Archives for September 2017

Is Minimalism Simply Retirement Before its Time?

I sit at the bar today sipping on my beer and performing tedious technical tasks for my blog on my laptop. I am seated at the bar, amazingly three seat from the guy to my left, three seats from the gut to my right, and three seats between everybody, in either direction at the bar. I listen to the guy to my left. I don’t really hear what he’s saying, but I hear his voice. It truly is a golden voice, rich and deep and eloquent. I am memorized by his tone. When sitting at a bar there is an etiquette. We respect the privacy of the conversations around us, and we interject only at the opportune time. After all we are at the bar for conversation and no conversation is truly private.

At the right moment I was able to interject into the conversation with this golden toned individual. I don’t recall why I interjected, but it started the conversation. He introduces himself as ChuckJ, really just Chuck, but for the sake of the golden voice it is ChuckJ. I’ll get into the ChuckJ later, but for now he’s just Chuck.

Come to find out, Chuck and I have LOT in common. We both moved to this area within a week of each other, we both lived in the same metropolis, and we both got rid of everything that we owned and moved on.

From my blog you already know that my minimalism was influenced by my sudden unemployment. On the other end of the spectrum there is ChuckJ. Chuck had a great job, a great relationship, and a great life in a fantastic city. Not to go into detail, But ChuckJ was a renowned San Francisco Sports radio announcer. You couldn’t be at a SF Giants, or SF 49ers game without hearing his golden voice at the stadium.

Many of us think about doing it, but Chuck did it. Even at a pinnacle of his career, Chuck got rid of everything that he owned and he started a new life. As Chuck calls it in his blog, if it didn’t fit in one of his three suitcases, it didn’t go. This is similar to me, if it didn’t fit in my Jeep, I didn’t keep it (and yes, to dog got the whole front seat.) ChuckJ got rid of everything that he owned and moved to Mexico.

So you gotta ask, why did Chuck do it? I did it when I was 50ish, Chuck did it when he was (well, let’s call it more than 50ish). Is this retirement? Well, not in the traditional sense. Is minimalism what we really seek in life? Should retirees think more about minimalism as they retire?

Does minimalism mean retirement? Does retirement mean minimalism? Are they related at all?

In reality, minimalism is the simplification of daily life. When I retire I don’t want to be burdened by things that don’t matter to me. By living a minimalistic life (or rather a kinda minimalistic lifestyle) I can concentrate on what matters, and not be bogged down by those things that don’t matter so much.

If you struggled with this issue or can inspire others on this subject I would like to hear your story. Please comment below.

Earning More Money – The Second Income

Living minimal doesn’t mean homeless, or no income. Part of living minimally means that we live within our means. We are not poor, but we instead understand that we don’t need to have everything to be rich.

Income has very little to do with the choice to live minimally. On the other hand, living minimally can help a person, or a family, get out of debt, or help save for the kids education or and adults retirement. While not spending money helps save, more income helps build. If you are not earning enough money, then go out and make more.

Earning more could mean that you need to find a different job, or in some cases to find a second job. Having a second job helps you earn money and keeps you out of the bars (meaning that you won’t be spending money of non-essential items).

If you are computer savvy you could start a YouTube channel and start some affiliate marketing. Another option might be to deliver pizza. I am no stranger to delivering pizza. My first job was working at a local pizza chain. While later in life after I sold my Internet Service Provider business I delivered pizza in order to stay busy and earn some cash. If you decide to deliver pizza, pick a location in a safe neighborhood.

As a pizza delivery driver in the SF Bay Area I did not earn much as the tippers in my area were kinda cheap. After I sold my business in 2006 I made much more at the pizza gig. If you want to do this part time you’ll need to work Friday night. Friday is by far the busiest, and most profitable time. After that, Saturday and Thursday nights. I would work a 3-4 hour shift on a Friday and walk out with $80-$100 in my pocket, not including the dismal pay check. The cash was from tips. I would also work Thursday and Saturday for a grand total of $800 to $1000 cash each month. If you’re not too worried about your waistline you also end up scoring some pizza to take home at no cost.

The pizza delivery gig is just an example of how you can earn extra income. For the right person, in the right position it is possible to make much more per shift.

When I worked my first pizza gig I ended up as the store general manager. I hired a young lady as a driver, and I ended up dating her. What impressed me most about her is that she recognized that she was in financial trouble and she did something about it, she got a second job. I didn’t mind that she was in incredible debt with 18 department store credit cards since she was doing something about it. I think at some point she got a third job (and unfortunately some more credit cards). There is nothing wrong with working hard and earning your way.

Don’t be afraid of what other people will think if you take on a second job. If you are not making enough, go make more.

If you struggled with this issue or can inspire others on this subject I would like to hear your story. Please comment below.

Do You Really Need that Huge House?

Keeping up with the Jones’ is probably the most prevalent reason why people overspend. We see our friends and family with bigger, better things and we have to have them. Not only are we trying to keep up with the Jones’, but we unintentionally end up setting ourselves up for failure.

We used to park our vehicle outside. Then we built an overhead shelter. This grew to a garage, then a double-car garage, triple-car garage and even larger. Not only did the garage grow, but so did the house. Below is a graphic showing average homo sizing in 1910 vs. 2010 (click graphic to link to original source). We haven’t gotten any larger as human beings, so why the increase in home size?

The simple answer is vanity. A larger home is a status symbol. A larger home means that we are doing better in life, right. Unfortunately, when we have more space, we have empty space. We eventually feel the need to fill this space.

Story time: My cousin had a very successful landscaping business. He had two kids and it was time for him to build a house. He had architects draw up the plans and get them approved by the city. He had his plot laid out with rope and he stood where the kitchen would be built. He realized that the area was not big enough. He told the architects to push a couple of walls out a few feet. The architects argued that the build would be delayed because this meant a bigger roof, and all of the structural calculations would need to be resubmitted to the city. My cousin didn’t care, he just wanted it done (and it looked gorgeous when it was done.) After delays and spending more money, the house was built. My cousin had all of his stuff moved into the house when he realized that he didn’t have enough stuff to fill the house. What do you think he did, you guessed it. He went and bought more stuff to fill the house.

My cousin is a very smart guy with a wonderful family. But he fell into the trap that most of us fall into. Eventually after the kids moved out, then he sold the house and found something more appropriate for an empty nest.

Take another look at the map. There are areas that people have chosen to live in smaller houses. But these are not the norm. These locations, like San Francisco, companies are building as small as possible and selling for much, much higher than anybody should be spending for a home. The smaller home size in this area is not my choice, it is more of a mandate by the exorbitant cost of living in these areas.

Maybe houses were too small in 1910. Maybe the economy didn’t support building larger homes. Personally, I would be happy in a tiny home, if it weren’t for the fact that I’d have to climb a ladder to get to my bed (I’m done with stairs). I would most definitely concern myself more with quality than quantity. A small, well-built home has much more appeal than a larger home that needs my constant attention.

Living Within Your Means – STOP SPENDING

It’s not about how much you earn, it’s about how much you keep. Living the kinda minimal lifestyle means that we not only spend within our means, but we don’t spend just because we can. Spending is focused on what we need and not on what we want. For those of us that have gone through the purge and have chosen to live minimally, or kinda minimally, we understand this. Instead of living month to month, we eventually experience a growing bank account. Instead of our homes looking like a surplus store, we have surplus at the bank.

Looking back on my life I was definitely suffering from “keep up with the Jones’ syndrome”. Even as a kid, when a half dozen of my friends had a half dozen different things, I had to have each one of these things for myself. I felt that having these things made me cool. When something new was advertised on TV I had to be the first one with it, you know, to make me cool. Of course my folks were always the killjoy when they wouldn’t buy it for me, but I made up for that as an adult. When I had a job of my own nobody could tell me what I could or could not buy. I had computers, car stereos, motorcycles, and list goes on. I had all the cool stuff and could sometimes not pay my rent. I lived month to month, but I was cool. Do you think I was cool? Do you think people that have stuff are cool?

In 2014 I did the purge. At that time I canceled all cable TV subscription, except for commercial-free streaming. I don’t know if I will ever get over the “keeping up with the Jones’ syndrome”, but at least I am no longer bombarded with professional advertisers trying to sell me stuff. And yes, TV advertising is professional grade manipulation. Advertisers spend a lot of money to find out what makes you buy, and there is no escape, except for not watching.

Occasionally I splurge, but not often, such as recently when I bought a DJI Mavic Pro Drone. While the drone is nothing more than a toy, it does get me out of the house. I’ll throw it into my camelback pack, jump on the bicycle and go for a ride. I’ll find a park and fly my drone. When I decide to splurge the item must allow me to grow financially, or increase my quality of life. My bicycle allows me to get out and get some exercise, while the drone motivates me to do so.

Be careful if you have recently started to live minimally. Eventually you will have money in your bank account, and you will be tempted to spend it. Don’t break down in a moment of weakness. Don’t fall back into the trap where you were before. If you have to, put that money into a bank account that you cannot touch. If you have a 401K at work, start putting more money into it so you never see it. Can you live the same lifestyle if you put 25% of your paycheck into your retirement account? If so, do it, do it now if that’s a good choice for you. Oh, do yourself a huge favor and NEVER TOUCH YOUR RETIREMENT ACCOUNT UNTIL YOU RETIRE.

OK, good blog, a little advice and a little rant and rave.

If you struggled with this issue or can inspire others on this subject I would like to hear your story. Please comment below.

Should I Put it in Storage, or Get Rid of it?

Do you really need to put your stuff into storage? Are you better off getting rid of it.

Many of us find ourselves in a position where we have more stuff than we know what to do with. We simply end up running out of space for our stuff. Many think that there is only one solution for having too much stuff, and that is to find someplace to put it. Sometimes we rent a larger apartment, or move into a house so we can have our stuff. Some people use storage when they move so they can take time to find that perfect place. Many plan to put things into storage as a temporary measure, but sometimes it doesn’t work out that way. If you are moving, you might also what to take a lot at my article Purge Before you Move.

In the case of my parents, they decided to live the RV lifestyle for a while. They would try the living on the road for a while full time, and then rent a house again when they were done. They took their things and their stuff and put it into storage while they were on the road. They were paying $150 per month to keep their stuff in storage. Well, they ended up liking the lifestyle and have been traveling full time for over 20 years. And guess what, they left their stuff in storage.

After about ten years on the road they still had their things and stuff in storage. That’s right, they had paid $150 per month (with price increases) for about 10 years. You do the math. Never mind, I’ll do the math for you. That’s $1800 per year for 10 years. That’s $18,000 in storage fees to store $2000-$3000 worth of things and stuff. I spoke with my folks about the cost, but they would not get rid of their treasures, and I accepted their wishes. I did however find a better solution for them. I had them buy a 12×12 storage shed and put it in my brothers back yard. For use of the space they bought my brother one too and built them side by side. My folks now have their things and stuff stored for free.

Occasionally I ask my folks what they have in the storage shed, and the typical reply is “I don’t know, I haven’t been in it for years.”

I spoke with a storage expert a few years ago and he told me that there were two square feet of storage per capita (per my memory of the story) in the United States. OK, my memory was off a little, in 214 there was 8.32 square feet of storage per capita in the United States (sparefoot.com). Wow, that’s a lot of stuff. Now look at the dollars spent on storage. Just among the top five storage companies, it’s a $4.77 billion industry (sparefoot.com). This doesn’t include the hundreds of companies like Darrel’s Mini Storage in California that operates 58 storage locations. If you want to get into a great business, think storage units.

Needless to say, most of us fall into the trap of thinking that storage is what you use when you have too much stuff. I believe that the real problem is that we have too much stuff. Instead of thinking that you need more space for your stuff, you should be thinking about having the right amount of stuff for your space.

At the time of this writing, I am a single guy living in a one-bedroom apartment, and it is more space than I need. A friend is single and lives in a three-bedroom house with a two-car garage, and her place is full, with just enough room to park her car in the garage. Which one are you? Which one would you like to be? How much money do you spend on stuff that you don’t need? How much more money are you spending to live in a space that will support all of your stuff?

So, instead of renting that storage unit, get rid of the stuff. I have several articles here that can help inspire to make the right choice.

If you struggled with this issue or can inspire others on this subject I would like to hear your story. Please comment below.