My First Million
00:48:47 · Bill Perkins
[00:48:47] S0: Oh, they have money. If somebody in the military reached out and it's like, yeah, it doesn't make sense. I have a guaranteed pension until I die. Why am I saving up all this money? Like they have no risk, right? Like they're a military pension, right? They have no risk, right? Like, so they're like, what is this lump of cash doing there, right, when I know I'm gonna get x per per month? Like, they they started going to live life. The other people that want money is like they're making different decisions, right? Because really it's about how do you allocate your time, right? It's really about choices, right? Money is just one of the tools you have in your toolbox, your health and your time, right? And so like they're making different decisions on how they spend time and who they're spending it with, you know, that costs no money, right? Making a decision to go see your mother or go play cards with the boys, right? Or or play basketball with the boys or watch TV, right, neither decision requires much money or money at all, right? It's but how do I allocate my time in this time period, and where does my time belong? Right? Some of the people are like, yeah, I'm now driving my kids to school and not complaining about it, or I'm reading them books more or etcetera, right? It wasn't a money decision, it was a how do I allocate my time decision. And then I get some of them was like, the health part really hit me. The idea that I won't be able to do certain things in the future, people are like, I'm getting in better shape. So there's things like that. So people look at the three variables and they look at kind of like, which one, which tool am I not using properly? A lot of people, most of it by and large focuses on the money, either earning it, like I'm spending... There's the other side, I'm spending too much and I'm screwing over my future self, right? There are things that should be delayed, right? But somebody has something to optimize to get a more fulfilling life amongst those three tools, their wealth, their health, and their time.
00:50:47 · Shaan Puri, Bill Perkins
[00:50:47] S1: By far my favorite story in the book is that the beginning. It's the story of when you were working somewhere in your twenties. So you didn't have a ton of money at the You had a job. [00:50:55] S0: Yeah. It's my least favorite story. [00:50:58] S1: And he goes, and you're like, dude, I can't just... How are we gonna get six weeks off? He's like, we're not. We're gonna quit, and we're gonna go, and we'll try to get a job when we get back. And you did what you thought was the responsible thing. He seemed reckless. You seemed responsible for not going. Yeah. And, you know, you're like, as soon as he got back, I could see the glow in this motherfucker's face that I knew I did it wrong. Like, he he had made the correct decision. [00:51:21] S0: And he got... He he... His job was waiting for him. We were fucking peons. I mean, like, what what what what were we doing? [00:51:26] S1: What did we have to lose? And then you said you'd... You finally went in your thirties. And you're like, you know what's not cool? Staying in hostels when you're 33, backpacking through your by yourself because your friends aren't going with [00:51:36] S0: on trains, you know? Yeah. You're a millionaire, but I'm sleeping on trains and going, it just didn't happen. I was too bougie. You know? There... There's not just the physical aspect of it. It's just the aptitude, you know, like like like like kinda like your your personal, you know, like, glow sticks and raving in clubs used to be fun. You know? It's not as fun anymore. I mean, like
00:51:36 · Bill Perkins, Sam Parr
[00:51:36] S0: on trains, you know? Yeah. You're a millionaire, but I'm sleeping on trains and going, it just didn't happen. I was too bougie. You know? There... There's not just the physical aspect of it. It's just the aptitude, you know, like like like like kinda like your your personal, you know, like, glow sticks and raving in clubs used to be fun. You know? It's not as fun anymore. I mean, like [00:51:56] S2: When I was in my early twenties, I used to call myself a $50,000 millionaire because I would host these conferences, and I would make 50 or $100 or something. And then I would go and ride my motorcycle across the country or do some type of trip for, like, six or eight weeks. And it literally costs, like, I think I I paid $1,800 for a six week trip to ride my motorcycle. I stayed... I used couchsurfing.com. So I like... Which was fun. Right? It was like fun to sleep on someone's couch and like get to know them. And it was the most fun that I ever had. And I looked back at that and I was like, I'm so thankful that I was kind of silly at that era and was willing to do that. And it was so much fun. And it kind of creates this like rite of passage a little bit when you do travel like that, when you're young and you are reckless. And it was so much... It was so impactful for my life, and I would never do that now. Not... Would like... It was too grimy. I don't wanna do that shit. Wouldn't even be... Yeah. [00:52:48] S0: I'm so envious of his story. I'm like so fucking envious. I'm like, goddamn it. I want his life. You know what I mean?
00:52:48 · Bill Perkins, Sam Parr, Shaan Puri
[00:52:48] S0: I'm so envious of his story. I'm like so fucking envious. I'm like, goddamn it. I want his life. You know what I mean? [00:52:52] S2: Dude, get envious of my younger life at times. And what's interesting is I don't want that. I don't... If you offer that, I could go do that now. I don't wanna do that. But it was fun to want that then and to be able to do it. [00:53:05] S0: Yeah. That's a that's a great example of time bucketing. Like that experience belonged in that time period and doesn't transfer well to the next one. Even though you can still do it, you just don't you don't want to. [00:53:14] S2: I don't want Yeah. [00:53:16] S1: So have you completely slayed the money monster? Monster? Like, do you do you wake up and do you have businesses? Are you like investing? Are you trying to [00:53:23] S0: do No, businesses deals still work. It's not it's not that you can't work or you can't enjoy solving the puzzle. Like, we get addicted to puzzles, and those puzzles become fun to us. It's just that, using your resources, I use the resource, right? There's no amount of capital I can't convert into fulfillment for me. [00:53:38] S1: Do you do now for work?
00:53:38 · Shaan Puri, Bill Perkins
[00:53:38] S1: Do you do now for work? [00:53:40] S0: So I have two startups, one's called Sky5, one's called Simmax. One's a geospatial intelligence platform, like Uber for satellites, like you can order on your phone a satellite image, and I have an intelligence firm called Simmax, and I still trade. I run the hedge fund. But I make sure that in each time period, the things I really want out of life, right, that there's value into doing that. And so if if I was if I if I was sitting here and I go, you know, to the day I die, I'm not gonna spend the money I have. Like, I I have no need for any other money. There's no additional fulment to the... To a marginal dollar. Quit it all in a heartbeat. Right? Just stop. Like, what are you doing? You know? But there is marginal utility for me. For some people who... Their concept doesn't enough, they hit it. Like, hey. I just like playing checkers with my friends. I grow potatoes in my yard. I, you know, I go to school, whatever. You know, I do whatever. Like, for them, it's a different decision. Right? Like, it's like, no. I'm wasting. [00:54:37] S1: What is it for you? Because you said, ultimately, I wanna be a farmer. So that doesn't cost that much. Right?
00:54:37 · Shaan Puri, Bill Perkins, Sam Parr
[00:54:37] S1: What is it for you? Because you said, ultimately, I wanna be a farmer. So that doesn't cost that much. Right? [00:54:41] S0: What what So my farming years are really... You know, like, I know I'm gonna be spending a lot less money in years, but, like, if I keep my v o two here and higher as I should, you know, there's a lot of other activities and things I would like to do. I really fell in love with yachting. They're very expensive. I do like private travel. It's a time saver, and the party actually starts when you get on the plane as opposed to when you get to the destination. So I do I do think it's worth working for that, But it it... At a certain time, I'm almost getting close to the age where it's not really worth working for it. It's not worth giving up current hours of Bill and other activities for future Bill to have this thing. You know what I mean? And so I'm constantly measuring that. And, you know, it's also probabilistic. Like, I I could lose money. I could I could make a bunch of money, etcetera. [00:55:30] S2: Dude, every every man, it's like they think of either World War two or the Roman Empire, and they think of retiring on land and being a farmer. I did that once. I tried it. It wasn't for me. Not at that time bucket. So I [00:55:47] S0: can't Not at this. That time bucket. [00:55:48] S2: Yeah. But what what's... Walk walk me through this vision. What are gonna do? [00:55:53] S0: You're talking about later later in life? Yeah. I just Yeah. [00:55:55] S2: What's his farm vision?