How to Reach Your Financial Goals

I got the pleasure to chat with Mike from the Dividend Guy Blog, and we talked about different mental models and how I plan to quit my job soon.

You can check out the full interview here. Thanks to Mike for the opportunity. 🙂

The 20 Slot Punch Card – Warren Buffett’s Advice for Success

Speaking of mental models, Warren Buffett once gave a lecture to a business school where he said, “I could improve your ultimate financial welfare by giving you a ticket with only 20 slots in it so that you had 20 punches—representing all the investments that you got to make in a lifetime.

And once you’d punched through the card, you couldn’t make any more investments at all.”

He continues, “Under those rules, you’d really think carefully about what you did and you’d be forced to load up on what you’d really thought about. So you’d do so much better.”

Certain stock market indexes are down over 30% now. Not all stocks will survive this bear market. So now is the time to be more selectively focused than ever.

Even if you’re index investing you still have to make choices regarding which ETFs to buy, portfolio balance, and when to double down on your decision when the market goes against you in the short term.

This concept makes a lot of sense. But so few people frame investing in this manner. If you knew you could only make 20 investments in your lifetime, how differently would you invest? How much more deliberate, more thoughtful, more deep would you go to research a potential investment?

You probably have to reluctantly ignore the good companies to make room for the great ones. That’s easier said than done. But the quality of your investment decisions would be much higher won’t it? 😀

Simplify your life

The beauty of this concept is that you can also apply it in other dimensions of your life. The punch card mental model can be used with relationships, careers, and major goals you may have.

Try to associate yourself only with the 20 people that will make the largest impact on your life. Most relationships are transactional and superficial anyway. You probably won’t find Adele rolling in them. By dropping loose connections you’ll be able to focus more on building stronger relationships that align with your goals and values.

Most of us don’t have enough time to be good at everything. But we can be very good at maybe 10 things over the course of a lifetime. If you want financial management to be one of them, practice selective focus and make it a priority. 🙂

Your chance to succeed will greatly improve when you direct all of your energy and attention to fewer tasks.

This is true when screening for new investments, building social connections, and learning new skills. 🙂 Most people “try things out” for awhile before moving on to something new. That’s why it’s very likely you’ll become successful at whatever you put your mind to, as long you remain committed, which 99% of people don’t do. Sure, you may have to deal with many defeats along the way. But only you can allow yourself to be defeated.

Usually people fail not because they suck, but because they quit. 😉

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Random Useless Fact:

Some things never change.