Set for Life

So I finished my 39th book of the year and its one that I have read before but this time I felt like I was reading it for the first time SO I wanted to share with everyone because it’s a book about “Dominating Life, Monday and the American Dream” and it’s by the real estate investor and vice president of BiggerPockets which is an amazing podcast about investing and real estate. Scott Trench writes this book in hopes to show people the way to living a life of freedom and choice which ultimately is what a lot of people strive for but sometimes the 9-5 gig and society and bills stir you off track. People’s dreams become squandered and small, people get stuck in this routine because it’s safe but Scott Trench opens my eyes, once again, to the rat race and a way out. I would like to have my own eco-friendly school, I would love to volunteer more, become a traveling photographer, rescue animals, teach, write…. I have so many goals and dreams and I will do anything in my power to become financially free so that I do not have to worry about money and feeling stuck and unfulfilled. So without further ado I present to you:
20 Key Points from Set for Life that I think most people can benefit from or find value in because I know I did:

1. Living Frugally, also called having a low-cost lifestyle. He starts the book out with living with less. Now, we live in this society of more, bigger is better, the next new thing or best thing… It’s a trap though. It’s a trap that keeps people stuck and reliant on a job. I sat down and figured out an average of what I spend on rent, food, gas, my phone, etc. all my bills for the month, and how I can live on less. Where can I cut things out that won’t have a huge effect on my happiness! One thing I realized was that there might be subscriptions that are just being charged to my card every month and I totally forgot. So sitting down to really think about what it costs to live the life you have now and how that might be getting in the way of how you want to live your life, later on, is vital. Scott suggests living off of 2,000 bucks or less. Focusing on what we pay for rent, transportation/commuting, and food, like how often we eat out as opposed to cooking for ourselves. For me personally, I feel like I live a pretty low-cost lifestyle as it is. I love the idea of minimalism; I have been selling some of my things on Mercari or Craigslist. I want to be able to put all my belongings in my car comfortable and to live anywhere. That is one of my goals. Less is more for me, so so far so good!
2. House Hacking! House hacking is this amazing thing where you purchase a home or a multi-family and rent it out while living in it so essentially someone else is helping to pay off your mortgage. I think that this is genius and very doable. Scott really focuses on this because it’s turning your home into an asset and having someone else pay for your mortgage. It’s genius. You can also Airbnb or rent out just a room. Depending on your situation this might not be for everyone but for me, it would be perfect, especially for my first property purchase!! It is a huge goal of mine to buy a multi-family, either a 3 or a 4 unit, hopefully within the next year or two.
3. Synergizing your work and your hobbies in order to create another source of income. I think this is an amazing idea. You can find ways to make money with the skills and interests you already have. So, for instance, say you love video games, you can become a YouTuber or you can make your own! You can create a business out of your hobbies to create another source of income and because it’s your side hustle you decide how much time and effort you put into it!
4. Always continue your education whether it’s through books, youtube, podcasts, workshops, seminars, etc, never stop learning or developing new skills and working on personal development. This is one of my favorite things that he talks about in this book. He speaks on fine-tuning the skills you already have and specializing. Being a jack of all trades may come in handy now and again but if you focus on a couple of skills and get really good at them then that will get you somewhere. For me, I would like to really focus on communication or people skills, I think anxiety plays a huge role but I get nervous talking to new people and that just won’t help me out at all when and if I become a Realtor or work in sales. I want to become really good at public speaking. I also would love to take a class with google and get certified in either IT or data. I think skills such as coding are becoming extremely important and valuable. So, keeping up with skills that are necessary and needed is vital. It’ll keep you one step ahead!
5. Invest in Index funds... I have definitely heard this before but it’s something that I need to do some more research on. I know there is a way to use index funds as another source of income but I always reinvest my dividends. I think that you have to invest a huge sum of money to have a huge return on dividends? I might be wrong but I think that my dividends aren’t much at all so I wouldn’t be using it as another source of income. Reinvesting them just stacks up my stocks without me even having to worry even if it is a slow process.
6. Work on saving 25,000 (Or in my case 10,000 because 25,000 seems a little bit harder to obtain for me at this time). So, this book's audience is people with a salary of 50,000 a year. I make less than half of that so in order for me to obtain 25,000 I need to first find ways to make/earn more and then I can save more. Baby steps for me though.
7. Swap music for educational content. Towards the back of the book, he talks about habits and habits we should rid ourselves of if we want o stay on top and one thing he said that really struck me was “listening to the same song isn’t going to get you anywhere” so I will be swapping out music in the car while I DoorDash with audible.
8. Fall out of love with the snooze button… I have such a hard time in the morning. I will set alarms from 6 to 9. I will even get up to turn them off and then snooze over and over again. This is one habit that I will rid myself of very soon because I know that that sleep during those hours is not good to sleep, and I want to have a nice morning routine. I think it’s important to have a routine in the morning that involves meditating, journaling, listening to affirmations or inspiring videos. I think it’s important to exercise and drink water and just really take care of yourself in the morning before you have to go out and take care of everyone else. The morning time sets the tone for the rest of the day. It’s a good time to work on your goals, write them down, set intentions, and focus.
9. Use social media only when it’s necessary to build your platform, or for business, otherwise do not spend countless hours scrolling. I have a hard time with social media, mostly Instagram. I used to be obsessed with Twitter and Snapchat but now it’s Instagram. I could scroll and watch reals all day long. But every time I do I feel so down and hard on myself for wasting time. So unless it’s actually beneficial to your business, I suggest staying off it. From now on, I will allow myself 15 minutes to post a day because I want to build a following, but that is all.
10. Track your time and your finances! I mentioned this earlier but I think it is very important to take some time to really write it all out or download an app that helps track it for you. This will help you get a better understand of what you spend your time and money on and how to change it to your liking. You can’t change something if you don’t know what to change.
11. Cut out your commute and expenses by living closer to where you work. This just makes sense right? Spending an hour in traffic one way and an hour in traffic another way just doesn’t make sense. It’s bad for your health, it increases the risk of car accidents, it’s expensive when you take into consideration gas and oil and car maintenances, and it’s a waste of time. If you can work closer to work to where you can ride a bike or walk then that would be ideal. Or better yet work from home! I know it’s not easy and sometimes we feel like we don’t have a choice where we live and work but we do.
12. Know that every purchase will delay your financial freedom so be intentional when spending money. Is going out every Friday moving me forward or setting me back? Is purchasing 12 pairs of shoes going to get me to financial freedom? Do I need a luxury car right now? Really get real with yourself and what you need.
13. Healthcare; choose the plan with a high deductible and low premium. This is something that doesn’t really apply to me right now because I have free insurance through the state but it was something that stood out because I never thought about it before. I think people get worried and think about the what-ifs but those accidents are rare. They do happen, which is why we need an emergency fund and to be mindful. But of course, everyone has to do what makes the most sense to them.
14. Stop wasting time trying to decide on trivial things such as what to wear, where to eat, what to show, etc. Just decide. Pick something. This almost smacked me in the face! Sometimes I will spend 15 minutes trying to decide which book to read first... it truly doesn’t matter because I am going to read both of them. We should be spending time on bigger things that actually matter in the long run!
15. Emergency fund of a couple thousand. I am so glad that I am the type to save and not spend because I checked this off my list already. I am blessed and lucky to have saved money…. Maybe at first I didn’t realize it was just an emergency fund and I still need to save that 25,000 (eventually) but it’s something.
16. Pay off bad debts… So many people have student loans and go a little too crazy with their credit cards. It’s important to figure out which debts to pay off first because interest plays a huge factor in priority.
17. An asset is something that brings in income, many people believe their house is an asset but if you are struggling with a mortgage, you can barely afford it is not an asset. If you are rented out a room or have an Airbnb, then it becomes an asset. This goes back to house hacking. This also has to do with anything else you own though!
18. Choose a job that rewards you for your performance; a job in sales, real estate, etc. AND a job you can scale up until you don’t have to. As a teacher, as much as I loved the job, I realized that there's no way to move up. The position I had was the position and pay rate that I would have always had. I worked even outside of work hours for free. This is the opposite of the type of job you want. It might seem selfish but at this time in my life, I need to focus on getting my finances right before I can give my time away for free. I absolutely love teaching and the kids but at the end of the day, it just didn’t make a whole lot of sense. It drained me of my time and energy.
19. Put yourself in a position to get lucky by having a clear goal, taking action, surrounding yourself with people who have achieved your goal or something similar, network, put yourself in front of opportunities. People who are lucky are people who put themselves out there!! You are way less lucky to become lucky staying home than you are if you went out to networking events.
20. Being Wealthy is a lifestyle. A millionaire or billionaire could lose all their money but tomorrow they will build it all back up again. It’s a mindset and lifestyle.

So, there you have it! I would definitely read it if you are just starting out, in college, or interested in real estate. I hope that we all reach the point where we go to work not because we have to but because we want to. Here's to our path to financial freedom!