The last chapter on the NR.
- Aug 5, 2024
- 3 min read
We could not let go of the New Rich without mentioning what not to do. The journey to freedom includes mistakes, but you can make fewer if warned about some.
The New Rich Mistakes, let's go!
"If you don't make mistakes, you're not working on hard enough problems. And that is a big mistake." – Frank Wilczek.
Top New Rich Mistakes:
As Timothy Ferriss points out, errors are part and parcel of lifestyle design. It involves resisting the ingrained impulses from a life focused on retirement-based deferral.
Here are the common pitfalls you will encounter. Don't be discouraged; it's all part of the journey.
1.Losing Sight of Dreams and Falling into Busywork: Everyone experiences this, but many get stuck and never escape it.
2.Micromanaging and Emailing to Fill Time: Establish responsibilities, problem scenarios, rules, and limits for autonomous decision-making—then step back for everyone's sanity.
3.Handling Problems Outsourcers or Coworkers Can Handle: Avoid this at all costs. There's no productivity or improvement in doing so.
4.Helping Outsourcers or Coworkers with Recurring or Non-Urgent Problems: Provide them with if-then rules for solving all but the most significant issues. Grant them the autonomy to act within set boundaries and emphasize that you will not assist with problems covered by these rules. For instance, allow outsourcers to resolve any issue costing less than $400. Review their decisions periodically and adjust the rules accordingly.
5.Chasing Customers, Especially Unqualified or International Prospects, When You Have Sufficient Cash Flow: You never want to chase your customers. No matter how big or important they seem, you always want to attract them.
6.Answering Emails That Won't Lead to a Sale or Can Be Addressed by an FAQ or Auto-Responder: Use auto-responders to direct people to the appropriate information.
7.Working Where You Live, Sleep, or Relax: Separate your environments—designate a specific space for work only, or you will never be able to escape it.
8.Failing to Perform a Thorough 80/20 Analysis Regularly: If you don't stop to analyze and update, you will eventually stop improving, comfort will set in, and your business will suffer.
9.Striving for Perfection Rather Than Good Enough: Recognize that striving for endless perfection is often just another excuse for busy work. Focus on achieving outstanding results for a few things and good enough for the rest.
10.Blowing Small Problems Out of Proportion to Justify Work: If you're a workaholic, this is a common slip, but take a step back and gain perspective.
11.Making Non-Urgent Issues Seem Urgent to Justify Work: Focus on life outside your bank accounts, as scary as that might be initially. Suppose you cannot find meaning in your life. In that case, you are responsible for creating it through fulfilling dreams or finding purposeful work.
12.Viewing a Product, Job, or Project as the End-All and Be-All: Life is too short to waste and too long to be a pessimist. Whatever you're doing now is just a stepping stone to the next project or adventure.
13.Ignoring the Social Rewards of Life: Surround yourself with positive, smiling people who have nothing to do with work. Create your muses alone if necessary, but do not live your life alone. Shared happiness through friendship and love is happiness multiplied.
-> Have you often made these mistakes?
Do you see yourself as part of the New Rich?
There's no wrong answer, just options to consider.
Last thoughts:
When it comes to mistakes, let some small bad things happen. Sometimes, you must let the small bad things go to achieve the big things. Cultivate this skill.
Once you realize you can ignore the noise without the world ending, you gain a unique kind of freedom. Without attention, you have no time. Time without attention is meaningless, so prioritize attention over time.
If you don't have attention, you don't have time.
-> Whether or not you see yourself as part of the New Rich, these are human mistakes. Eliminating them can only improve your life.
See you in a week.
Your Zine.
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