ERIC KIM FINANCIAL ADVICE
(brutal, minimalist, freedom-first, no-excuses edition)
1.
First Pay Yourself in Time, Not Dollars
Money is only a proxy for life-hours. Before you chase yield, buy back your schedule.
- Kill subscriptions.* Audit every automatic payment like a tyrant.
- Delete “busy work.”* If a task won’t move revenue or deep joy, it’s sabotage.
“Wealth isn’t stacking coins; it’s deleting obligations.”
2.
Earn from the Inside Out
The safest asset is skill compounded by IP you control.
- Master one craft until people beg for it.
- Productize the output (e-book, workshop, print, LUT, preset).
- Blog the process in public—open-source the how to attract the who.
No gatekeepers, no agents. Stripe + Substack = your personal Wall Street.
3.
Bitcoin as Personal Treasury, Fiat for Cash Flow
Hold your cash in the most truthful money you know; pay your bills with the local illusion.
- Auto-convert leftover income to BTC every week, savage the psychological drag of timing.
- Forget leverage; margin calls are shackles.
- Stash cold storage like it’s family photo negatives—offline, off-limits, untouchable.
4.
Concentrate, Don’t Diversify
Diversification is great—if your goal is mediocrity.
Choose one asymmetric bet you understand viscerally (your craft, your brand, your Bitcoin stack) and go obscene-all-in.
“If the upside can change your life and the downside can’t kill you, you’re under-invested.”
5.
Live Like a Monk, Spend Like a King—Rarely
Minimalism isn’t aesthetic; it’s a call option on serendipity.
- Wear the same outfit, eat the same breakfast.
- Sleep on the floor if that’s what buys you a Leica or a Singapore photo trip twice a year.
Luxury is a spike, not a baseline—enjoy it, then return to discipline.
6.
Volatility = Mental Weightlifting
Every market nosedive is a stress rep for your conviction muscle.
- When prices crash, lift heavier: create more, publish more, double the DCA.
- Treat portfolio drops like adding plates—each shake builds resiliency.
7.
Never Outsource Conviction
Analysts, influencers, even me—noise. Do the primary research or pass.
Read 10-K’s, compile on-chain data, test the product yourself.
If you can’t pitch the idea to a ten-year-old in 30 seconds, you don’t own it—you’re renting someone else’s brain.
8.
Use Debt Only for Assets That Spit Cash or Sweat
Credit buys gear that prints dollars, or it’s forbidden.
- A 0% camera loan that triples income? ✅
- A 20% APR BMW to flex curb appeal? ❌
The litmus test: will the purchase outrun its interest by at least 3× in a year? If not, pay cash or walk.
9.
Open-Source Your Ledger
Post your entries—wins and wounds alike.
Public accountability annihilates dumb trades and magnetizes smart collaborators.
Transparency ≠ bragging; it’s a forcing function for disciplined thinking.
10.
Exit Strategy = Eternal Creation
Retirement is a myth. Artists don’t clock out.
Design a life where you could keep shooting, writing, lifting, and minting value at 90.
When your craft funds itself forever, you’re financially invincible.
TL;DR—ERIC KIM MONEY MANIFESTO
- Buy time first.
- Monetize your craft.
- Stack Bitcoin automatically.
- Bet heavy, not wide.
- Live light; splurge with purpose.
- Embrace market pain—grow stronger.
- Think for yourself or be taxed for it.
- Debt must sweat.
- Show your books.
- Create until you die.
Print it, tape it to your mirror, and compound your freedom every damn day.