What's up beautiful people of the internet. I'm back with the blog after a short summer haitus where we took a break to instead, jump off shit and call it a summer trend. While I'm likely not done flipping off things as much as possible, I'll take a break from filming it and putting it on the internet. This will serve as my next mini series, and will be called, "Screenshots from my phone."
Maybe other people do this too, but over the past few years when I'm scrolling through social medias, when I see something I really like I tend to take a screen shot of it. But what do I then do with that screenshot? Nothing. They just sit in my phone. So one day I got the bright idea to actually do something with them, and the idea for this mini series was born. Very simply, I'll take screenshots from my phone, examine them, expand on the ideas, and share them with the world.
Now that we have the basic concept down, here's the first one:
This of course came from Twitter one morning when I was scrolling, likely pretty aimlessly. I have no idea what this Wallstplayboys account is, I don't follow it, but I seem to follow that George Mack fella, who I also don't really know who he is. But he appears to be some sort of tech/deep thinker guy, and he brought me to this great tweet.
This tweet gets to something I've been thinking a lot about lately; Time. And mainly, how we spend our time. Ever since I was in college and graduation was starting to become a reality, the idea of getting a job and working for the next 40 years just seemed insane to me. That we all spend that much time of our lives just working. I really didn't want to do that, and I assumed that meant I was lazy or not driven, because I didn't love the idea of being "a career man," whatever the hell that actually means.
Luckily, as I got out into the real world, I started to read and follow some people who thought differently. People who seemed to grasp the idea of time and age, that you shouldn't let your 20s, 30s, and 40s pass you by just working all the time. Like Tim Ferris with the 4 Hour Workweek. One of the things he talks about in there is "Mini Retirements." High level explanation would be simply just that, you go for smaller periods in your younger years without working, and "retire," and just live. It can be a time to follow passions, learn a new skill, or just travel around.
It seems to me people don't really do this much, even if they want to, because we get so caught up in the fear of, "But my job has great benefits I can't leave it, how will I know I'll get hired again when I'm done," etc. We just completely make shit up to justify not going and living the life we want to live (if you're even into an idea like this, don't get me wrong, not everyone is and that's cool.) But the thing is, when you really look at it and choose to plan for it, you see how accessible it is to take a mini retirement, or find ways to live more/work less, in your younger ages.
I think the screenshot from the tweet above should really say "The amount of things you can do and enjoy at 30-39 is not the same as 60-69." We all know things look quite different when you're 90 years old, but what do they look like when you're in your 60s? I know plenty of people who are crushing it in their 60s, some of them are crushing balls at me on the pickleball courts. But I also know many who aren't physically able to do many of the things they could in their 30s. And these people likely saved up for these golden years of retirement, where they'd finally get out and travel and see some things they've always wanted to see, only to realize they're now not able to enjoy it like they hoped they would. I always think I'll just be one of those guys who stays young forever, but will I realistically be flipping off my shed when I'm in my 60s? Likely not.
Now is when I want to enjoy life and enjoy this earth. While I'm "young," in my 30s and 40s is when I want to spend a winter in the mountains, doing nothing more than skiing 60 days in a row, rather than heading out for a rushed trip. And then take the next few months and explore some jungles and beaches.
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| More of this, all the time, while my body likes it. |
And I really don't think this is an "either/or" situation, where if you enjoy life a little now and take a few "mini retirements" here and there you'll suffer later and not be able to "retire," and you'll end up greeting at Walmart when you're 70. You just need to plan for it. Look at things differently. Save some money, live below your means, don't be so highly leveraged. Look for ways to make money while you're not there (there are so many different ways to do this.) You could go on your "mini retirement" and come back better off financially than when you left if you set it up right and traveled to the right place. You really just have to open your mind to the possibilities, and realize, for all we know, this is likely your one opportunity on earth to live as you. So go freakin live it, and enjoy the heck out it while you can.
I really feel like I could go on and on about this topic, it's definitely one I'm pretty into right now. Remember when I wrote that blog around the quote, "What gets loud when you get quiet?" This. This gets loud to me every day when I get quiet. How can I be living more now. It's a fun idea to think about and plan for, go ahead and give it a try for yourself. And come visit me when we're posting up in Costa Rica.
Be Awesome.
-Tom Spaniol
"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect."
-Mark Twain
