At the end of the day (assuming no major leaps in technology) time is the one finite quality that we all have in common. We all die eventually. As you accumulate more and more “digits” also known as money, the time you have remains largely constant and the value of the time you have left goes no where but up. If you’ve wondered why money continues to flow into cities with good weather and beaches… Now you know! Quality of life becomes significantly more important since you’re trying to maximize the utility that you have left over (the coming decades). Below we’ll outline several items that will impact your quality of life which is essentially maximizing the utility of your time.
Physical and Lifestyle Changes
1) Location: Excluding the small number of oddballs, there are very few people who would prefer to live in a jungle or the mountains. The location is harder on your body and social interaction declines significantly as your neighbor could be several miles away. While many young people won’t have the luxury to choose their location (at first!) as they accumulate a larger and larger net worth, they typically move to sunny areas with beautiful beaches. Having a core social group and being around other humans is a big part of happiness. Larger cities with warm temperatures will continue to attract people with wealth for the foreseeable future.
2) Culture: No way that we can tell you which “culture” is best. It is irrelevant. The key here is that the culture will drive the type of people you meet. If the culture in your city looks down upon stylish clothing, you’re probably a person who does not like to dress up. If the culture is more nature driven, we doubt you’ll constantly overhear conversations about the latest technology gadget. So on and so forth. This culture dynamic will impact your overall quality of life in a big way. If you’re surrounded by people who are “not your type” it will be quite difficult to remain positive on a daily basis. This type of sacrifice is not worth it and you should leave as soon as you can (when it is financially viable).
3) Services: The next item on the list goes by mis-understood. As you accumulate a large financial nut, the chances that you use services go up in an exponential fashion. Your schedule might include a personal trainer to a specific massage therapist. Living in an area with minimal services can be a major headache if you’re trying to leverage your time and do “less yourself”. Services also expand your ability to generate a higher income. Once you reach this point, you’ll realize that paying for services is actually a benefit to everyone. Someone else makes a living and you spend the free time generating more money. If you had to do your own laundry or apartment cleaning, it would lead to a major loss in revenue.
4) Healthcare: Another major issue when considering quality of life is healthcare. If you live in the middle of no where (went full rogue and moved to the mountains) a medical emergency could cost you your life. Sure you could have access to fast transportation and if you’re a billionaire maybe you even have a doctor on call. At the end of the day? The top doctors are going to live in hubs since that is where the majority of the demand is. There is no reason to put your own life at risk by living in a city with poor healthcare and limited access to the latest and greatest technology.
5) Food/Nutrition: While this is becoming much more ubiquitous and major cities offer the full slate of produce, the ease of access should be taken into account. While Jeff Bezos is taking over the world with the purchase of Whole Foods, he’s not going to open a Whole Foods in the middle of Mount Everest any time soon. The current offerings of a city should be taken into account and this is likely a 4th or maybe even a 5th reason why you’ll live within spitting distance of a major city. If you’re looking for high quality produce… living far away from the source will not help your cause.
6) Dating: At the end of the day we’re all animals. If you live in a city that does not have people you find attractive a major part of your happiness (utility) will go away. You could always hop on a plane but the access is always limited relative to living in the city with people you want to be around. Imagine being a deca-millionaire and living in Alaska for example. Sure you may save on taxes but that’s not going to offset the quality of life declines such as people, weather and services (side note if you love Alaska no worries, this was just an example!). As a final note, if a city has attractive people in general it also makes it much more likely that your current set of friends and colleagues will visit.
7) Attention: Fame is something that cannot be reversed (very difficult). Once you’re a public figure you’re opening up both you and your family to immediate unwanted attention (lawsuits as well). This is why we choose to avoid fame. If you’re well off in a small town, word will get around very quickly about your current “status” within the new environment. If you were to live in a city with many famous/rich people, it becomes a lot harder to pin point you as a whale (target). The vast majority of people will lie *up* to try and gather more attention… This is the wrong strategy. By lying down, you’re much more likable and less likely to be seen as a threat as long as you never disclose your real income and net worth to anyone in the area. As a note, the other big benefit is spending goes under the radar (unless you buy that lambo!)
8) Speed: The ability to move around should also be taken into account. If you can go from a nice restaurant to a museum to a beautiful park in a matter of 30 minutes… you’re in a “fast” city. Notice, fast does not relate to the speed at which people are rushing around the city. It relates to your own personal portability. If you’re able to move swiftly between items of importance to *you* the value of that city goes up. Going to the gym, the museum, a bar you like, the beach and a park within a few short minutes is an important perk. Your time is becoming more valuable by the minute.
9) Taxes: That is right! Even if you’re already fabulously well off, taxes should be taken into account if you intend on having a family and passing along a greater and greater fortune. By living in an area with lower taxes, your ability to accumulate more wealth compounds by the tax savings. As a basic example, if your tax rate goes down by 10%, you’d double your money every ~7 years on this benefit alone! Sure we’re making a simplistic example since the math isn’t perfect, but the compounding effect remains. If you reach billionaire status we’re guessing there are many more complex strategies… but you’ll worry about that when you get there!
10) Value of a Hub: The final item to take into account for quality of life is a “hub” which refers to international travel. While it is likely a lot lower on this list, if you find an international hub with a significant number of flight options, your quality of life goes up. You’re now free to take quick vacations to get a change of scenery with a few clicks on a computer and a short drive to the international airport. Ideally, you’ve found the place you call home and don’t leave much. But. The option should be accounted for. Changing your schedule once and a while can drive a lot of value. You’re able to experience something completely new without having multiple layovers to get to to your destination.
Mental “Health” Adjustments
11) Meditation: Being in an environment that likely mirrors urban life vs. suburban life, you’ll find a lot of value in meditation. Adding just 20 minutes per day to clear your head and avoid the “noise” will allow you to stay focused and relaxed on a day to day basis. The best part about this practice is that it is not location dependent. You can do this while living in a pent house apartment or a three bedroom home 15 minutes away from the center of the city. Mental exercises are generally portable which is why (for the first time ever) we emphasized the physical portion first in this post.
12) Self Comparison: As you move up in the “game” of life, you’ll find that the triangle gets smaller and smaller. Practically everybody knows each other and there is *always someone better*. Always. You could be the third richest guy in the world… until the second richest guy in the world walks into the room (or the 4th richest guy gets a massive lift in his stock price)! Since the average person is spending their time “asking what so and so is up to” you know that this type of thinking guarantees failure. We would repeat this again. “There is always someone better”. There is no reason to compare yourself to the people around you because this does immense damage to your mental health. Instead, you focus on yourself and the qualitative metrics you would like to improve. We gave your our own qualitative metric which is… Efficiency.
13) Learning: Another major benefit of urban areas (or living near an urban area) is the consistent change. By putting yourself in an environment with consistent and constant change, the ability to learn new things will increase. Many of you are already there, but for those that are not, once you get to “F You” money you ask yourself… “What is left”. There really isn’t much left from a financial accomplishment perspective once you are set for life but you don’t want to end up bored. Many people go down the drug and alcohol abuse route for a period of time and it is best to avoid this by learning new things instead. Sure you may be the best at selling SHOCKING diet pills online, but we doubt that makes you the best swimmer in the world or the best dancer in the world as well. Find something new to do every single year to avoid falling into the “boredom” trap.
14) Find a Way to Help: Never help people for free. We’ve already proven that doesn’t work since people will assume the value you are bringing is worthless (or that your time is not of value). Instead, find a way to help people (who are worth your time) at a big discount. A discount allows you to filter out the people who wouldn’t listen in the first place and it allows you to earn a few dollars for sending the elevator back down. If you’re trying to help someone in their 20s you should charge less and if you’re helping someone in their 30s you should charge more. The irony of course is that the person in his 30s is less likely to listen even if he is paying more! By forcing the pricing up you’re making it *more* likely that he listens to you. After all, if he doesn’t listen he just wasted more and more money. This is human psychology at its finest. Hint Hint: Now you know why we run this blog in the first place.
15) Keep Working: That’s right! Average guy thinks you should quit entirely if you get rich and that’s exactly why you should never listen to average guy. By quitting you give up an immense amount of mental stability. Getting richer is probably the hardest “game” on earth and it is a lot of fun if you don’t need the money. It also allows you to see if you can become more efficient with your time. Everything we would encourage. Now if you’re in your 60s, maybe you can go ahead and retire to pursue other hobbies… But. We would wager the typical reader here will be rich by their 30s. This is far too early to hit the “escape” button and call it a life. If you really want to take time off, figure out exactly what you’re going to do first, then Sell the Company. During the transition period you can go ahead and travel the world only to realize you could have done that while running your online empire! (Duh!).
*Bonus* Drag Your Family Up: We are putting an asterisk here because we assume you have a family and have a good relationship with them. If you grew up in a terrible environment where your family abused you and tried to keep you down… well you’re free to move on in your own direction. And. If your family was nothing but supportive, it feels good knowing that they don’t have anything to worry about. Your trust fund is set up for your kids and your parents are coasting in a comfortable life. Just remember. There is a thin line between giving your kids everything so they grow up spoiled and secretly creating a “just in case fund”. The just in case fund ensures they never have to worry about a place to live or putting food on the table.
