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I enjoy having a couple of hours to myself every day. I like being alone, not in the sense that I’m anti-social but in a way that’ll allow me to stay focused and get lost in my deep thoughts.
Having two different cultures when you’re in your prime can make things harder, especially when you’re trying to fit into a crowd and not look weird. In my younger years, I thought the way to be cool and accepted was to follow the generational trends. I still do, but from a more production point of view.
It was until the financial journey that I realized how many complications I had been bringing to my life by spending carelessly, wasting time and not being true to myself. The best part is, they don’t require much effort as long as you have the will.
Table of Contents
Music for podcasts
Who’s not a fan of music? I know I love music.
Music has melodic notes that send out vibrations that, when listened to, can have an affect on your mood. You don’t even need to understand the lyrics; you’ll automatically match the vibration. Sometimes, I will listen to rap battles, log into those hip-hop forums, give my two cents in, and argue with people that I don’t even know.
But in the past two years, I’ve found myself listening to more podcasts than music for the most part. This has happened ever since I stumbled onto the ChooseFI podcast. It has been a life changer. When you listen to those that were once where I am today, to where I see myself to be tomorrow, it is priceless.
Some of my favorites:
ChooseFI
Earn and Invest
The Mental Wealth Show
The Personal Finance Podcast
Certainly, it doesn’t have to be a financial podcast in your situation. It could be history, sports, or comedy, depending on what you’re interested in. The goal is to connect and use your time wisely.
Music is indeed the language of the soul, while podcasts are the language of learning.
Avoid distraction and stay focused.
When I look back when I was growing up in Haiti, getting distracted was nothing compared to all the gadgets and resources we have in the United States of America.
I remember listening to a podcast, but can’t remember which one of the four I mentioned. After the interviewee finished talking about the different businesses he’s running, his real estate business, and being active on social media, the host asked him how he found the time to do all this and enjoy his family.
Finally, someone asked the question I’ve been wanting to ask for a long time. Often, you hear people running multiple businesses when it’s hard for the average person like me to manage time for the side gigs, nine-to-five, and family.
At that moment, I stopped whatever I was doing and focused entirely on hearing what his strategy was.
He said. He schedules specific blocks of time during the week for each. When it comes to his presence on social media, he schedules his tweets ahead of time and doesn’t spend more than an hour a day on these platforms. Once the time is up, these apps get blocked on his phone. And the weekends are dedicated to his family and close friends, which explains why he’s not reachable via mobile because he’s disconnected from everything.
It was the simplest and most realistic answer ever.
I’m not close to his level, but I’ve noticed his strategy works. Let’s say I get more done when I schedule some time, shut everything down around me, and focus on my task. For example, when I’m on my computer doing research or reading an article, depending on the sound notification, I can tell if it came from Facebook, Reddit, Instagram, or Twitter platforms. By default, I’d stop, click on the tab, check the notification, and rarely go back to what I originally started.
Toxic friendships for a mentorship
It’s pointless to cultivate friendships with people who can’t help you progress. We all have partygoers as friends and those who society considers “not cool” because they are too preoccupied with their future to party.
I had friends that were reachable only if it was time to party but rarely, not to say never, available when stranded or there to support your small business, regardless of whether you’re always there for them no matter how small the gesture is.
Since then, I’ve joined the isolated ‘not cool’ group to prevent my mental health from becoming like theirs. Ever since, I’ve been reading more and conversing with people who share my interests or from whom I can learn something. It’s been incredible.
Solitude is power
In a nutshell
Despite the friendship treatment pattern, I still consider some of them my friends.
I gave up trying to keep up with everything going on in the music industry. As I said in the beginning, I enjoy being by myself for a couple of hours during the day. As a result, I am able to learn new skills, spend more time with my family, be more creative, and find more peace in my life.
It’s not going to be simple to break a habit. But, in the long run, doing so gradually will bear fruit.
Now, I follow the generation wealth trend. The ones that are willing to share the process of how to live within their means. What to look for before repeating the same mistakes.
What are your thoughts? What would you be willing to trade to better your life?
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Gio founded TheGrowthFocusedGuy in January 2020 because he was fed up with debt.
His mission is to document his journey to Financial Independence in order to motivate and inspire others to get out of debt and begin building generational wealth.
