Less But Better in Real Estate and Life

A few weeks ago I heard BiggerPockets Podcast episode 431 with Greg McKeown and was moved by his passion for the disciplined pursuit of less. I devoured his book, Essentialism, and have really taken to heart the lesson he tries to impart on his readers.

Doing less, but doing it better, is one of those items that sounds easy enough, but is really hard to practice. I imagine most of us have been raised to work hard and conquer obstacles and so our, or at least my, gut reaction to life is to say, "Yes" a lot and figure out ways to get everything done. What invariable happens is that I get off to solid starts, perhaps even execute in the middle, but when it comes time to finishing I mumble. Yes mumble. I mean that literally and figuratively as a pervasive explanation for most areas of my life.

In my speech I mumble because I want to move on to the next sentence or topic once I feel I've made my point, woven if what I have to say has not all been articulated. I mumble in my handwriting. My letters get smaller and less legible as words and sentences go on, for the same reason. And after reading essentialism, I have come to realize that I mumble when I do other things. Home projects - forming a great plan, executing really well, and then speeding through the finishing. Relationships - starting off great, establishing a real foundation of trust and reliability, and then allowing routine or a drift of life to dull the connection. 

So I've begun to pursue the idea of less but better. Less but better, the idea of doing only the thing which is absolutely essential. This is somewhat laughable as I balance my job, my mom's estate, starting real estate investing, and my relationships with my wife, son, and brother, but the framework of saying, "No" and cutting out tasks which only distract from my true mission and purpose is the key to executing on all of these things as best as I am able.

For those who haven't listened to the podcast or read the book, I highly suggest it, but the best summary of "less but better" I can quickly draw up for you is to picture a modern smart phone sitting next to the very best Blackberry at the height of that company's powers. The modern smart phone has no buttons on it, compared to the full keyboard and track ball thingy I associate with Blackberry. If the phones are both off, one will look like a oblong and expensive glass coaster and the other will look like a miniature typewriter. The modern smart phone presents its user with less but produces an infinitely better user experience. Less, but better.

So how will the discipled pursuit of less impact how I develop my real estate investment portfolio? In short, I will raise my standard of what looks like a "good" investment, pull the trigger with a more disciplined view on how I want to spend my time, but in the end have better results both in terms of cashflow, equity, and experience.

This is not to say I am only interested in turnkey properties with 1000 year triple net leases. On the contrary, "less but better" will allow me to pursue projects that require more upfront time and energy because I won't be distracted by the "more but worse" properties in my portfolio that eat away at my time, energy, and passion while returning little to my life and net worth. I will have the time to invest in properties others would love if if only they had a bit more of x, y, or z. 

I highly encourage you to read Essentialism. It has made a profound impact on my life in only a few weeks. My wife has even commented on how much more engaged I am at home, with more energy, despite being pulled in 1,000 directions. Saying, "no" to 999 directions while I focus on a singular priority to completion before moving on has made me a better father, husband, attorney, and will go a long way to making my real estate portfolio the powerful tool that I need it to be.