fan like https://www.amazon.com/Reversible-Permanent-Ventilation-Semi-transparent-UV-Proof/dp/B09MLF93FW which runs 40 watts and therefore you can run it all night. It's all about getting a ceiling fan + opening your windows to get a breeze. Personally, I can't stand humidity in a van/RV... it feels so stifling. This is why I hang out in the desert. Even when it's 90F outside, a properly setup RV with a fan can keep it cool inside, and when night falls the temps drop fast.

If you really want A/C you probably want to look into full on RVs. I know that sounds crazy but I can tell you a good trailer is an amazing swiss army knife. And if you can afford it, I can't recommend Airstream enough. They build their shit to last.

Maybe try renting a van in FL for a weekend. It would be good research to figure out how it all works. Learning about how RV systems work was fascinating to me. It's very much a gateway drug to DIY!

Read this book for background and explain that you study Schur algebras and representation theory at a regional think tank. Anyone who knows this area of math will be more curious about the fact that you work at a think tank than the work itself. Anyone who works at a think tank will be curious what you do with that math at the think tank. Everyone else will just not understand.

https://www.amazon.com/Algebras-Representation-Theory-Cambridge-Mathematics/dp/0521415918

I wouldn't pay a percentage of assets under management for an advisor in your scenario.

Instead, I recommend you:

• Read (or listen to audiobook) Ramit Sethi's "I Will Teach You to Be Rich" (https://www.amazon.com/Will-Teach-You-Be-Rich/dp/1523516879/)
• Setup an automated approach to investing, such as a robo-advisor (like Betterment) or a simple approach using index funds (e.g., Vanguard Target Year Fund)
• Consider talking to a per-hour advisor to identity tax optimizations you should consider (e.g., Buy Land Conservation Tax Credits, Invest in 529 plans for (future?) kids, Conservation Easement investments, Max out HSA contributions, Setup Donor Advised Fund if you have up and down years and want to do proactive charitable donations)

Alcohol depletes nutrients and causes gut dysbiosis. The gut makes most of your body's serotonin.

OP can probably find a lot of benefit in fixing their gut (fiber, resistant starches, and maybe probiotics), along with exercise, before trying an SSRI—that way if they do start on an SSRI, it's at a lower dose they can ween off of over time.

This book might help: Super Gut

We have this one installed-
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I0ZGOZM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

It greatly changes the way the local water tastes. We moved from the Bay Area (CA) to the Chicago area. Drank tap water mostly in CA, but it's terrible here, so we installed this.

Beware, I believe when you use reverse osmosis I believe you take out the fluoride. If you have growing kids this can be a pretty big deal, if you don't, you may want to make sure you get an extra fluoride treatment at the dentist and brush extra well.

I use ThinkSport for the body. It is 100% zinc oxide, and yes it leaves a whitish residue.

Personally I don't try to "rub it in" as I think that's more akin to rubbing it off. It is after all a physical barrier, not a chemically reactant one. Nobody really cares if your sunscreen is visible, especially in a tropical location.

To keep our faces from looking like geisha dolls, but still provide good mineral-based (albeit titanium dioxide) sunscreen, I use Blue Lizard.

Both are on Subscribe-n-Save monthly delivery.

"Die with Zero" - shameless affiliate plug.

Excellent Home Gym + PT, especially in the beginning to help you with the right weightlifting techniques. After that optional.

Read the following book and follow its advice, does not take long to read. It really has everything you need to embark on the right path, has been transformational for me personally as well.

https://www.amazon.com/Bigger-Leaner-Stronger-Building-Ultimate-ebook/dp/B006XF5BTG

You need Relay for Reddit. It's a significantly improved experience. Might I recommend Relay pro for the ultimate ad-free experience. I'm not with the company, I just really really like the app. Link to free to try it....... Link to paid to buy it. (WORTH IT)

it was in the yard for some time before my gf at the time went to the side of the house and asked why there was a rug there ruined wet & dirty .

Here is the rug if you would like a shitty easily stained rug for your home:

https://www.amazon.com/nuLOOM-Sadie-Moroccan-Diamond-Tassel/dp/B08MWWYYXG/ref=sr\_1\_29?keywords=rugs&qid=1665088480&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIxMS44MCIsInFzYSI6IjExLjkwIiwicXNwIjoiMTEuMTcifQ%3D%3D&refinements=p\_36%3A1253527011&rnid=386465011&...

https://www.amazon.com/2020-National-Park-Quarter-Uncirculated/dp/B085T2YRQH

You can't get cash on Amazon, but you can buy quarters by the roll!

Huh, that's weird, I could've sworn I wrote heat index in my comment above.

That being said, you're still somewhat right, and I was exaggerating a bit.

Data from here

Heat index calculations for 2021 using this site (avg high, dew point used)(avg high, avg dew point, heat index):

Jan: 65.16, 43.84, 64 Feb: 61.68, 43.88, 60 Mar: 75.48, 54.37, 75 Apr: 78.17, 57.75, 78 May: 84.26, 67.29, 87 Jun: 91.77, 72.49, 100 Jul: 92.1, 73.54, 102 Aug: 93.94, 73.01, 103 Sep: 89.5, 67.83, 93 Oct: 85.32, 61.85, 86 Nov: 73.77, 53.07, 73 Dec: 77.55, 60.47, 78

I don't really consider 6 months of high 80s to low 100s good weather. I also don't really love it being almost 80 degrees on average in December. From what I remember, this was also a pretty mild year in terms of temps.

Fair point, but but am seeking something that doesn’t touch my hair or go inside my ear canal. I formerly used to use the Motorola S305 which sold well for years so there’s some market demand.

Something like this has overtaken many of the name brand versions:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AKSJUH0

but I’m seeking high quality ANC (which means it usually needs to be a known brand name for good performance) and true wireless so it doesn’t require the neck band.

Sounds silly, but I’ll mostly use them while eating if I don’t want to hear myself chew (for me at least, my AirPod Pros make a lot of noise if I use them while eating) nor mess up my hair before attending a meeting or event.

Appreciate the recommendations, but am seeking something that doesn’t touch my hair or go inside my ear canal. I used to use the Motorola S305.

Something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AKSJUH0

but with high quality ANC (which means it usually needs to be a known brand name for good performance) and true wireless so it doesn’t require the neck band.

With this headphone example I’ve not found what I’m looking for on the site linked to below, Wirecutter, or any other mainstream review sites. I’m seeking something closer to this, but higher quality: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2X7W9H8

Never heard of this book, the title is sort of funny, I assume he just needs a hook to get people interested in the book, the actual history of the Rockefellers is not something that would be the focus of this kind of book. Here it is on Amazon.

At least half the reviews on Amazon seem to mention that it seems like it's just a general pitch to buy term life insurance. The author seems to have been a life insurance salesman at one point in his life, although now he's a financial expert.

$1M a year in passive income is doable. In real estate syndications, passive investors make 10% in cash flow towards the end of these investments. That means you would have to have $10M invested to achieve 10% cashflow to give you your $1M in passive income annually.

In addition to cashflow you have profits from the sale of the property and combining these 2 returns together on average these investments return a 100% ROI over 5 years. If you think about compounding your money 2x every 5 years it’s doable.

This is a great book on the subject

https://www.amazon.com/Hands-Off-Investor-Insiders-Investing-Syndications/dp/B08779W5QT

That’s a high level TLDR so feel free to ask questions here or via DM!

I would diversify outside of the stock market. Instead of having 1 lump sum target like $25M, an alternative target could be that $1M in income like you mentioned. So now the question is how do you create that $1M in passive income because you don’t want to be working the rest of your life.

I’ve chosen to build that path through passively investing in real estate syndications. The TLDR of how it works is a group of active partners and passive investors go out and buy big commercial properties. I focus on apartment complexes and single family home communities since there will always be a need for housing, regardless of what war or pandemic is raging outside.

In these investments, the active partners manage the investment and deliver returns to the passive investors who are hands off, on average to the tune of 100% ROI over 5 years. This consists of cash flow and the sale from profit. That cash flow is paid out either quarterly or monthly to you as an investor and is usually between 5-15% ROI per year. So using an average of 10% cash flow, to achieve a $1M income passively every year you would need to have $10M invested in these real estate syndications.

The benefits of these opportunities over the stock market include lower volatility, leverage (the bank loans you 60-80% of the purchase price), tax benefits, superior returns, and inflation / recession resistance.

You can read and learn more about how these investments work in this book which I recommend to everyone I talk to who wants to learn more about passive real estate investing

https://www.amazon.com/Hands-Off-Investor-Insiders-Investing-Syndications/dp/B08779W5QT

That was a lot but I hope it helped! Happy to answer any questions in depth here or via DM.

Longangle for people >$2M and they have meetups with lots of young guys like you. Never been to their meetups, but they seem alright if that's what you are into.

There are some books on the topic. A bit tacky book by a totally clueless woman, but it might be an interesting read: https://www.amazon.com/We-Need-Talk-Memoir-Wealth/dp/B085WBHFPB/

Lots of good advice on here. But I can also recommend you read this book Get Acquired for Millions: A Roadmap for Technology Service Providers to Maximize Company Value https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07TWYW8RH/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_CSTQABABWDP87K46X8FX?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1.

It talks about how to exit you msp business and lots of really useful information. Check out her website too.

The #1 role of insurance is to avert financial catastrophe, and to not sweat small things. If my car gets totaled and I have to pay a $10,000 deductible? That'll be a very bad day for me, but it's not a financial catastrophe. If I'm crash my car into a surgeon and he's paralyzed from neck down? Replacing his income alone might wipe off half your NW, which is indeed a financial catastrophe.

It's a dramatic example and the chance of such a thing happening is very low. But the umbrella premiums are low precisely because these things rarely happen. Given your NW flair even $5M might be low for you, but that could be just me.

One caveat with many umbrella policies is that despite the name "umbrella" they can be full of exceptions and limitations. The book Insurance for Dummies has a section on umbrella policies and it explains it well. The book even suggests talking to a professional to talk over gaps in your umbrella policy. I didn't go that far, but I've spent good few hours to read my Chubb umbrella policy document so I at least understand what's covered and what's not. Apparently Chubb has some of the best coverages, but YMMV. I can't speak for other companies as I haven't used them.

Also umbrella coverage over $10M or so becomes quite rare and are only offered by premium insurance companies, such as Chubb. Chubb goes to up to $100M.

There's a book called The Wealthy Renter. It addresses many misconceptions about renting and completely changed my view on the topic. The author is Canadian so talks from the Canadian viewpoint but almost all chapters are directly applicable to the US market as well.

It doesn't answer your question directly but I thought it's an excellent book to bring up.

Consider a leveraged buy-out. Look for middle market, privately held, owner retiring.

Also, a cash business is pretty darn awesome.

Check out this book: https://www.amazon.com/Good-Business-Little-None-Money/dp/0812916271

old but good.

replace the pet with a human. imagine a human being integrated with the family, enjoying a routine, bonding and friendship with the kid(s) in the family, not unlike a foster kid is integrated. then, for reasons it’s not convenient for the parents, the child is returned. if it was an overall good experience, the child (or pet) does not have a say in the decision, most of the time not even aware until they are dropped off. doing so can and often has significant negative repercussions related to abandonment and trust issues that causes the next parent (of either) to address these at a larger scale. its a form of abuse

this is more widespread in other areas too including college campuses where students will take on a kitten for the time they are enrolled on campus and release them outdoors if they cant take them with them

For anyone who has pets, you may enjoy: Beyond words, what animals think and feel by Carl Safina (ecologist)

Adding onto Retinol, Sunscreen and Moisturizer. Use Vitamin E lotion to keep skin stretchable high. Eat fruits high in Vit A and E. High the gym.

If you have uneven tone and want to improve complexion then I'd suggest Kojic Acid Serum by Izozki , it also has Hyaluronic Acid and collagen which keeps skin supple and hydrated. here's a link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B1M2FCPS/

I love this Skin Aqua sunscreen, it doesn't leave a white cast, isn't oily, and doesn't break me out! In general, most Asian sunscreen brands wear a lot nicer than American sunscreens. r/SkincareAddiction has a lot of recs too.

Bitcoin was created just for your purpose: protect your money from being inflated (the inflation shedule of Bitcoin is extremely conservative). Also it’s by far the most conservative cryptocurrency with the most stable track record of developers putting security of the system above new features.

Before getting into Bitcoin / crypto I suggest you to read the Bitcoin Standard:

https://www.amazon.com/Bitcoin-Standard-Decentralized-Alternative-Central/dp/1119473861

1) Learn about investing. Personally, I like this book. The author ran Yale's endowment for decades, and redefined how to run an endowment.

Understanding what you are investing in, and why you are investing in it makes investing easier.

2) How you invest is more important than what you invest in. This means: a good asset allocation model trumps a good manager.

3) People love to push index funds. These are fine, just understand that indexing means market risk and market returns. If you want to take on less risk, then you need to include assets other than index funds to achieve this goal.

4) Since you qualify, I'd look into a few non-correlated investment vehicles, especially if you are in the start-up world. Funding and valuations are correlated to the equity markets. No sense in getting into a bunch of assets that are highly correlated, when there are alternatives.

5) Look into tax deferred strategies: IRAs, 401k, or even SEP IRAs (if you qualify).

6) Avoid annuities or life insurance. These tend to be bad investment vehicles for someone your age.

7) With respect to an advisor: You either pay for advice or access to managers. This may, or may not, be something that you are interested in.

Yesss, Rubik's cubes! I highly recommend GAN cubes if you plan on getting into the hobby more. They're so nice to play with.

https://www.amazon.com/GAN-Pro-Magnetic-Stickerless-Internal/dp/B08KS2BQ81

In the same train of thought, put "Die With Zero" on your reading list too.

Make sure your wife is also getting 600. Huge difference. We also used this one that is water soluble and makes it easier to absorb. https://www.amazon.com/Qunol-Absorption-Patented-Supplement-Antioxidant/dp/B0055OUOQQ

This is in my grab and go bag, I live in an earthquake zone, so have a bunch of other things in the bag. But this book will teach you stuff urban dwellers don’t know

U.S. Army Survival Manual: FM 21-76 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1461173477/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_V4GQ4DAA6E83YWYAX5WX

Neil Strauss wrote this interesting book

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NLL9P0/ref=dbs_a_def_awm_bibl_vppi_i6 Depends how paranoid you are and how much money you are willing to spend - it has survival tips, information on survivalist courses all the way to all terrain vehicles and countries where you can get a second passport.