Saturday Success: panic rules, $ lessons from babies & how to stay young forever
Making life & money work for you.
Welcome back to the Saturday Success Series email!
This week we have:
Master Yourself: Build Panic Rules
Master Your Money: Babies Teach You Wealth
The Weekly Special: How to Stay Young Forever
The goal here is maximum value, so let’s get to it.
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Master Yourself
Every once in a while something you read or hear sticks like honey to your brain.
One of my sweet honey moments came last year when an NFL General Manager mentioned his organization’s panic rules.
And I thought ‘oh hell yeah, this could work for one’s personal life too!’.
Here was the specific quote:
“When there’s chaos and your brain is panicking, go to your panic rules. Slow down and go to your panic rules.” — Les Snead (NFL GM, LA Rams)
Basically, it’s best to create some rules for life while things are calm.
Don’t wait for shit to hit the fan before you determine how you’d like to respond and what your plan is.
Then when things do go crazy, take a deep breath and review your rules.
Example: things got supersonic batshit crazy in the markets this past year.
But I have financial rules for myself.
An ‘any economy’ plan. So I ‘stick to the plan when shit hits the fan’ (easy to remember since it rhymes).
Keep emergency fund intact (minimum 6 months of expenses)
Nurture income streams (build skills, look for new opportunities & nurture what’s already bringing in dough)
Invest regularly (in quality assets across multiple markets)
Another basic panic rule for life: Never make a decision when desperate or fearful.
Sleep on it. Observe your feelings and options. Remove yourself from the situation. Whatever it takes to avoid high pressure tactics that force decisions.
Almost nothing important requires an immediate decision.
So, I 10/10 recommend building your own panic rules. For yourself, for your family, for your finances, for work, wherever you need them.
Master Your Money
When you’re learning to walk as a baby, you fall.
A lot.
And you don’t get discouraged.
And no one judges you.
And you also only learn how to walk by actually walking.
Not by reading about walking or even watching videos about walking, but by watching walkers walk and then mimicking them.
You see mom and dad walking around and you try it for yourself. They’re your walking ‘positive reference points’. Your role models for your new walking behavior.
Well, wealth behavior isn’t all that different from other action oriented behavior.
This is why it’s important to find money mentors (don’t have to know them personally) and do what they do.
Learn, mess up, learn more, do better.
Just listening to rich people isn’t the answer. It can help but the real lessons come from what they’re actually doing.
Your parents didn’t talk to you about walking. They had you get up and walk with them.
Even more importantly, watch what wealthy people they did when they were starting out.
Did they build a business? Did they invest in real estate? Did they invest in startups?
Try that then.
Weekly Special
How to Stay Young Forever- the Fine Nine
Avoid the sun, sort of.
Sunlight is very good for the human body and spirit. Vitamin D anyone? But overexposure is gonna make you look old. No way around it.
All my friends who hit up the tanning beds in their teens look like they’re in their mid 40s now (they’re early to mid 30s). Yikes.
15 minutes a day in natural sunlight is enough.
Think young, act young.
If you think you’re getting old and tired and useless, you are.
If you think you’re still spry and energetic and with it, you are.
My dad has an 80 year old friend who is in Maine skiing. He also helped put up cabinets a few years ago and said “well, we’ll need to re-do these in about 20 years”. Meaning when he was 96. That kind of mindset is where it’s at.
Sleep more.
7+ hours, around the same time every night.
That 5–6 hours a night you think is okay? It’s going to catch up and smack you upside the head.
Until they make a pill that can replace sleep, you gotta do it.
Castor oil.
This is purely for your appearance.
Smother your face in castor oil. Your skin loves fatty acids.
Eat healthy and in moderation.
Whole foods. Lots of fruits and veggies. Moderate protein, high fiber. Don’t overcomplicate it.
Eat until you’re satisfied not stuffed.
Exercise.
3 things here:
Lift heavy 3–4x per week
Walk, a lot
Sprint occasionally
Hot baths, cold showers.
Alternating between hot and cold water can strengthen your veins and arteries. This will improve the integrity of your cardiovascular system.
It’s also super invigorating.
Socialize.
Dinner with kids. Outings with friends. Extended family vacations. Reaching out to friends. Networking online.
You know how to do it, now do more of it.
And I get it, some of us are introverts…but this rule still applies. Connect.
Reduce stress.
I live pretty stress free considering I have a lot going on.
How?
Meditation (5 minutes a day can help).
Built in relaxation time (schedule it!).
Something to look forward to (nights with my girlfriend after the kids are asleep).
Deep breathing (in particular, pausing when I feel irritated).
Thanks for reading! If you found this valuable, please share with someone who could use it. See you next Saturday!
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Here’s a picture of my entire family from last week. We had a great vacation in Virginia! Have a great upcoming week!