Still motivated in your day job?

"As the love of property investing grows, so the love of my profession wanes..."

Once I discovered that property investing was going to be my route out of the rat race (around 7 years ago), I have lost all interest in striving within my profession (day job). I have no interest in climbing the corporate ladder (AKA: spending more time in the office for limited gain). When my manager recently questioned my work ethic, instead of pushing me to work harder at my job, his pep talk instead pushed me to work harder at my property investing to hurry my path out of the rat race.

However, I am still at a stage, like many, where although the day job is not my future, it is still a very important (financial) part of my current life, and I need to not lose fact of the importance of that weekly salary still filtering in (for now...).

So the question I pose to those of you in a similar situation is:

How do you overcome or manage this disinterest in your day job?

Im really interested in others' experience with this.

Cheers

Lou.
www.significantimagery.com.au
 
Don't get me started ...
I treat the day job as a cash flow strategy to keep the banks happy. Banks LOVE payslips. They keep spitting out $$$$ while I have a payslip to show them.
I'm very keen to focus on property full time, but need to build up other income streams first. These are underway, but will take time to totally replace the job income.
I can research deals and crunch numbers during the day, so that helps me stay motivated.
I could bail out anytime (that helps as a coping strategy, too) but prefer to do so when I can live off my property and other investments with a higher level of lifestyle than I currently have. That's another motivating factor, I guess.
 
You're not alone Lou :D

I only need to look at my boss to see that "working your way up the corporate ladder" is filled with late hours, more responsibility & stress.. no thanks!

How do you overcome or manage this disinterest in your day job?

Maybe find a job that you're passionate about?

It's just a pity the jobs I'm passionate about aren't looked upon favourably by lenders..
 
"As the love of property investing grows, so the love of my profession wanes..."

... so I decided to take a break from work. I sat at home, did the paperwork for property investing, surfed the net. It was quiet. No one to talk to. I didn't feel like turning on the central aircon/heating for the sake of one person. I had to boil water each time for the coffee.

After one day, I had enough. I went back to my airconditioned office, decent desk, decent PC, decent coffee machine which I don't have to clean, fast internet without worrying about download limits, crazy loveable people running around me who do what I told them, a full blown colour docucentre....yep, it doesn't come any better.

As the success in property investing grows, so the love of my profession grows....

Cheers,

The Y-man
 
I wrote on my calendar at work May 6,2010 is my last day at work.

Stress is gone.
Basically I like my job, but that is all it is, a job.
When things get rough,,,I look at my calendar. :)
 
I only need to look at my boss to see that "working your way up the corporate ladder" is filled with late hours, more responsibility & stress.. no thanks!
..

Moved up, and found less late hours because I got my staff doing that for me (actually I am here pretty late like 5:45pm to avoid trafic, but I don't rock in until 9:15 in the morning), and I don't get called out any more.

Yes, there is responsiblity, but that's responsibility in motivating and driving your team to deliver (really no different to being a coach for a sports team?)



Maybe find a job that you're passionate about?


I think that's pretty important - or at least something satisfying to do.

There's nothing quite like getting a ton of things done, and delivered on time.


I think we also get distracted by our job titles.

My title is something akin to an "IT Manager".

I don't manage IT - if I tried to, then yes I'd be confused, stressed and driven nuts.

My job is actually "Manager of people who know a heck of a lot more about IT things than me".

When you look at it, it isn't that much different to property investing - "Manager of people who interact with my investment properties - tenants, PM, tradies....."

Cheers,

The Y-man
 
How do you overcome or manage this disinterest in your day job?


You are forced due to office hierachy and politics to lie to yourself. I did this for 3 years, and felt dreadful every day about it.


You skulk around pretending to be a shy little wallflower who wouldn't say "boo to a goose". This is especially true after concluding a big deal where you really need the cashflow from your job.


As the portfolio got bigger, the job became harder as I continually had to feign interest. Wearing the hat of 6 or 7 CEO's in the morning, and then taking them all off and walking into an office and being a numpty where I had no financial authority and not invited to any decision making meetings was difficult to swallow. I didn't like wearing the worker hat.


I struggled alot with the duplicity and having to "not tell the truth". When sitting around at the meeting table on a Monday morning, 5 or 10 minutes before it starts and your boss leans over and asks : "So what did you get up to on the weekend ?? We went down to the wineries and had a fabulous time" Leaning back to him and saying "I spent the entire weekend closing a deal to buy a huge inner city factory on a few acres so I can eventually get the hell out of here" doesn't go down so well, so you end up looking like a wet soppy blanket and saying something like "bit of gardening, had a BBQ with the rellies over"


It gets tough to shut your gob when you have a big win on the investing front, and quite a few of the chains that hold you down get severed instantly. You feel like testing the strength of the other chains to see if they are strong enough to hold you back.


Your power grows over time and if you are focussed, you continually have that set of bolt-cutters in your hand at the ready to chop through as many chains as you can, as fast as you can.


When the day eventually arrives that you are able to chop through the last of the chains......that's when it gets really tough. Do you immediately take off (most who aren't there yet immediately say "Hell Yeah !!" but that is a lack of financial responsibility talking there).


I sat for over 3 years with no chains tying me down. A normal boss usually finds it very difficult to manage a worker who doesn't need the salary from a job, what can they threaten them with. They have no ORs. Do as you are told OR I'll.....there is nothing there to threaten with.


My inability to judge the complexities of cashflows and be absolutely 100% certain that my portfolio would survive any onslaught had me mentally chained to the job. It doesn't help when your salary is through the roof either. My salary produced the same cashflow as a fully paid off 7M property asset. It's tough to give that away. Not many people would. In fact I don't know anyone willing to give up easily an asset like that. Golden handcuffs are a double edged sword.


I finally took the plunge 6 months ago and it's been great. I now manage the portfolio full time, look for more acquisitions and volunteer around the community, along with spending more time on fitness activities which I never could whilst working.


Going thru the motions however is tough. My integrity suffered every day having to live a big fat lie to everyone at work.....but that's what it took to get away.
 
I totally hear where TPFKAD is coming from.
I earn way too much just to walk away from the desk, so I'm bound to it by self imposed shackles at the moment.
However, not being fearful puts me in a situation where the jealousy of others manifests in ways that make it unpleasant to be here sometimes.
I know I can walk if I want to. They know it, too and that lack of control makes them behave very poorly indeed.
I'm not one of the drones. I don't conform.
I've got my hand on the eject handle and have written June 30th 2010 on my calendar as my exit date. That helps me cope.
Of course, if they throw a redundancy package at me .....
 
As Rob said, my decision is purely cash flow. Banks love it, so I gotta keep it. But now trying to learn about businesses as much as I can coz the idea is to buy a business in 2-3 years time. More responsibilities, I know. But I will be my own boss.
 
I struggled alot with the duplicity and having to "not tell the truth". When sitting around at the meeting table on a Monday morning, 5 or 10 minutes before it starts and your boss leans over and asks : "So what did you get up to on the weekend ?? We went down to the wineries and had a fabulous time" Leaning back to him and saying "I spent the entire weekend closing a deal to buy a huge inner city factory on a few acres so I can eventually get the hell out of here" doesn't go down so well, so you end up looking like a wet soppy blanket and saying something like "bit of gardening, had a BBQ with the rellies over"

Do you mind sharing why you could not have answered "I spent the entire weekend closing a deal to buy a huge inner city factory on a few acres."?

You don't need to add the bit about "so I can eventually get the hell out of here".

I don't understand why you decided not to tell them, but maybe because I am looking at things from a different perspective. Were you worried they would fire you? I am rather curious of the reasons, as I would have liked to tell them if it was me, just to show them that I was NOT a dumb numpty.

I keep our business to ourselves, but took great delight in mentioning a house we were selling to our snotty neighbours, just to see the look on their faces ..... "you had not told us about THAT one". Then you know they are wondering what else you have up your sleeve that you have not told them. I wouldn't have enjoyed this nearly as much if these neighbours were not such aspirational snobs.

I think I would enjoy doing the same to my boss, but just wondered why you didn't casually drop the information?
 
I totally get Dazz's point too.

For me personally, Im still on the baby steps of my journey. I have a business that requires very little time and effort (mostly internet driven) and I can do that with my fluffy slippers on and at anytime of the day I choose. I also work part time as a no-person in a large company.

The business provides my investing salary, and the part timer provides my living expenses. I choose to like both jobs as they provide me the means to get out of the rat race, and thats what I keep my focus on.

I'd prefer not to work as a no-person, and I'd prefer not to have the stress and abuse that goes with my job, but I also know that each day is a day closer to achieving my goals. I look at my co-workers and know that in 5 years they'll still be here, but in 5 years, I'll be holidaying where ever I want.

Eyes on the prize, guts, grit and determination, and the knowledge to back yourself and make your dream real.

Its just a matter of time.

Luvvit
 
Sitting here in my office - something just clicked..... maybe I am in an *unusual* workplace :eek::confused:

Amongst my staff, one seems to be always on the phone with his tenants/PM's/VCAT, one was doing a 6 unit subdiv (he took a package and went to spend more time on it), another was building and selling, as well as diong renos..... others are trading shares....

So when someone walks in with a section 32 on a Monday morning, it's a case of we all sit around and take it apart, discuss tactics for the offer etc....


Cheers,

The Y-man
 
I don't understand why you decided not to tell them, but maybe because I am looking at things from a different perspective. Were you worried they would fire you? I am rather curious of the reasons, as I would have liked to tell them if it was me, just to show them that I was NOT a dumb numpty.


For a raft of reasons that only make sense when you are thrust into that pressure cooker environment. When seen from an independent exterior position things always seem less complicated.


The first reason would be the avoidance of the acid reaction. If I told him that was how I spent my weekend, that would be viewed as a hostile act toward the company and he'd probably take it personally as well. It would be seen as treason against the objectives of the company, and undermining his authority. It would also be seen as "well if you've got that much spare time on your hands you could have come in and done x or y or z report." His intent is to have all of his team members with as many shackles on as possible. He doesn't want to hear that you've just taken some off.


The second reason is heirachical. My bosses were typically grumpy old b@st@rds aged between 60 and 65, in charge of hundreds of men and hundreds of millions worth of equipment. They cannot afford not to be in absolute 100% dictatorial control of everything and everyone.....otherwide he'd get mowed down and run over by the other equally aggressive and controlling men underneath him. When you are his trusted leiutenant, you don't tease the tiger.


In the end though, once you are able to pull the pin completely....and there are no half way nice options with these men, it is all a bit of an anti-climax. What I found was.....qualifications mean nothing.....CV's mean nothing....job titles mean nothing, everything that I held dear for the first part of my career meant diddly squat.


Solid dependable cashflow is the only thing that can trump nasty office heirachy & politics. It sounds as though Y-man doesn't have to put up with that sort of caustic environment.
 
Sitting here in my office - something just clicked..... maybe I am in an *unusual* workplace :eek::confused:

Amongst my staff, one seems to be always on the phone with his tenants/PM's/VCAT, one was doing a 6 unit subdiv (he took a package and went to spend more time on it), another was building and selling, as well as diong renos..... others are trading shares....

So when someone walks in with a section 32 on a Monday morning, it's a case of we all sit around and take it apart, discuss tactics for the offer etc....


Cheers,

The Y-man

You teasing us? Any vacancies there?
 
The first reason would be the avoidance of the acid reaction. If I told him that was how I spent my weekend, that would be viewed as a hostile act toward the company and he'd probably take it personally as well. It would be seen as treason against the objectives of the company, and undermining his authority. It would also be seen as "well if you've got that much spare time on your hands you could have come in and done x or y or z report." His intent is to have all of his team members with as many shackles on as possible. He doesn't want to hear that you've just taken some off.

.


I thouroughly get that - their are just some senior exec type people in my organisation we would keep completely in the dark, other than a polite "mowed the lawn, did some shopping" thing when asked about the weekend just gone.

Cheers,

The Y-man
 
OK. I think I get it.

When you finally pulled the pin, did you then let the cat out of the bag?

Stick it to them, so to speak :D. I sure hope so!
 
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