"Navigating Delayed Gratification" is a Unique Superpower

Good morning!

I hope this finds you well.

Welcome to another edition of The Matt Viera Newsletter.

The newsletter with the goal to inspire you to live the life you actually want to live.

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I'm convinced there are 3 types of people in the world:

• People who invest in life experiences

• People who don't invest in life experiences

• People who are waiting to invest in life experiences

It's those people who are waiting to invest in life experiences that I want to ask:

"What are you waiting for? If you have the time and money, what's the holdup?"

Sure, some people have financial goals they are trying to achieve before investing in life experiences, e.g., saving money for the down payment on a house.

But, is investing in a life experience really going to derail your financial goals?

Let's put a pin in that question for now.

A few weeks ago, I walked to a bar in Brooklyn on a Friday afternoon to meet a friend for a few drinks.

During this stroll, I decided to listen to a financial podcast.

The title of the podcast episode is "Navigating Delayed Gratification."

The podcast is hosted by two Certified Financial Planners (I'll post a link to the podcast below).

This episode resonated with me because the hosts argued why you should not hold off (delay gratification) pursuing anything that you want to do and may bring you happiness, i.e., invest in a life experience.

Here are three points the hosts presented:

"Create awareness on where you are now"

Most people over-save/over-invest to build wealth for their future.

But, run the numbers.

Running the numbers will present a clear financial picture of whether spending money on a dream vacation now will derail your future financial goals.

Most of the time, you'll find that it won't.

"Keep in mind the risks of delaying gratification"

Over-saving/over-investing now is preparing you for a future that is not guaranteed.

Don't wait.

Your health may decline. You run the risk of burning out. For those of you with kids, your kids will move out when they grow up, and you may not be able to take that family vacation you've been dreaming of.

It's simply not worth preparing for a future that is not guaranteed at the expense of the present.

And, my favorite point the hosts presented:

"Consider a mini-retirement"

At this point, the hosts were really speaking my language.

Side note: I'm known on X (formerly Twitter) as "the go-to guy" regarding mini-retirements.

The hosts argued that a mini-retirement should be considered as the antidote for finding balance in whatever professional (and wealth-building) goals you are pursuing.

Here's my argument to support that point:

I quit a career working 60-80+ hours per week with 1 week of vacation per year for a career with:

• Phenomenal benefits

• Regular salary increases

• A tremendous amount of PTO

I transitioned from one career to another simply because I wanted to experience life before retirement (not after).

When I first transitioned from practicing law to my current career (2011), I traveled here and there for a week or two at a time.

It took me a couple of years to get into a comfortable financial position and start investing in more extensive life experiences.

It wasn't until 2016 that I decided to finally change the game.

In 2016, I took my first solo cross-country road trip from New York City to Montana.

In 2018, I took my first month-long international mini-retirement.

I've taken 4 month-long international mini-retirements since 2018.

I've taken 7 cross-country road trips since 2016, including one for 6 weeks in 2021.

During my last mini-retirement (2023), I spent 2 weeks in Vienna and 2 weeks in Budapest.

I spent less than $3000 to experience that month in Europe.

Will investing $3000 to spend a month (or more) in your dream destination derail your financial goals?

See the first point: create awareness on where you are now by running the numbers.

Alternatively, you can spend significantly less with a little bit of research and creativity.

And, consider this (source: bankrate.com):

None of my mini-retirements (or any other life experience investment I've made) has derailed my future financial goals.

I'm not trying to flex. I'm trying to inspire. I encourage you to consider investing in a life experience.

Like my friend Max, who recently emailed me to tell me that he's traveling to Ireland and that I inspired, in part, his upcoming travel adventure.

I completely understand that most people may not have the paid time off to spend a month in their dream destination, but consider this:

You only need a week to go to an all-inclusive resort in Cabo, Aruba, or Turks & Caicos.

You only need two weeks to take a cross-country road trip to Wyoming and spend some time in a cabin.

You only need three weeks to hop on a plane to fly to and explore Barcelona.

(Substitute the name of your dream destination for any of the above).

So, I encourage you: consider investing in a life experience. Don't wait. Life's entirely too short.

• Spend a month (or more) in your dream destination.

• Spend a weekend (or a week) in a remote cabin.

• Spend some time driving across the country.

Explore. Get lost. Find yourself.

Live the life you actually want to live.

Interesting reads:

The “Navigating Delayed Gratification” podcast episode

The second most common career regret: not prioritizing work-life balance

You can find the collection of financial tools & resources that helped me grow from a 6-figure debt to a 6-figure net worth by clicking here.

Thanks for reading!

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