Tag: Simplify

Why I stopped drinking alcohol

(Image by sfllaw)

This thread reminded me that it is now 10 years since I stopped drinking alcohol. I haven’t had one drop since.

Sometimes people ask me: Why not just one glass? Why stop completely? Why not enjoy life?

The simple answer is: It simplified my life.

It’s easier to quit something 100% than 98%. It eliminates the decision. There is no internal debate ever again.

Other benefits include: I save money; I sleep better; no hangovers; I can drive anywhere without worrying about driving back; and potential health benefits of course.

Also, I completely removed one vector that could possibly ruin my life.

I just learned that a new industry of non-alcoholic social beverages is emerging. Examples are Kin and Three Spirit. Similar to non-meat meat.

In 10 years, I experienced no social awkwardness or negative reactions. I did experience that my non-drinking often unconsciously reduces the drinking of the people I hang out with. An effect I did not expect.

How did I do it? I went cold turkey. One day I got rid of all alcohol in the house, and never bought anything again. Done.


How to Block Spam Calls

Marketing and spam calls are annoying. A great way to block them is by installing a spam blocker app on your phone.

I am using Truecaller and also the local.ch app to block spam calls. Depending on where you live there might be other local blockers to complement Truecaller which works globally.

Bye bye spam calls!


Will I Buy the New Apple AirPods?

Will I buy the new AirPods? The short answer is: No. Should you buy the new AirPods? The short answer is: Yes. (If you don’t own any yet.)

I bought my AirPods exactly two years ago. To be honest, I was reluctant to buy them. I have been pretty happy with my regular headphones, and was used to the daily untangling ritual. Also, another device you need to charge. And another item in your pocket. Really?

Then I kept reading/hearing positive reviews about them. Most people were surprised how good they were, and recommended the purchase.

So I took the plunge. Today, I can confidently say: It was one of the best sub-$200 purchases I have done in the past two years. I use them every day.

Also, I don’t feel weird anymore. In the first few months, not many people had them, so I stood out. These days, you see them everywhere. But still, I’m surprised how many iPhone users I know that don’t have them yet.

That’s why I’m writing this post, to promote a great product. By the way, dear entrepreneurs, this is what true product/market fit looks like: people can’t stop talking about your product.

Why I love AirPods:

  • No cord untangling anymore (!)
  • You can charge your phone while moving freely around the apartment, listening to something
  • The charging case provides 24 hours of battery life, and it’s always with me
  • It’s much more convenient to listen to audio while walking/hiking, on a bicycle, while brushing teeth, or shaving (yes, I do all of that)
  • When I’m on a long call and my AirPods are about to get empty, I can simply charge them one AirPod at a time, without an interruption to the call and usually without the other party even noticing it
  • Answering a phone by double-tapping an AirPod feels really cool

By now, you should have learned that audio is “titanically important“. Therefore, I highly recommend that you get your pair of AirPods (or some equivalent high-quality wireless headphones, if you don’t have an iPhone). You won’t be disappointed.

Want to see the new AirPods in action? Here’s a video review by Marques Brownlee.


The Cost per Use Principle

Do you want to spend less money than you earn, so you can save more, invest more, and ultimately achieve financial freedom?

Then I suggest you pay attention to the Cost per Use Principle:

For each material possession (especially the most expensive ones), calculate and minimize your cost per use.

Crave a swimming pool? Then interview someone who owns a pool and calculate his cost per use. It could be twenty dollars per swim.

Want to go on vacation with an RV? Then calculate the cost per night and compare it with a regular rental car in combination with hotels/motels/bungalows. The RV rental alone can easily be 100-150 EUR per day. Gas, campsite fees, parking, and additional public transportation not included. A regular rental car costs 20-25 EUR per day, with much less gas expenses. That leaves 75-130 EUR per night for the accommodation and parking. I love renting RVs myself, but you just have to be aware that more often than not, it’s the more expensive option.

Want to buy a Tesla with the largest battery pack and performance package? Compare the cost per kilometer with a smaller battery and regular performance. And then compare it with a pre-owned one. I talked to people who ended up paying more than $2 per kilometer ($3.22 per mile). So if I ever would buy a Tesla (I almost did), I’d do a careful calculation and try to bring my cost per kilometer down as much as possible.

Do your parents own a vacation home? You’d be surprised how much they pay per night if they don’t use it often. For the same money, they could often stay at 4 or 5 star hotels, and not always go to the same place.

I am aware that this is a purely financial perspective. You might want to consider convenience, quality of life, potential appreciation of assets, potential rental income, and other factors that are important to you.

Even more important than that is to make sure to consider the total and true cost of ownership of anything you own. Including maintenance, insurance, storage, opportunity cost of invested capital, your own time, people you need to hire, hassles/headaches, and all other directly and indirectly related expenses.

Of course, the most efficient cost per use is zero. This is achieved by either getting your things for free, or not buying them at all. Here are some hacks:

Hack #1: Instead of buying something, put it on your wishlist and wait for 48 hours. Often, your purchase impulse fades away. Example: Last year, I considered buying an electric moped. I ended up not buying it, and am using my bicycle (in combination with mobility-as-a-service options) ever since.

Hack #2: Force yourself to sell or give away one item before you are allowed to purchase another. Advanced: Give away two or more for each new one.

Hack #3: Make it a habit to buy things used. Example: I recently needed more teaspoons, so I went to a thrift store and bought some for a fraction of the price at IKEA.

Last year, I increased my iPhone cycle from 2 to 3 years, bringing my cost per day down by 33%. If I increase it to 3.5 years, 6 months after the introduction of a new model, I’d be able to buy it second-hand, decreasing my cost per use even further.

This is a powerful principle, and I hope that it will serve you as well as it did me.

[Hat tip to Mr. Money Mustache]


Zero Browser Tab Policy

Open browser tabs are just another nagging reminder of unfinished work. I used to have 5-10 open tabs on my laptop and 50-100 open tabs on my phone. It served as my reading list, my video list, things I was researching.

It didn’t feel right. And it was a source of anxiety.

Then, I implemented a Zero Browser Tab Policy. I now treat my tabs as an inbox that I bring to zero daily:

Now, my browsers feel clean. And whenever I work on something, it gets 100% of my attention, without that nagging reminder of something unfinished.

This is a simple improvement that made my life 1% better. Do enough of such 1% improvements, and they compound into something substantial!


Stop wasting your attention

Ever since reading The 4-Hour Workweek a decade ago I started applying the Low-Information Diet and stopped following the news: no newspapers, no news websites, no news on TV.

The principle is simple:

Quit the news. If it’s important enough you will hear about it from the people around you. In most cases, you won’t hear and miss anything.

This sometimes leads to awkward social situations: Have you heard of the recent oil spill? Nope. The recent terrorist attack? Nope. Did you see what Trump did yesterday? Nope. Did you know that there is a new hot-dog eating champion? Nope.

My attention is the most important resource I have. I’m not going to waste it. For many years, I have done just that. I have read the local newspaper – of the free and low-quality kind – every day. I was a subscriber of periodicals and had stacks of them. I couldn’t keep up. It was a total waste.

Then one day, I quit. It was one of the best decisions of my life.

Today, I’m still far away from a true low-information diet. I’m consuming huge amounts of information. The challenge is to invest my attention as well as possible. I’m approaching it as an investor and capital allocator. Where are great investment opportunities? What is the return on investment?

That’s why I love books and podcast. They offer a great return for me. I also love writing. It improves my thinking.

Occasionally, I have a weak moment and click on a link that leads to a news site. These days, most of them have paywalls, which makes my life easier. Whenever I hit the wall, I close the tab. Done. Thank you dear news site, you have just saved me from another temptation.

To summarize:

Your attention is the most important resource you have.It’s more important than wealth and fame. It’s even more important than time, because it’s depleted faster than the number of hours in a day. You may only have 3 or 4 hours of high-quality attention per day. Invest it wisely!


Zero-based budgeting

Simplify your life by using this powerful principle:

Remove something completely. Then add back what you miss.

  • Instead of “I want to use Facebook less often”, remove it completely and then add the elements back that you miss.
  • Instead of “Let’s keep this, because I might need it someday”, get rid of it now and add it back when you actually need it.

How many hours per day could you save by removing meetings, television, Facebook or Instagram?

Examples from my own life:

  • I simply logged out from Facebook and Instagram and haven’t used it for months.
  • When setting up this website, I got rid of all the pre-installed clutter (comments, tags, categories), and will only add them when I really need them.
  • I stopped watching television when I was 16 and will never own a TV again. I only watch selected things on YouTube and Netflix.
  • My computer desktop has been empty for 10+ years. Instead I use an “Inbox” folder.
  • I sold my scooter with the idea of buying an electric one. I decided to wait a few weeks. The weeks have turned into months and I don’t want to buy one anymore.

How do you apply this principle? Let me know on Twitter.

[Hat tip to Seth Godin]


I (almost) bought a Tesla Model S

As a fellow Mustachian, I am quite proud to not own a car. I save a ton of money and headaches. But I have my weak moments.

One such period was last summer. I convinced myself to buy a used Tesla Model S. I went through the whole process: research, comparison, test drive, negotiation.

Similar to this guy I wanted to approach it more intelligently. I had it all figured out: I would purchase the car through my company, gaining some tax advantages. I would share it on Sharoo to cover the expenses. I would have Free Supercharging for life. So I could use it whenever I wanted, basically for free.

But then I discovered all the hassles of owning and renting out a car:

  • I’d need special insurance that covers third-party renting
  • I’d need a parking space that is publicly accessible
  • I’d need to install a wall charger
  • I’d need to deal with all the pains and hassles of renting a car (renter support, cleaning, repairing damages, vomit incidents, …)

So I came full circle: I want to use a car, and not own one. Period.

I even sold my gasoline scooter. Today, I use a bicycle, Pick-e-Bike (use the code “kfbtm” to get 15 minutes for free), Mobility, Sharoo and Catch a Car.

Catch a Car recently added 30 VW e-Golf’s to it’s fleet. Not as cool as driving a Tesla, but still better than any internal combustion engine car. I’m now driving electric whenever I can!

I have to admit: There is a certain satisfaction in taking a Pick-e-Bike to a VW e-Golf and just driving off, without owning anything.