7 ms·

Last year I sold some stock from my last startup, a little over $1m after taxes, and I can say it's definitely changed things for the better. In this period of

Last year I sold some stock from my last startup, a little over $1m after taxes, and I can say it's definitely changed things for the better. In this period of time, I have been able to: - Quit my founder position at that startup (thus avoiding potentially being tied to vesting or retention clauses, in case of an acquisition) - Own my house, and invest in a few other apartments, which turned into a little side business with great margins - Start a new company investing my own money, and not requiring a salary - Travel and live in a few different cities as I build the new startup - Completely forget about the price tag when buying small-ticket things: a taxi ride, asking for an extra plate, an occasional flight, paying a round of drinks It's not as it money made me happy by spending it, but it did remove a lot of the constraints I had before. It's made me feel like the default state would be to be carefree and happy, and as long as you can keep the worries and the stress away, everything will go alright. As a new worry, I now spend a lot of time thinking about how to reinvest it wisely and continue living like this. It's not overwhelming, and it's not very different than what doing my finances felt like before, but doing it a larger scale adds a new dimension to it.

nathanvanfleet 12y ago
I have often thought about how much happier I would be if I had enough money to not really balk paying for a mid-level sushi restaurant every week or so. Though ultimately I'm not sure how much more money I'd have to make before having that comfort. It would be nice though.
- clavalle 12y ago
  It is interesting. 99% of the time you don't even think about it, or write it off with half a thought as you are busy and want to eat healthy, quality food but occasionally it occurs to you "You know, I don't even have to think about this." and remember a time when you did. Progress is a great feeling.
nathanvanfleet 12y ago
I have often thought about how much happier I would be if I had enough money to not really balk paying for a mid-level sushi restaurant every week or so. Though ultimately I'm not sure how much more money I'd have to make before having that comfort. It would be nice though.
imrehg 12y ago
Congrats! It does sound like you are making the most of it. :)
jacquesm 12y ago
I agree with most of your decisions but: > Completely forget about the price tag when buying small-ticket things: a taxi ride, asking for an extra plate, an occasional flight, paying a round of drinks Needs a little asterisk, you're changing your lifestyle to one that you probably can not yet afford, be careful with that, these 'little things' really add up over time. Other than that: Congratulations :)
- michokest 12y ago
  True :) that probably deserves clarification: I made a clear separation between "spending money" (rent, travels, food, leisure) and "investment money". Anything spent is either an investment, where I try to keep returns over 5% yearly, or just everyday stuff. I've found that everyday stuff ends up not being very different than my previous spending levels. EDIT: I also live outside the Bay Area, which definitely helps.
  - msrpotus 12y ago
    Explains how you can buy so much property with just $1m.
    - Phlarp 12y ago
      He lives outside the bay area! ;)
    - cylinder 12y ago
      Leverage.
    - inanutshellus 12y ago
      "just $1m." ... I can't wait 'til I can say that with a straight face. ... Granted, it'll probably be when candy bars are $20@. /Le Sigh/
    - michokest 12y ago
      By investing in Berlin and Barcelona, where I've paid from €50k to €150k approx per apartment, and leveraging 50-80%.
Dorian-Marie 12y ago
Kind of same here. And if you are not in the US or in Europe you can actually not even look at the price and just think "What do I want to do?", "What do I want to eat?", ... it's so reliving
sytelus 12y ago
Money can increase your effective lifespan. A typical billionair has a staff of about 100 people who take care of all the small things that otherwise sip away time from whatever is left over for normal people after work day. They do not have to worry about doing laundry or tidy up the house or even shopping their own cloths (they have concierge who monitors trends and knows your preferences and sends you whole bunch of cloths to try out on demand). They don't typically waste time in booking a travel or wait for a flight or taxi or waiting for coffee at Starbucks. All these "chores" and "waits" out of the way, they can focus on pure experiences and living it up to do exactly what they want. A typical billionair has capability to have 20X more life experiences than a regular guy. So in effect they can live equivalent of 20 lifetimes in same amount of lifespan. Of course, in reality things don't pan out exactly like that. Many superrich would eventually be too stressed, constantly keeping scope of their wealth, spend 18 hours a day in work that likely won't be relevant in just a decade, end up in divorce or become substance abusive. But what is interesting to me is that money can actually expand your effective lifespan.

nathanvanfleet 12y ago

I have often thought about how much happier I would be if I had enough money to not really balk paying for a mid-level sushi restaurant every week or so. Though ultimately I'm not sure how much more money I'd have to make before having that comfort. It would be nice though.

clavalle 12y ago
It is interesting. 99% of the time you don't even think about it, or write it off with half a thought as you are busy and want to eat healthy, quality food but occasionally it occurs to you "You know, I don't even have to think about this." and remember a time when you did. Progress is a great feeling.

nathanvanfleet 12y ago

imrehg 12y ago

Congrats! It does sound like you are making the most of it. :)

jacquesm 12y ago

I agree with most of your decisions but: > Completely forget about the price tag when buying small-ticket things: a taxi ride, asking for an extra plate, an occasional flight, paying a round of drinks Needs a little asterisk, you're changing your lifestyle to one that you probably can not yet afford, be careful with that, these 'little things' really add up over time. Other than that: Congratulations :)

michokest 12y ago
True :) that probably deserves clarification: I made a clear separation between "spending money" (rent, travels, food, leisure) and "investment money". Anything spent is either an investment, where I try to keep returns over 5% yearly, or just everyday stuff. I've found that everyday stuff ends up not being very different than my previous spending levels. EDIT: I also live outside the Bay Area, which definitely helps.
- msrpotus 12y ago
  Explains how you can buy so much property with just $1m.
  - Phlarp 12y ago
    He lives outside the bay area! ;)
  - cylinder 12y ago
    Leverage.
  - inanutshellus 12y ago
    "just $1m." ... I can't wait 'til I can say that with a straight face. ... Granted, it'll probably be when candy bars are $20@. /Le Sigh/
  - michokest 12y ago
    By investing in Berlin and Barcelona, where I've paid from €50k to €150k approx per apartment, and leveraging 50-80%.

Dorian-Marie 12y ago

Kind of same here. And if you are not in the US or in Europe you can actually not even look at the price and just think "What do I want to do?", "What do I want to eat?", ... it's so reliving

sytelus 12y ago

Money can increase your effective lifespan. A typical billionair has a staff of about 100 people who take care of all the small things that otherwise sip away time from whatever is left over for normal people after work day. They do not have to worry about doing laundry or tidy up the house or even shopping their own cloths (they have concierge who monitors trends and knows your preferences and sends you whole bunch of cloths to try out on demand). They don't typically waste time in booking a travel or wait for a flight or taxi or waiting for coffee at Starbucks. All these "chores" and "waits" out of the way, they can focus on pure experiences and living it up to do exactly what they want. A typical billionair has capability to have 20X more life experiences than a regular guy. So in effect they can live equivalent of 20 lifetimes in same amount of lifespan. Of course, in reality things don't pan out exactly like that. Many superrich would eventually be too stressed, constantly keeping scope of their wealth, spend 18 hours a day in work that likely won't be relevant in just a decade, end up in divorce or become substance abusive. But what is interesting to me is that money can actually expand your effective lifespan.