Everywhere you turn now, people talk about happiness. People are trying to achieve happiness. Some people want others to make them happy, others think owning something will make them happy, and others think that extrinsic things like fame, money, or accolades will make them happy. But what is happiness and how can it be achieved?
Personally, I have always thought that happiness was a choice. It’s something that you have to decide that you want. It’s not something that is created for you by other people or things. It’s something that you were born with and that you have to choose.
There are certain factors that obviously can make you happier in life like having a stable job, a steady and hopefully growing annual income, and a stable family life. Education and money can also make you happier. But those aren’t the things that give you happiness. Generally speaking, those things give you comfort and security. Happiness needs to be a choice. It’s a sense of calm, it’s a sense of balance, it’s a sense of purpose, and it’s a sense of contentment.
I have found a lot of people who make choices. In fact, we are continually making choices. People choose that they want to be rich, they make the choice to get married, they make the choice of where they want to live in the world, and they make the choice about where they’re going to have their kids go to school. People choose how they are going to raise their children and what type of career they’re going to have.
But people do not always think that happiness is a choice despite there being evidence to the contrary. A lot of things in life indicate that happiness is a choice. For example, if you are not happy, there is a good chance that you are continually telling yourself and others that you are not happy or you are constantly in your head telling yourself that you are not happy. Those feelings and those words expressing unhappiness send signals to your mind and body, which then become self-fulfilling prophecies.
If you constantly tell yourself or others that you are not happy, it will reverberate through other areas of your life. It will make it difficult to be content with work, with where you live, with your family, with your business, with your vacation, and even with the things that you have.
Happiness is extremely interesting as a concept.
Many people in the western world try to find happiness by obtaining more money and more things.
And frankly, being from the west, I agree 100% that money helps with being able to choose to be happy. And the reason I believe this is that having money releases a lot of stress, angst, and concerns. Money and wealth help you with your needs and wants.
When you have money, you solve the Basic Needs section of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. With money, you can meet your physiological needs including food, water, and shelter. You also meet your safety needs, which include security and safety. Money can also help you realize the other needs including belongingness/love needs, esteem needs, and even self-actualization.
Source: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs | Simply Psychology
Should money really be taboo?
Being able to provide for your basic needs can give you peace of mind so that you don’t have the additional stress that comes with not having money. So, why do so many people demonize money and people with money? Why is money something taboo to discuss? Money is a tool and I would argue that most people with some level of wealth are doing good with their money. They create products, jobs, and opportunities in addition to supporting causes that are important to them.
For me, I believe in giving back to organizations that are assisting with covering basic needs like food, water, and shelter. I also believe in giving back to organizations that are assisting youth who are striving to get educated and enhance their sporting talents.
Reality
The world over requires money. Nowhere in the world are you able to live a free existence. As such, having the ability to further your education either formally or informally to either work in a high paying job or to start a business gives you the capability to earn money and grow your assets. Becoming an investor provides the capability to obtain equity in businesses or real estate ventures that can have a profound impact on your long-term wealth and on your ability to earn income from passive real estate investing.
Happiness as it relates to being a Passive Real Estate Investor
Investing in passive real estate deals can help with your happiness in the sense that passive real estate investing can cover your income needs. It can help you grow your net worth. It can help you form relationships with fellow investors and Sponsors that may provide for your emotional needs. If you invest with Sponsors who are credible and who you know, like, and trust, I have found that you can generate fairly consistent returns for yourself over the long-term.
As a passive real estate investor, you can earn money on the money that you already have. By co-investing with Sponsors, you also have the ability to grow your passive cash flow and your net worth much more quickly than you would likely be able to do on your own.
The real trick is learning how to choose what level of wealth you need from an early standpoint and then what level of wealth that you ultimately want or desire. You also do not want to blindly do every deal that crosses your desk because that can be a recipe for stress. You should choose to invest in deals that match your beliefs about certain property types and geographic markets. You should then choose the Sponsors to invest with who are investing in properties and markets that align with your investment thesis, and who you believe are going to be trustworthy and reliable, and who you believe will act as a capable fiduciary with building your wealth.
Passive real estate is not rocket science, but you do have to have your own investment thesis. And once you have your investment thesis, you can choose where to place your money.
I have chosen to be happy in life. And passive real estate investing aids in my happiness because of what it does for me. It allows me to leverage my capital. It allows me to leverage somebody else’s knowledge and experience. And since I am also a Sponsor, it gives me happiness to actively invest in real estate and for me to act as a fiduciary and manage money on behalf of other investors.
I’m doing the same thing for my investors that other Sponsors do for me. My knowledge and experience combined with my fiduciary responsibilities enable my investors to sleep better at night.
Passive real estate investing provides more happiness in the sense that investors can use their own capital to earn more money. Having more passive cash flow allows you to focus on the people and things that make you happy in your life whether that’s spending more time with family, focusing on your career, vacationing, or buying the things that you want to buy to make your life more exciting.
All of the things that make you happy can be achieved through passive real estate investing.
When you start out investing in passive real estate investing, it can feel overwhelming if you have not invested before. It can also feel challenging if you are not starting out with a lot of money. For example, if you start with a $10,000 investment, that $10,000 may earn you $600 to $1,000 per year. As such, it takes time and more money to get to a place where you are earning considerably.
On the other hand, if you’re starting with $500,000, you could reasonably expect to make $30,000 to $50,000 per year on that investment.
As your passive income and wealth grows, that can bring about more contentment in your life because you are adding significant assets to your balance sheet that also have the potential to provide in-place cash flow, upside potential, and tax benefits, all of which then allow you to focus on other people and things that enhance your overall happiness.
Real estate is one of those investment vehicles where you can leverage your capital and leverage your time in order to obtain outsized returns. Furthermore, real estate also gives you a physical asset that generally will not reduce in value over the long run.
To Be Clear
Just to clarify, money itself does not give me happiness. However, money gives me flexibility, it gives me freedom of my time, it has given me financial independence, and it has given me financial security.
Money has given me peace of mind and contentment, which I am grateful for. Having the ability to meet my family’s needs makes me content, relaxed, and grateful, all of which do make me happy.
Honestly, since becoming financially independent, I realized that I don’t actually need a lot. But I do need to feel that I have freedom and that I have financial security. An added bonus of being financially secure is that I am happy knowing that I am providing a legacy both financially and educationally for my family and for the charitable causes that I care about.
What will you do to realize your happiness?
Let’s keep growing our passive cash flow and net worth together!
-Robert