Post: #1

So many guys on here talk about 'building the lifestyle' and having zen-like focus on goals and accomplishments. The outcome being that your overall quality of life, albeit very individual, is much better and you can pull higher-quality tail with more ease.

I'm in my mid 20's and am striving towards building a good lifestyle for myself when I reach my 30's but it's still hazy exactly what this 'lifestyle' is that I'm working towards is.

To the guys in their 30s or who have their lifestyle, what defines it for you?

- Having a big bankroll?
- Being a great cook?
- Being in great shape?
- Travelling all around the world?
- Having a beach condo?
- Pulling greater quality tail than when you were younger?

It could be all of the above.

What wheels did you set in motion to reach your goals?

I save almost half of my total take home...but I still feel it's not enough. I go out once a week only on Saturdays, I read some guys only would go out once a month, whilst building their lifestyle, so I feel like I should have saved. But in the end what am I really saving for?

Post: #2

I'm wondering the exact same thing, dk902.

Post: #3

Post: #4

(02-01-2012 07:33 PM)dk902 Wrote:  So many guys on here talk about 'building the lifestyle' and having zen-like focus on goals and accomplishments. The outcome being that your overall quality of life, albeit very individual, is much better and you can pull higher-quality tail with more ease.

I'm in my mid 20's and am striving towards building a good lifestyle for myself when I reach my 30's but it's still hazy exactly what this 'lifestyle' is that I'm working towards is.

To the guys in their 30s or who have their lifestyle, what defines it for you?

- Having a big bankroll?
- Being a great cook?
- Being in great shape?
- Travelling all around the world?
- Having a beach condo?
- Pulling greater quality tail than when you were younger?

It could be all of the above.

What wheels did you set in motion to reach your goals?

I save almost half of my total take home...but I still feel it's not enough. I go out once a week only on Saturdays, I read some guys only would go out once a month, whilst building their lifestyle, so I feel like I should have saved. But in the end what am I really saving for?

Saving money is no longer enough, buddy. You have to make your money breed. You can save all your life and barely have enough to live off of at 65.

That means learning how to make money on the markets. That's the only way you can turn 40,000 worth in savings into 80,000 in a year. It's the only way to not just keep up, but stay ahead.

These days, either you're a capitalist, or a serf. The gap is widening, so you better make your choice and then work at it. I picked some fantastic stocks this year, but because I'm reckless, I didn't realize the gains. I focused on the rat race instead. Not doing that again.

Post: #5

(02-04-2012 12:57 PM)ElJefe Wrote:  These days, either you're a capitalist, or a serf. The gap is widening, so you better make your choice and then work at it.

Definitely this. As the wealth gap continues to increase, it's more important than ever to get started moving upward, or get left behind.

When it comes to the market though, I very rarely pick individual stocks, and never in an attempt to make a quick buck. Too easy to get burned.

Post: #6

"Lifestyle" doesn't have to be about being rich. It can be whatever you want it to be.

Drug dealers create a certain lifestyle, most of them aren't rich.

Same for writers, musicians and artists.

For me, I just want to not rely on other people. I don't mind not making much money, but the money I do make I want to get via hustle, ambition, creativity and intelligence. Not some soul destroying paper pushing shit.

Post: #7

What makes you happy?

Would you rather go out and go to different restaurants every night or would you rather come home to your own personal chef?

Would you rather go out to a movie theatre every now and then or build yourself a huge home theatre?

Would you rather have a tennis/basketball court on your property or would you rather go to a luxurious gym and play pick up games with other (possibly) successful people?

I just don't buy into the having a huge house with all sorts of expenses ideal anymore. I think the uniqueness of your pad may be interesting to you for a little while, but it's easy to get bored of things.

I look at my home/apartment/whatever as a place I come home to for 3 things: 1) sleep/relax 2) fuck 3) cook for myself or have a girl cook for me. Aside from that I would rather be outside, or a part of something else, than stay at home.

Also, living the "dream" is a lot easier when you don't actually buy into things. You can buy a yacht for millions of dollars, or you can rent one occasionally for thousands. You can own your own apartment in various cities or you can just stay at a nice hotel where everything is taken care of while you're in town, and then forget about it once you're gone.

Extra responsibilities, if they don't bring in the possibility of added income-potential, are not worth the money put in (unless you really want it).

Post: #8

(02-04-2012 11:38 PM)kerouac Wrote:  What makes you happy?

Would you rather go out and go to different restaurants every night or would you rather come home to your own personal chef?

Would you rather go out to a movie theatre every now and then or build yourself a huge home theatre?

Would you rather have a tennis/basketball court on your property or would you rather go to a luxurious gym and play pick up games with other (possibly) successful people?

I just don't buy into the having a huge house with all sorts of expenses ideal anymore. I think the uniqueness of your pad may be interesting to you for a little while, but it's easy to get bored of things.

I look at my home/apartment/whatever as a place I come home to for 3 things: 1) sleep/relax 2) fuck 3) cook for myself or have a girl cook for me. Aside from that I would rather be outside, or a part of something else, than stay at home.

Also, living the "dream" is a lot easier when you don't actually buy into things. You can buy a yacht for millions of dollars, or you can rent one occasionally for thousands. You can own your own apartment in various cities or you can just stay at a nice hotel where everything is taken care of while you're in town, and then forget about it once you're gone.

Extra responsibilities, if they don't bring in the possibility of added income-potential, are not worth the money put in (unless you really want it).

I like this post.

I am all about not owning things at this stage in the Game.

I would rather rent, and stay liquid.

Post: #9

(02-04-2012 11:50 PM)thegmanifesto Wrote:  

(02-04-2012 11:38 PM)kerouac Wrote:  What makes you happy?

Would you rather go out and go to different restaurants every night or would you rather come home to your own personal chef?

Would you rather go out to a movie theatre every now and then or build yourself a huge home theatre?

Would you rather have a tennis/basketball court on your property or would you rather go to a luxurious gym and play pick up games with other (possibly) successful people?

I just don't buy into the having a huge house with all sorts of expenses ideal anymore. I think the uniqueness of your pad may be interesting to you for a little while, but it's easy to get bored of things.

I look at my home/apartment/whatever as a place I come home to for 3 things: 1) sleep/relax 2) fuck 3) cook for myself or have a girl cook for me. Aside from that I would rather be outside, or a part of something else, than stay at home.

Also, living the "dream" is a lot easier when you don't actually buy into things. You can buy a yacht for millions of dollars, or you can rent one occasionally for thousands. You can own your own apartment in various cities or you can just stay at a nice hotel where everything is taken care of while you're in town, and then forget about it once you're gone.

Extra responsibilities, if they don't bring in the possibility of added income-potential, are not worth the money put in (unless you really want it).

I like this post.

I am all about not owning things at this stage in the Game.

I would rather rent, and stay liquid.

Thats so true.

I have been advocating that for years. I dont see the point of a single guy owing different properties in different cities unless he is doing it for business. You wanto go somewhere, rent a nice house or flat, stay there till you get bored then move to another place. Spending more than 100k in a house that you will hardly stay is a huge mistake.

There are luxury homes that you can rent for 3000 dollars a month in many parts of the globe and im talking luxury homes. Being rich doesnt cost that much.

Post: #10

Follow your dreams.

Post: #11

Game + Money + Freedom. The later can mean any number of things to different people however, but I take it to mean location independence.

Post: #12

(02-05-2012 12:31 AM)pitt Wrote:  Thats so true.

I have been advocating that for years. I dont see the point of a single guy owing different properties in different cities unless he is doing it for business. You wanto go somewhere, rent a nice house or flat, stay there till you get bored then move to another place. Spending more than 100k in a house that you will hardly stay is a huge mistake.

There are luxury homes that you can rent for 3000 dollars a month in many parts of the globe and im talking luxury homes. Being rich doesnt cost that much.

I would purchase a 100k house that is worth 300k. In fact, I am looking at one right now. I probably won't even live there.

Post: #13

I'm in a great position atm in life. At 25 I'm very privileged and lucky enough to have a freehold home (no mortgage), a very good job at a great company that most people in this forum would know about, a decent bankroll saved and a big network of v successful people in London. I am $2,000 away from zero debt.

Unfortunately, I can say this. I hate owning too many things. I dislike even owning a home (even outright) it is not an asset, it is one giant expense and I'm also responsible for another person. Property is a great investment but not if you live in it! Plus owning too many things is not all that it is cracked up to be.

As echoed above, owning loads of things is rubbish. The only things I genuinely enjoy owning are a) a high spec macbook, b) my ipad to read books on, c) my wardrobe 4) my gym membership. I spend more time taking cabs versus actually owning a car/driving (works out a lot cheaper as well) and I enjoy cooking my own food versus eating out all the time. Although eating out at the best restaurants for a nice occassion (promotion, birthdays, landmark achievement etc) is always a great treat.

Post: #14

This guy has it all figured out (posted here before - few excerpts below): http://finance.yahoo.com/news/deep-thoug...l?page=all

"Twelve years ago, Nicolas Berggruen sold his apartment, which was filled with French antiques, on the 31st floor of the Pierre Hotel in Manhattan. He said he no longer wanted to be weighed down by physical possessions. He did the same with his Art Deco house on a private island near Miami. From that point on he would be homeless.

Now he keeps what little he owns in storage and travels light, carrying just his iPhone, a few pairs of jeans, a fancy suit or two, and some white monogrammed shirts he wears until they are threadbare.

His social calendar tends to be full no matter where he is. A dual citizen of Germany and the U.S. who speaks three languages, Berggruen makes a point of having lunch and dinner each day with someone intriguing.

In the evening, Berggruen is frequently photographed at parties with attractive women such as British actress Gabriella Wright.

But Berggruen isn’t satisfied with mere wealth and glamour. He also wants to be taken seriously as an intellectual."

Post: #15

Im currentlly reading Steve Jobs biography and i find it odd that he never liked the idea of having furnitures at his house and he never cared much about material possessions.

He was obsessed in inventing outstanding products and marketing them well.

Its crazy that a guy who was worth so much money didnt care at all about material possessions.

Post: #16

Steve Jobs also built a huge yacht. I think one reason he didn't appear to care very much about material possessions is that he had an extreme aesthetic sense; most objects were probably not sufficiently well designed in his mind, so he had only the few that met with his approval. Great book BTW.

Post: #17

(01-15-2013 05:05 PM)presidentcarter Wrote:  This guy has it all figured out (posted here before - few excerpts below): http://finance.yahoo.com/news/deep-thoug...l?page=all

But Berggruen isn’t satisfied with mere wealth and glamour. He also wants to be taken seriously as an intellectual."

Perfect example of having everything you could want (women, your own plane, $2.5B worth) and still be unsatisfied. Sounds like he feels insecure about his intellectual accomplishments.

Post: #18

Freedom is #1 in my lifestyle.

My lifestyle is 100% about me. I don't do it for girls, I don't do it for my family, I don't do it for society.

I do what makes me happy, period.

My lifestyle is actually pretty boring. I don't even go out at night because I would rather sleep then chase pussy after sunset.

Your lifestyle is your life. Create it and protect it like you would your life.

I love to say "no" to people. It's my life and I don't want anybody fucking with it.

Okay, I will try to answer the OP's specific questions..

(02-01-2012 07:33 PM)dk902 Wrote:  To the guys in their 30s or who have their lifestyle, what defines it for you?

- Having a big bankroll?
- Being a great cook?
- Being in great shape?
- Travelling all around the world?
- Having a beach condo?
- Pulling greater quality tail than when you were younger?

It could be all of the above.

The short answer is all of the above.

But, for me personally, the biggest keys to my lifestyle are LOW OVERHEAD. I can live on about 1300 dollars a month. I don't have alot of financial pressure.

FREE TIME. I work about 30 hours a week so I have time to do whatever the fuck I want.

ACCESS TO COLLEGE GIRLS. I live near a major university and a few junior colleges.

PLAYING BASKETBALL/SOCCER. This is better then sex sometimes.

GOOD FOOD. I need this. I live near Whole Foods.

That's the lifestyle I like. I would like to make more money and travel more. I working on that.

(02-01-2012 07:33 PM)dk902 Wrote:  What wheels did you set in motion to reach your goals?

I went to school.
I bought a small, cheap condo-loft with a small mortgage in a good location.
I quit my full time job.
I played basketball almost everyday for 20 years.
I decided that I would define my own success.

That worked pretty well for the first 35 years. But, I think things will change a bit as I get older.

Post: #19

Sounds like you need a long-term goal.

I can tell you mine = retired in SA before I have a single grey hair. That doesn't do much though. You just need to ask what you want in 10 years.

How you reach your conclusion is different for everyone.

Below is my conclusions:
First year in night game I saved under 10% of income and blew through thousands upon thousands approaching learning and carving out my own type of "game". Starting to see this as a common theme, by year 3-4 you try to maximize game or lower the cost then it's all up to the individual.

People can say what they want about the material lifestyle, I hated it. The haters can say what they will that I've never seen it etc etc but I have dated some girls worth $100M+ through inheritance (pure numbers game) and it was not a life I'm interested in. Have pictures to prove as well of course. (Yes of course I tried to keep these on the hook for the financial sake but fell through).

So I learned over the years the following.
1. Prefer Latinas, 2. Don't care about cars or homes because the maintenance alone is not worth my time, 3. Need to continue searching for better people to meet, even this forum is a damn good filter, 4. Continuously improve salesmanship, 5. Helping people is fun.

Overall should be thankful for not swallowing the "blue pill" because the later you get into living for yourself "red pill" the longer and harder it is to undo many years of bad game, bad mindsets and bad social circles.

With all that said I noticed I'll think about the question you posed when I'm stuck in the same routine, so go and do something off schedule. Don't save 50% for a month, save 40% once and take up some random a activity from bartending classes to yoga to basketball to visiting a city. If you want to keep the savings rate, maybe mix up the venue you go to, take a bus to a random city, day game, go out on Thursdays only... Just mix up your schedule. Stagnation is death.

Post: #20

To answer some of your questions -
Do I have a big bankroll? Yes
Am I in great shape? Yes
Do I travel around the world? Yes
Do I pull better tail than when I was younger? Yes

But don't get lost in the weeds. I am 38 and the two most valuable resources for men my age are time and freedom. Everything else is details. So what is time and freedom?

- My friend from business school invited me to an opening of some fancy restaurant in NYC. "Hey John, want to come?" "Sure, let me book my flight. See you in 3 days." My former boss who is worth $30mm but has a wife and young kid? He can't go, he has family obligations.

- I go on a bender Fri night and I wake up Sat around 11am, and start watching the early college football games. I am lazy as shit so I continue to watch the late afternoon game before acquiring some chips and guacamole to munch on during the night game. Why would I have a lazy Saturday and accomplish nothing? Because I can, thats why. My good friend with 4 kids who went out with me that Friday? First, his shrew of a wife made him get up at 7am while dealing with a pounding headache to make the kids breakfast because she was nice enough to "let him out" (good description for a Irish setter, but not a man) the night before. I think he managed to watch a quarter of one game between mowing the lawn and taking his son to his soccer game.

- I have a single friend from childhood who is as queer as a 3 dollar bill (not there is anything wrong with that), havent seen him in years. He fucked around in his 20's, trying to save the world and build farms in Haiti or some shit while saving exactly zero dollars. It will be great to catch up after all these years so "Hey, lets grab some sushi at xyz sushi place". "Hmmm, sounds expensive, how about 5 guys?". A 38 year old cant afford a $50 dinner because he didnt save dollar one.

- I was fortunate enough to make a lot of money in my career. Did I stretch to buy a $2mm single family home to live like some pretend king and have rooms I will never enter? No, I bought a $500k condo in cash. It's nice, 1,300 sq ft, with great city views and a rooftop deck where I have entertained many a lady. It's all I need, been there 7 years now. My college buddy? He stretched at a young age (26) to buy a single family home for $500k to impress his wife. 12 years later, its STILL stressful trying to make the payments and the ever increasing property taxes.

- Do I chase tail 5 nights a week? No, because I don't feel like it. I have a soft harem of 3 girls I rotate, because thats the way I like it. I really don't care what my buddies wives (you are immoral!) or my PUA friends (you need to approach more!) think.

- I go to the doctor and the nurse measures my resting heart rate at 50. "wow, are you some kind of athlete?". "No, I just have no stress".

Freedom is the most important thing you can have. Never fucking forget it.

Post: #21

(02-01-2012 07:33 PM)dk902 Wrote:  - Having a big bankroll?
- Being a great cook?
- Being in great shape?
- Travelling all around the world?
- Having a beach condo?
- Pulling greater quality tail than when you were younger?

What wheels did you set in motion to reach your goals?

Have a big bankroll? I don't need one. I need a bankroll that gets my bills paid and keeps me comfortable. More money is always nice, however.

Being in great shape? Absolutely. This is super important both for immediate and long term health goals.

Travel all around the world? THIS. Above all else, this is probably the most important to me that I haven't been able to accomplish yet. I've traveled, but nowhere near to the extent that I want to.

Have a beach condo? Not unless I'm living there year round.

More chicas? I could care less. I'm here for me.

The number one thing I did was to really start to keep track of my goals. Quantifiable goals - instead of "I want to be a better swimmer" say, "I want to go swimming 4x/month". I keep track of my daily language practice, workouts, and weight. I update my list of books I've read every month, and keep my friends updated on my progression so that can hound me about stuff or join me in my quixotic attempts at doing the impossible.

If I could give any advice to someone starting out it's this: Break down what you want to achieve into small, easy to manage pieces and record your progress.

It's one thing to say you want to scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef, it's another to say "I want to learn to swim/I want to practice swimming daily/I want to go snorkeling/I want to learn to scuba dive/I want to book my trip/I want to see the Great Barrier Reef".

Post: #22

(01-17-2013 01:41 AM)John Galt2 Wrote:  To answer some of your questions -
Do I have a big bankroll? Yes
Am I in great shape? Yes
Do I travel around the world? Yes
Do I pull better tail than when I was younger? Yes

But don't get lost in the weeds. I am 38 and the two most valuable resources for men my age are time and freedom. Everything else is details. So what is time and freedom?

- My friend from business school invited me to an opening of some fancy restaurant in NYC. "Hey John, want to come?" "Sure, let me book my flight. See you in 3 days." My former boss who is worth $30mm but has a wife and young kid? He can't go, he has family obligations.

- I go on a bender Fri night and I wake up Sat around 11am, and start watching the early college football games. I am lazy as shit so I continue to watch the late afternoon game before acquiring some chips and guacamole to munch on during the night game. Why would I have a lazy Saturday and accomplish nothing? Because I can, thats why. My good friend with 4 kids who went out with me that Friday? First, his shrew of a wife made him get up at 7am while dealing with a pounding headache to make the kids breakfast because she was nice enough to "let him out" (good description for a Irish setter, but not a man) the night before. I think he managed to watch a quarter of one game between mowing the lawn and taking his son to his soccer game.

- I have a single friend from childhood who is as queer as a 3 dollar bill (not there is anything wrong with that), havent seen him in years. He fucked around in his 20's, trying to save the world and build farms in Haiti or some shit while saving exactly zero dollars. It will be great to catch up after all these years so "Hey, lets grab some sushi at xyz sushi place". "Hmmm, sounds expensive, how about 5 guys?". A 38 year old cant afford a $50 dinner because he didnt save dollar one.

- I was fortunate enough to make a lot of money in my career. Did I stretch to buy a $2mm single family home to live like some pretend king and have rooms I will never enter? No, I bought a $500k condo in cash. It's nice, 1,300 sq ft, with great city views and a rooftop deck where I have entertained many a lady. It's all I need, been there 7 years now. My college buddy? He stretched at a young age (26) to buy a single family home for $500k to impress his wife. 12 years later, its STILL stressful trying to make the payments and the ever increasing property taxes.

- Do I chase tail 5 nights a week? No, because I don't feel like it. I have a soft harem of 3 girls I rotate, because thats the way I like it. I really don't care what my buddies wives (you are immoral!) or my PUA friends (you need to approach more!) think.

- I go to the doctor and the nurse measures my resting heart rate at 50. "wow, are you some kind of athlete?". "No, I just have no stress".

Freedom is the most important thing you can have. Never fucking forget it.

Great thread, great post. This really interests me as I'm in the very beginning stages of creating my optimal lifestyle. I'm currently in 5-8 G's of debt but luckily(?) I'm living at home with no real expenses. My plan short-term is to be out of debt and living in an area that is full of Latin immigrants and near things that interest me sometime this summer. My plan long-term (10 years) is to have enough passive income to literally live and travel as I please.

Now I won't have a S500 but I don't really need one, chances are I'll still have a luxury car and have decent material things but the allure to me is having the option to do as I please, when I please, without giving a fuck what anyone else thinks.

The bad news is I will have to "work" 60 hours or more with a commute for the next 8 years to set this life up. The good news is "work" is pretty low-key and I have a lot of time to read things that interest me and plan for the future. Also work is per-diem so I won't miss opportunities to do things that I'm interested in...

Basically I'm interested in reading about things I'M interested in (not what others tell me I should learn about), the leisure time that passive income provides and the freedom to travel WHERE I want WHEN I want for how long I WANT...


All of these ideas factored into me no longer pursuing graduate school and pursuing this passive income instead.

Post: #23

As a man of only 22 years, I wanted to thank you guys for weighing in on this discussion as it gives good direction to how I want my future to play out. Very helpful indeed.

Post: #24

(01-16-2013 06:10 PM)WestCoast Wrote:  Sounds like you need a long-term goal.

I have a long term goal. Location Independent Income.

What I need is a plan!

I can rent out my condo right now and make 200-300 dollars a month. But, that's not enough to live on.

I need a couple thousand! This is my new challenge in life.

I'm not sure if I should just work a regular 9-5 and buy another rental property? Get into some sort of internet marketing or internet sales? Try to be a game coach?

In many ways, I am already retired, I just need to increase my income and maintain my freedom.

(01-17-2013 01:41 AM)John Galt2 Wrote:  Why would I have a lazy Saturday and accomplish nothing? Because I can, thats why.

Freedom is Beautiful.

My married friends ask me what I do on weekends. My answer -- Whatever the fuck I want!

Post: #25

(01-21-2013 10:21 PM)Giovonny Wrote:  My married friends ask me what I do on weekends. My answer -- Whatever the fuck I want!

Freedom truly is the greatest feeling in the world.

One of my buddies from high school knocked up his live-in girlfriend about a year ago. We used to chill together every weekend, smoking up, spinning records and playing guitar. Now he spends his Saturdays wiping shit and trying not to make too much noise so the baby will stay asleep until the mama gets home from working a shitty part-time job as a waitress.

I don't even remember what I did this past Saturday, but I'm sure it consisted of sleeping in, getting fucked up with friends, banging my regular girl, and shooting the shit about the upcoming Sunday NFL games.

Again - freedom truly is the greatest feeling in the world.