Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

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zbigi
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by zbigi »

bos wrote:
Sat Jun 05, 2021 1:59 pm
Soon I am turning 25. Closer to the 30 than the 20. Would be happy to hear some advice you would give your younger 25 year old self. Maybe it can inspire me or others.
Since you're in tech, your circumstances are somewhat special - you have a potential to, relatively quickly, make the amounts of money that are unavailable in most other careers. If I were you, I'd take full advantage of that. Be ruthless and optimize for income - learn about most paying specialties, jobs, companies, countries etc. and aim yourself there. The differences are large and they should be exploited.
BUT - also, take extended breaks between jobs - months or even years long. I've noticed that 10-15 years of high-intensity tech career often destroys whatever spirit and multidimensionality people had when they entered it - and, at 35 or 40, they have already long forgotten what it is aspire to be somebody else than an excellent player in the corporate tech game. It's really sad to see friends who had potential and personalities become these corporate zombies. To avoid that, you must take extended breaks (say every 2-3 years), during which you decompress and explore what it is you really want to do. It is possible that you'll find a way to support yourself doing that before you reach ERE and if not (let's say your interests don't turn out to have great financial potential), they'll give you greater motivation to get the next job and pursue ERE/FIRE.
The above was my approach and it allowed me to become ERE at the age of forty with only little damage to my spirit. Currently, tech pays much better than it did when I started back in 2003, so the whole trick could be doable at 35, even with the extended breaks.

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

mountainFrugal wrote:
Sat Jun 05, 2021 5:59 pm
The memory of how good or how inspired you were when doing something all the time comes back as the standard that you are setting for yourself. This is damaging and unrealistic because you are not in art school (or in shape in the example).
What you are saying here makes a lot of sense to me. I never thought about it like that really. When I see my paintings from art school hanging in my room I am feeling demotivated and a little melancholic. It reminds me of difference times. That I am not that person anymore with that passion and skill for it. It's not realistic, but I am still the same person and I am sure with some dedication and goals I can get there once again. Thanks

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

zbigi wrote:
Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:58 pm
Be ruthless and optimize for income - learn about most paying specialties, jobs, companies, countries etc. and aim yourself there. The differences are large and they should be exploited.
Thanks for the a tip. As seen in one of my older posts it is definitely something I am thinking about. Moving away from Germany to somewhere else. Mostly for financial reasons. It is good to hear that you give this advice, because I sometimes feel ashamed and a pretty shallow dude if I explain people that the reason I want to move is mostly financial.
zbigi wrote:
Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:58 pm
BUT - also, take extended breaks between jobs - months or even years long. I've noticed that 10-15 years of high-intensity tech career often destroys whatever spirit and multidimensionality people had when they entered it - and, at 35 or 40, they have already long forgotten what it is aspire to be somebody else than an excellent player in the corporate tech game.
How did you approach these breaks every few years. Did you take very long vacations? Tried different jobs? Or did you try to see how you would fill the time if you would be ERE? I am planning to go to Africa for a few months next year on my small motorcycle. Last time I went for 6 weeks and it gave me a good perspective on how life can be and how little you need.

It is funny to see you are mentioning the spirit damage problem. I was already wondering about that when I talk to my 20+ year older colleagues. No interest in anything, not even in tech itself anymore. Guess it is something to really actively look out for as I understand from your wording. Can happen to everyone.

zbigi
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by zbigi »

bos wrote:
Sun Jun 06, 2021 3:24 pm

How did you approach these breaks every few years. Did you take very long vacations? Tried different jobs? Or did you try to see how you would fill the time if you would be ERE? I am planning to go to Africa for a few months next year on my small motorcycle. Last time I went for 6 weeks and it gave me a good perspective on how life can be and how little you need.
During the breaks, I stayed at home and explored things which seemed interesting to me, such as: various branches of math and programming (graphics, computer vision, AI, ML), drawing/art, game design and development. During one extended break, I wrote a poker bot that was actually winning money on poker sites. Also, I read a lot of books - something I don't have energy for when working full-time.

My main motivation for the breaks I guess was trying to find something I could throw myself into with enough confidence so that I wouldn't have to return to my full-time work and stash-building. I think I was always deluding myself to some degree about that (I really just desperately wanted to quit those damn jobs) because, at the same time, whatever activity I did, even if I enjoyed it much more than corporate whoring, I concluded that having to do it for a living would probably kill the magic - and would provide vastly smaller hourly rate for my effort.
The good thing about the breaks is that they showed me that I enjoyed them much more than my FT employment - so, they gave me confidence that going for financial independence is something that makes sense for me. Actually, having fun during the breaks motivated me to get back to jobs/contracts and earn more money, so that I can be full-ERE and not just semi-ERE.

BTW, to answer your question, I never really tried different jobs, because I imagine most full-time jobs (i.e. doing the same thing 5 days a week, every week, for some boss, as a part of some dysfunctional organization) are just not good (at least not for me), so the biggest differentiating factor is the salary really - which in IT is higher than in other fields. I've come to this conclusion by doing a lot of research on internet about the alternative careers that might interest me. Invariably, they're all full of people who bitch about them and also often full of people who are eager to switch to coding... This makes me doubtful about the grass being greener on the other side - or, at least, not confident enough to invest a couple of years into finding out.
It is funny to see you are mentioning the spirit damage problem. I was already wondering about that when I talk to my 20+ year older colleagues. No interest in anything, not even in tech itself anymore. Guess it is something to really actively look out for as I understand from your wording. Can happen to everyone.
My observation are two-fold. One the one hand, people who were rather shallow and herd-following when they were young have predictably fully embraced the rat race (with the exceptions of people who were both shallow AND lazy - they're also in the rat race, but only begrudgingly - they're basically the Gervais Principle's "losers"). But, on the other hand, some (not all) of the people who some had curiosity and interests and independence in them, have also been converted into these corporate zombies. So, there is some danger in staying in such organizations for too long at a time - hence my advice for extended breaks as one of the potential countermeasures. On the other hand, even being aware of it right now puts you ahead of the curve, so perhaps with enough self-awareness, you could just monitor yourself to check if you're not slowly changing into someone you don't want to become.

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

Thanks for coming back with some answers. Thats what I like about the forum
zbigi wrote:
Mon Jun 07, 2021 1:21 pm
Also, I read a lot of books - something I don't have energy for when working full-time.
into someone you don't want to become.
Nice to see that I am not the only one. Number of books I read changed completely since I started working full time :D

zbigi wrote:
Mon Jun 07, 2021 1:21 pm
BTW, to answer your question, I never really tried different jobs, because I imagine most full-time jobs (i.e. doing the same thing 5 days a week, every week, for some boss, as a part of some dysfunctional organization) are just not good (at least not for me)
Meeting many people with different jobs, I never met someone that really enjoyed doing it full-time. Even my most favorite hobbies I would not be able to do for 40 hours a week. It may be my generation, but with my attention span, stuff just gets very quickly repetitive. (Don't tell my girlfriend :lol: )

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grundomatic
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by grundomatic »

My advice to my 25-year-old self would be way too specific to help you, but if I were to generalize it, it would be something like "Ruthlessly do exactly what you want to do. Don't let anyone hold you back."

I, too, get tired of the same thing, all day, everyday. The (not perfect) solution I have implemented so far is to switch careers (suddenly) when I can't take it anymore. Four years in retail sales at a local bike shop, 6 years in restaurant management at a rapidly-growing company, and just finished up my 6th year in elementary education. I'm close enough to being able to retire early that I don't want to switch again, but I really felt the grind last year.

You also aren't the only one that has lost the energy to do things they love. Even before reading your post, I was thinking about how I've lost my "spark". It could be that I'm at the end of my job cycle, it could be that I'm thinking about early retirement when I should be focusing on today, or many other things. I think planning and taking large chunks of time off to do things you love sounds like a great plan.

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

The option came up to a move into a new place. I will rent 1 room in a 4 room apartment, that I share with 3 other people.
They will pay the rent to me, since it will be on my name. Here in Germany some people make good money on the side with this construction.

The rents have risen a lot the last couple of years for single rooms. The total amount fo the flat will be around 1100, but a single room you can easily rent out for 500. 3x(500)=400 euro extra a month plus free rent for me. The only thing that keeps me from doing it that I simply feel bad being part of the ever increasing rents and inequality here in Germany. But maybe I should just let that feeling go and start to collect. It will speed up FIRE. Not sure about this one yet.

My girlfriend lost her job which is a bit of a bummer. She will find something else, but it can still take some months. We do not live together and I am not sure If I should offer her to move together. Will save us both financial, but maybe will be heavy on the relationship. Also not sure about this one ;)

Job is going mehh. Company has been bought up and the big-corp world is slowly showing. Tho I am very happy that I can keep working from home. So much more relaxed then commuting to the ugly open office.

## Goals Juli
I want to start painting again.
Fix up the bathroom. Try to do some plumbing for the first time.
Install a second hand fridge that I found in the area.
Install a new door.
Can do 8 pull-ups now, but want to bring it to 12.
Small goals that will give me more ERE skills and overal satisfaction.

Always good to write a little to clear the mind.
Thanks for reading

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mountainFrugal
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by mountainFrugal »

Just to push a little on the painting because I want more art in the world :) ... Can you make a more clear goal? e.g. I will paint at x time on M for x amount of time... this will also help you think about any prep work that needs to be done... on Sunday I will get out my paints and have everything ready to go for Monday.

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

mountainFrugal wrote:
Mon Jun 21, 2021 1:27 pm
Just to push a little on the painting because I want more art in the world :) ... Can you make a more clear goal? e.g. I will paint at x time on M for x amount of time... this will also help you think about any prep work that needs to be done... on Sunday I will get out my paints and have everything ready to go for Monday.
Yeah I should make it more clear. Otherwise it is easy to skip.
So here it is:
I did a lot of watercolour when I was in Art-school and I would like to do that again. But somehow mentally the step is a little too big. Getting all the colours out, prepping water, towel, etc. So I will start with Ink. I have all the materials already and it is much quicker to setup. This will then help with creating the habit to sit down and start.

So here is the goal. One inked illustration a week and the habit of sketching daily for half an hour.
Thanks for pushing me a little mountainFrugal. I can post the results here in my Journal

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Chris
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by Chris »

bos wrote:
Mon Jun 21, 2021 12:55 pm
The total amount fo the flat will be around 1100, but a single room you can easily rent out for 500. 3x(500)=400 euro extra a month plus free rent for me. The only thing that keeps me from doing it that I simply feel bad being part of the ever increasing rents and inequality here in Germany.
Sounds to me that you'd actually be helping the situation by providing more single rooms to the market. The landlord is renting out a single flat, and some percentage of renters would decide not to offer those rooms to the market individually. By accommodating roommates, you're helping the situation, since not every renter would be willing to do the same. Your 400 EUR profit is your compensation for taking on the risk of the 3 roommates not paying their share, damaging the flat, etc.

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mountainFrugal
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by mountainFrugal »

bos wrote:
Mon Jun 21, 2021 8:53 pm
So here is the goal. One inked illustration a week and the habit of sketching daily for half an hour.
Great specific goal for July. Can you finish off the month of June with 5 minutes of sketching per day to get yourself in the groove?

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

mountainFrugal wrote:
Tue Jun 22, 2021 12:24 pm
Great specific goal for July. Can you finish off the month of June with 5 minutes of sketching per day to get yourself in the groove?
Definitely. Had a good session yesterday of almost two hours. Made a small illustration for my girlfriend and framed it. I could post the result here if you are interested :)

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mountainFrugal
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by mountainFrugal »

bos wrote:
Thu Jun 24, 2021 3:26 am
I could post the result here if you are interested :)
Of course!

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

mountainFrugal wrote:
Thu Jun 24, 2021 9:44 am
Of course!
Forgot to share it with you! here it is :)
Image

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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

Expenses are slowly going up. My savings rate was around 87%. Last month it was 75% and this month probably even a little lower.

There are a few reasons why. First of all, corona is over. I can eat out, enjoy ice cream in the sun and visit stores. This in combination with a new relationship makes the expenses go up.

But I am happier. It is hard to say how much, but definitely a lot. It can be the money, the weather, the holidays or being with my family the last few weeks. I will monitor my mood more closely over the upcoming months.

My girlfriend was surprised to hear that I have not had ice cream for the last 2 years. I would never go for ice cream alone. I guess you could say this is a "cost" of having a relationship. But it is more than worth it.

I freelance lately from time to time and I am getting faster and faster and automating myself away. Do you then bill less hours, since you work less? The companies are happy with me but there are not always new things to be built (software). These side gigs almost provide 30% of my income. Not bad and I would like to continue to bill the same amount of hours :D

My goal for the month was to draw more. I did not. I started with the habit of daily, but I just could not find the interest and I accepted it. Instead I found an interest in random things this month. Picked up a new, but broken rice cooker and fixed it (just the fuse that blew!). Fixed my bicycle axis and tire, fixed some wooden chairs, and made a small balcony garden with beans and basilicum. It is fun and feels so rewarding. I can see myself doing this when I am FIRE. When something broke down as a kid I always went to my grandfather to fix it. He could create and fix everything and we spend long days working on projects together. I would happily become like that.

Putting some time and effort into writing style and skills would probably help this journal. It feels like a diary entry if I read back what I wrote ;)
But thanks for reading. Have a good and productive week.

Bos

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mountainFrugal
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by mountainFrugal »

I like your image. Keep it up!

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

mountainFrugal wrote:
Mon Jul 19, 2021 6:29 pm
I like your image. Keep it up!
Thank you! I do not make illustration like this often, but my girlfriend likes it. I am more of a heavy water color guy.

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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by macg »

and I am getting faster and faster and automating myself away. Do you then bill less hours, since you work less?

There's an argument to be had about charging a standard amount / number of hours for pieces that you automate and re-use.

I'll use a company perspective, since that's where I have seen it, but it can be applied to freelance work as well...

Say a company selling a product spends 60 hours of development time to create / improve an interface or view. Since this will be beneficial to all clients, that work isn't charged just to one client. Instead, an "automatic" charge of 1 hour development time is assigned to all future clients where this change is implemented. At some point, you have "paid off" the time and the rest is just profit.

I made up this ratio (60:1), I am sure it changes based on various things, including, frankly, the morals of the seller/company. And there could be a huge ethical discussion about this strategy as well, I'm sure...

bos
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by bos »

I haven't posted anything for a while, but I have been lurking around in other threads.
I read and absorb tips and struggles from others.

After reading one particular post from mountainFrugal, I am convinced that is good to participate and contribute information to this forum instead of just consuming from others ;)
The name of this thread is "notmadeforconsuming" after all. I am also going to talk less about the number aspect of FIRE. It doesn't excite me at the moment and it is probably the least interesting part.

## Fire location

The question, where to work, live and participate has been on my mind for a few years.
But instead of continuing googling how life would be in Portugal, Switzerland or Italy, I set out to explorer those countries.
I am now writing this now from Portugal, Madeira. I have been here for over a month. The option to work remotely has been there since corona.
I just did not pull the trigger until now.

My daily routine in Portugal is as follows. I wake up early and go for a run or walk along the coast. I try to actively improve my endurance here.
Then I end up at the seashore and just sit and watch the massive waves crashing on the shore. This calms me down and gives me time to think. When I get back, I cuddle with my girlfiend as she is just waking up. Then it's off to work, which I do from the apartment or a co-working spot. We eat the leftovers from yesterday and then start to cook for today. In the evening we often go for a walk. Yesterday we stargazed, which was really great.

Here are the pros and cons that I've learned over the past month.

PROS
  • Weather. It's between 14 and 22 degrees. It's kind of easy to take it for granted, but it really helps with relaxing and starting the day in a good.
  • Nature. I rent a small scooter to be able to go anywhere and it has been great. The nature is absolutely stunning and incredible diverse. From huge waves for surfing in the north, too shallow waters for snorkling in the south.
    The mainland is full of beautiful eucalyptus trees and flowers. Everywhere there are small water channels called 'levadas' that bring water
    from the mountains to the coast. These were built for the plantations that the Portugese started around 1550. Mainly for Sugarcane and Bananas.
CONS
  • American digital nomads ;) No, I can't say this with a sample size of N=3, but did figure out that they are not my kind of people. Not just Americans, but digital nomads. There are many of them and they approach you quickly when sitting outside for some smalltalk.
    Many are spiritual, but in a commercial way. Selling courses, classes, fly to Indonesia Bali every other month, because it is "really a place where my soul wants to be". There would be much to say about the hypocrisy of these people, but not today.
  • Boring. Not yet, but I can imagine that will happen. Seeing a dolvin jump at the coast is super exciting to me, but the locals don't even look up from their coffee if it happens.
Next month I'm heading to Italy and probably later this year to Switzerland for some hiking and camping. Switzerland is the one I'm most looking forward to, as I'm seriously thinking about moving there continue my FIRE journey. Let's see.

## Not consuming

Part of me wants to buy things, gadgets and tools. It's the part that thinks buying crap is necessary for any new hobby or activity.
This impulse comes mainly from consuming on the internet. When I was looking for information on how to hike to the highest peak on the island, people immediately gave me advice on what to wear and what to bring. "You need a down jacket! A headlamp for the tunnels you'll be going through! Proper hiking boots!"
Sometimes I fall for that. But not this year. I remembered an argument between my parents, me and my brother when we were teenagers.
We wanted to hike Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Europe. Not to the summit, but to the high ground where the snow begins.
We didn't want to wear our ugly hiking boots and thought our Birkenstocks (slippers with a cork footbed) would do. It was the macho period when everything the parents recommended was not necessary. But we finished the hike in our slippers. Perfectly fine. Even in the snow.
I mean, Otzi, the ice man, walked across the Italian Alps in simple leather shoes with straw in them! We make things look more complicated than they are.

So I didn't buy any gear for this trip and wanted to do it with what I had. I hiked to the highest peak with a simple fleece that cost me 5 euros. I walked through all the tunnels with my smartphone flashlight. I used my simple barefoot shoes that I picked up second hands a few years ago. I passed people on the trail, completely decked out in hiking brands. Headlamps, patagonia down sweaters, carbon walking sticks, and so on. It feels good to have them look at you so surprised/shocked when they see me in my barefoot shoes and jeans.

I haven't bought any more items in the last two months. Next month I will probably break it, since I want to try bikepacking and I think I need to consume some stuff for that ;)

## Goals for the next few months.
  • - Renovate the apartment and come up with new structure for renting out the rooms. I currently rent out some rooms, but the market has gone up and the tenants are paying half of what I could charge. I somehow don't want to become part of the ever increasing renting price, but I also want to have a fair market price for the rooms
    - Increase frequency of meditation
    - Continue cycling to increase stamina
    - Continue writing and editing. I put more time into revising the post today. As a non-native speaker, this is something I need to continue doing and can do better. It's also fun to notice that the sentences are much easier to read after the revision :)!
I wish you a great weekend. Bos

chenda
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Re: Not made for consuming ~ Bos journal

Post by chenda »

bos wrote:
Sat Mar 12, 2022 5:23 am
I am now writing this now from Portugal, Madeira.
Bon Dia Bos. That sounds a great setup you have. I've not been to Madeira, is it similar COL to the mainland?

Its funny as Portugal and Switzerland are also the two countries I'm also considering moving to. In some ways they are polar opposites, although Switzerland is not as expensive as everyone thinks. At least if you're not going out eating and drinking every night which is what tourists tend to do. Any ideas where you might want to go yet ? I like the Geneva and Lausanne region.

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