2020 - A year to remember?

Milan -

2021… We made it. Not without taking a few scrapes and bruises along the way. For a lot of people, 2020 was the worst year of their lives. Losing a family member or friend to a virus has proven very difficult for most governments to handle.

I like to think of myself as a glass half full kind of gal. So I would like to take a look at 2020 and what happened and how we are poised for 2021. I really hope that it inspires someone reading this by showing them that even during a very uncertain time you can try to make some lemonade as such. 

2020 – How it went down for us

We like everyone who started 2020 believed that it will be a year full of joy and happiness. Well… for it might have been one of the best years ever. Primarily because we had the privilege of meeting our new baby girl Mia! 

On another note and probably the primary reason you are here, we managed to invest just over $40k in the past year (no flex). We were truly blessed in being able to do so even though there has been a couple of bumps in the market. 

I know I mentioned it before in a previous post, I feel really bad for anyone who has been affected by the virus and 2020, in general, *old man shakes hand at sky* That being said, this blog in its entirety is a roadmap for anyone looking to walk a different path. A path that leads to a happier life by enabling them to follow their passion (insert Tony Robbins quote here). So please do not take any of what I deem as success or happiness as me being oblivious to what a terrible year this has been for plenty of people. 

Here are the main highlights : 

  • Spent quality time with my wife as she was heading into pregnancy
  • Built an app with my best friend
  • Launched a business with best friend
  • Gained sympathy weight
  • Binge watched too many series during a lockdown
  • Learned the ins and outs of Zoom
  • Met our girl! 

That’s a quick summary of our personal highlights. Our 2020 has honestly been great. We are very excited to be going into 2021 on the front foot. 

2021 – Our goals

With 2021 already at our doorstep, merry Christmas and a happy new year to all of you. So what are we as a family going to be doing this year to add to our FIRE goal? Well, to be honest, the first thing to address is the fact that I don’t do traditional ‘new years resolutions’. I am a bit too practical for that. I need to have something to aim at, abs, an investment amount, a business growth target, etc. 

Terms and conditions out of the way, we are looking to really boost our investment account this year! How will we be doing this Milan? Well, I am glad you asked. 

The primary contributors will be : 

  1. We are selling our 50% share in a home we own
  2. Commission from my job
  3. Income from my wife going back to work part-time
  4. Donation returns

Our goal: 200K invested by the end of 2021

There’s an old saying, ‘if your goal doesn’t scare you, your goal isn’t large enough’ – Someone somewhere

Other personal goals include : 

  • Spend more time with close friends
  • Expand my app and business with my best friend
  • Have abs by the end of the year
  • Grow my blog audience (You guys)
  • A secret project for this blog

That’s it really. 

I know I just said I am practical, I am figuring out how to measure the top ones OK! Get off my back. 

2021 – A new hope. (Yes its a reference) 

I hope that if you had a terrible 2020 that 2021 will be great! I am super hopeful that 2021 will be life-changing for those who are willing to step out and do something brave.

This year with my blog, I will be trying a couple of new things. This is first and foremost a blog that aims to show anyone that it is possible to start investing and build a better future for themselves and their families. That being said, I really want to show everyone the realities of this journey and share some of the things that I wonder about on a monthly or weekly basis. 

Things I’m thinking about.

“Are we supposed to work at a 100% maximum at work every day? I personally don’t think so.” Lately, I’ve felt that I’ve been working at maximum capacity for a sustained period of time. I personally don’t think it’s good to be at or over capacity for sustained periods of time. I think your work productivity will suffer whilst your stress will shoot through the roof. 

“Is it really that expensive to raise a child? Shared some interesting thoughts on this with my brother-in-law.”

My brother and law and I were having a discussion/debate on whether or not it is expensive to raise a child. He said that on a certain income and in certain areas of living, it would be. Hard to argue with that, however, I do think a lot of people miss the fact that you can be quite frugal and thrifty with your money and even the way that you raise your child. Only the opinions of a young dad of course. 

“Are we investing enough?”

I really do think about this a lot. Some might say it borders obsession. I’ve seen recently that there has been a couple of unforeseen expenses which has led to us dipping into our emergency fund. To replenish the fund I have to take some money that we were going to invest and top up the fund. It does sometimes make me wonder, are we investing enough?

“I really want to look as good as I did a couple of years ago. It’s so difficult sticking to a training regime.”

The old, new year new me saying. However, I want old ripped me back. I used to look great! At least I thought so… A simpler time maybe. A time where I only had to worry about video games and bicep curls.

Our portfolio

Another one in the book folks. Here is our portfolio. And no, I did not buy Gamestop #tothemoon. 

Please do let me know if I can help you or your family out in any way. Send me an email down below. I would love to see if I can help.