Choices Must be Based on Good Data
In my continuing quest to make better choices (a la Do the Thing) I need data. You probably need it, too. Let’s talk about some things you need to know to make those improved choices.
I got quite a blow last week. The tax bill came due and, after too long at the accountant’s, the hammer fell. It turns out I need to pay twice as much to the government as I expected. In the past the tax bill has been an annoyance but not that big a deal. This is a big deal. Time to alter a few things!
First, what would help? Tracking things more closely and getting the spreadsheets to the accountant earlier in the year would have helped somewhat. Here we are in mid-May and pretty far along the path to paying the next tax bill. Alarming, isn’t it?
What now?
Besides tracking income and outgo, I have to reevaluate what I’m doing and where the time goes. Aside from running a podcast about stress management, I have several income streams to cobble together an income. Some streams are better than others but that’s not all about the amount of money coming in. It’s also about the amount of time invested to get to that income, the hassles thereof and the dependability of each stream.
Tough Choices
In coming weeks, I expect I’ll need to alter my career path to reflect new goals. Inertia isn’t a choice, it’s just coasting on inertia. One of the tenets of Do the Thing is a bit of wisdom that’s no less true even though it is well-word: That which is not measured is not changed. I think my answer will be found in cutting down an income stream that takes more time but pays less. I’ll also have to cast about for office space that is less expensive. I’m not enthused about changing my office space but much of what I do feels like one step forward and two steps back.
I’m sharing all this not to whine but to encourage you, too, to be evaluative about what’s working and what’s not. What choices are worth your time and what’s not? Time, income, energy expenditure. It’s not just about income and outgo.
Long-term, my plan is to depend on writing full-time. Passive income is what I need to retire on. I can’t continue to do manual rehab work forever but I can write for a long time yet.
Recommendations:
For the comedy: The 40 Year Old Boy Podcast with comedian Mike Schmidt.
Speaking of Income Streams…
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