Got Robert G. Hagstrom’s “The Warren Buffett Way” on CD’s at the library. It talks about focus investing and has great references to other books and theories. I found it really inspirational. Most of the chapters cover specific aspects of his strategies through focusing on the companies he bought. There are many insights that are worth keeping in mind and writing down. One of the most interesting facts was that most short term traders earned substantially less than the market itself. Long term and focused is the way to go.
Back from Thailand
Thailand was amazing. I had the time of my life. It’s such a beautiful country. It has a super strong infrastructure and at the same time it’s still developing. the people make very little, but at the same time the cost of living is very affordable.
What’s really cool is that it doesn’t take very much to start investing there–you can get a condo for 5-10k. The yearly return was about twelve percent according to one guy I was talking to, although more research would need to be done. Properties by Bangkok go for a bit more, but still nothing compared to the market in CA. It’d be a really cool idea to get some rentals going there, and use a large chunk of that money to help kids that can’t afford it pay for high school.
Another amazing thing about Thailand was the massage. The traditional massages are just amazing and it seems like almost a quarter of the country knows how to give them. There are shops everywhere. There’s a huge school, in fact the oldest school in there at Wat Pho. The best thing though is the foot massage. Half an hour at the Chiang Mai night market had me in heaven. The people giving them were cracking up at the ecstasy on my face.
There’s a catch though: it’s almost impossible to get citizenship. Thailand did an awesome job keeping colonialists away, and those same laws still make sure people don’t destroy the country. I think this is totally cool, but it does mean anything you do there would have to go through a Thai corporation.
ABC’s of Real Estate Investing
I’m reading ABC’s of Real Estate Investing by Ken McElroy. I love the goal setting chapter, love the book. I wonder if I’ll ever put up a book here that I don’t love. A metric is in order (1-5? thumbs?). After reading the first chapter, I contacted half a dozen people for rec letters and finally took the first steps to getting away from computer programming and had my first interview for a job where I’ll be learning skills I actually want and plan to use and will be giving more than I take! So far this book has the highest rating possible. Period. Tied with Rich Dad, Poor Dad itself….
Update: Read the whole book. It’s amazing and goes through all the parts of the process. It’s super motivational and super educational. It’s a must read.