9 Lessons I Learned After Following James Altucher's Work

11 Nov 2024 #misc

It’s hard to define what James Altucher does.

He’s an investor, podcaster, writer, chess player, and comedian. That’s only what he shares on podcast interviews. Who knows what his next career will be.

I found James Altucher’s work by pure accident. I was looking for ways to get better at writing and found the advice of writing 10 headlines a day. That was inspired by James’ ideas.

Since then, I’ve been binge-watching and binge-reading James Altucher’s work in Quora, Medium, and his own website.

A guy that has made millions and lost it all, not just once but at least twice has a lot to teach. Here is what I’ve learned from him.

1. If you don’t know what to do with your life, start with your health

That’s what I’ve been doing after losing my last job. An end and a start of something new that I still don’t know what it will be.

Uncertainty in a single word. I’ve been questioning my life choices since then.

When facing those moments of uncertainty, James teaches to start with your health and get 1% better every day. That means doing something for your body, mind, and spirit. That’s what he calls the “Daily Practice.”

Since then, my daily practice has been:

• Starting the day with a glass of water,
• Working out,
• Cutting sugar and processed foods,
• Having a moment of silence, and
• Writing.

2. Write 10 ideas a day

This is part of the 1% daily improvement: Do something creative. Every. Day.

Turn yourself into an idea machine by writing 10 ideas a day.

After losing it all for the first time, James bought cheap waiter’s pads and started to write down ideas to get up again. He then wrote ideas for others and gave them away for free. Those ideas brought new opportunities for him.

Write 10 ideas a day or your idea muscle will atrophy.

3. Always be learning from everyone, then write about it

Everyone and every situation around us have something to teach us. Notice it and write about it. That could be part of your 10-ideas-a-day practice.

That’s what I’m doing right now by writing what I’ve learned from James.

4. You don’t need to meet your mentors

You need mentors in your life. But you don’t have to meet them.

I don’t know James in the real world. I will probably never meet him. But he has inspired me a lot since I’ve been following his work. He’s a virtual mentor.

Imagine that your mentor has already passed away and to learn from him, you have to follow the clues he left in his work. Find someone who inspires you and read his books and writings.

The best mentors are books.

5. Find your Plus, Equal, and Minus

To get better at any skill, you don’t only need mentors. You need to find your Plus, Equal, and Minus.

Plus is the people that inspire you. Your teachers, mentors, and favorite authors. James is one of those. Tim Denning, Dan Koe, and Nicolas Cole are some of my Plus in the writing space.

Equal is the people taking the same path with you. Your peers, coworkers, and friends. These people challenge you to continue improving.

Minus is the people you can teach. People one step behind the path you’re taking.

6. Making, keeping, and growing money are different skills

James lost it all multiple times. He shares that he was good at making money, but not at keeping it and growing it. He made the wrong investments and bad purchases.

Money is a totally different set of skills to master.

7. Reinvent yourself every 5 years

That’s from “Reinvent Yourself,” one of James’ books. And that’s from 2017 when AI wasn’t mainstream.

These days the need for reinvention is urgent. Our world is changing dramatically fast. Relying on the same skills we learned five years ago is too risky.

Reinvention means finding new sources of income.

To start your reinvention, start reading 500 books on a subject. If you don’t know where to start, find a book you like, read it, and read another 499 about the same subject. You’re free to drop it and start all over again.

8. Have multiple sources of joy

That’s from an episode of the podcast School of Greatness on YouTube.

During that episode, James shared he had businesses, writing, comedy, and chess. When things didn’t go as expected in one area, he went to another one.

I wish I had learned that before.

For some time, I only tried to find joy in my day job. That was a painful mistake. When things went sideways, I got burned out. I had stopped exercising and doing any of my hobbies. Eventually, all of that made me fall sick. Literally.

Lesson learned the hard way! Have multiple sources of joy.

9. Be like Google, my friend

Google is the go-to resource for information. (Until AI takes over)

We don’t spend too much time on Google. We ask questions and it takes us to somewhere else. In spite of that, we keep going back to Google and it’s one of the most valuable companies in the world. That’s the Google effect.

Be like Google. Be a bank. Be the source of information. Connect people with answers.

Parting Thought

James has a captivating and inspiring story. He has made millions and lost it all, and he’s open about it. From a Computer Science major to be someone difficult to put in a box and label, with multiple careers and skills.

James’ story teaches you can choose yourself, reinvent yourself, and skip the lines.

It's Better To Be Poor Doing Something You Love, Than To Be Rich Doing Something You Hate

10 Nov 2024 #misc

That’s a quote I found last week while watching a conversation between Tom Bilyeu and Rich Roll on YouTube. They were discussing Tom’s mindset changes and work history.

That quote is an invitation to reflect what we’re willing to give up in exchange for money.

It reflects what I’ve been going through since last year.

In 2023, I hit rock-bottom. But it wasn’t a money thing. In fact, I was making the most money I had made in my career as a software engineer.

Things were good until they weren’t.

I woke up and didn’t feel the drive to show up to work. I wasn’t learning and having fun. I was just for the money.

Every Sunday evening I felt anxious anticipating next Monday routine. Another daily meeting, another JIRA ticket, another Pull Request…Arrggg!

I knew I needed to do something but I was too comfortable and afraid of taking risks. I tried to control things around me. And I failed at that.

All my frustration lead to anger and resentment. It made sick literally.

That’s why when I was “let go” at the begging of 2024, I felt relieved.

I was scared of making a change by myself. And life, God, or the Universe gave me a little “push.”

I was fortunate to have enough “f*ck-you” money to finance my living expenses all these months.

Now, I’m reinventing my career.

I’m taking care of my health. I read and write. I’ve been recording some coding courses and doing some freelancing on the side.

I haven’t figured out everything yet. I need a way to make money more consistently. I need to refill my “f*ck-you” money pockets. I don’t know when I will need them again.

Definitely, Mondays are not the same when you wake up to do something you love.

Your Keystrokes Are Limited, Here's How You Preserve Them

09 Nov 2024 #misc

Preserve your keystrokes. They’re limited.

That’s a piece of advice I learned from one of Scott Hanslman’s talks about productivity.

This isn’t an invitation to write less or write shorter content. It’s an invitation to make private knowledge public.

Often valuable knowledge and lessons die in email threads or Slack channels. Apart from the original recipients, nobody else can read them. That’s how you “waste” your keystrokes.

Make those private email threads or Slack messages public by turning them into wiki entries, tutorials, or blog posts. That’s how you preserve your keystrokes.

I’m answering almost all my questions in public to preserve my keystrokes.

The other day, one of my email subscribers replied to one of my emails with a question about writing. I replied and then turned that reply into a post.

Another day, a reader contacted me after going through my takeaways from Ultralearning. And again, I expanded my reply into a separate post.

Don’t let knowledge die in private channels. Preserve your keystrokes and share a link to a public writing instead.

This Is the Real Reason Why Coders (and Everyone Else) Should Write

08 Nov 2024 #writing

Don’t write to attract recruiters or create a brand.

Sure. Those are benefits of writing online. When we write online, good and unexpected things happen.

By writing online, we gain followers, build a brand, attract opportunities, and skip hiring lines.

By luck or accident, I made my first internet money writing, because I showed some of my posts.

But the real reason to write online is:

Clear thinking.

Write to think clearly. Write to formulate your ideas coherently, with no fluff.

Before you write, you have to put your thoughts in order. You need a message. You need structure. You need a reader persona.

That’s more valuable than recruiters knocking at your door with “life-changing opportunities for well-known companies in the tech sector.”

Writing is the most valuable and transferable skill you can learn.

From Now On Here's How I'm Answering: What Stocks Should I Buy?

07 Nov 2024 #misc

“What companies should I buy in my brokerage account?”

That was a question that popped up in a Whatsapp group with some of my ex-coworkers and colleagues. In fact, it was not the first time that question popped up. From the same person.

Here’s what I answered:

“If you don’t want to be a full-time investor, go with a broad market index fund. If you don’t know which one, pick any that tracks the S&P500, like VOO or SPY.”

But I was wrong.

Not that my answer was wrong. I’m not a money expert. But I’ve read some money books and changed my mind about money. I realized that the question itself shows something more: not doing the homework and outsourcing thinking to somebody else.

It’s like asking: “Do you know anyone I should marry?”

You’re completely at the good intentions of the other person. He should guess the traits you’re looking for in a partner and go through all his relatives, friends, and acquaintances to see if there’s anyone with those traits. He misses lots of things to answer that question.

I’m not answering, “what companies I should buy in ?" anymore.

The right answer is:

1. Don’t ask your poor friends for money advice. The most expensive advice is the one you get for free.
2. If you don’t know what to invest in, start investing in yourself, so you can decide on your own where to put your money.
3. Never let somebody else tell you what to do with your own money.

The only thing I can share is: “Here is what I do with my money…”

“Ask the jeweler for jewelry advice.” — The Richest Man in Babylon

That’s how I’m answering that question in the future.