What are you doing these days?
A question I hear whenever I meet acquaintances. Well, here's my answer.
I used to work for a great company, but I eventually quit because one of the main reasons was probably the loss of my "independence". And since perceived independence is a high value to me, I rang the bell to get it back.
It took a lot to make that decision.
But it shows you that in the end, your values matter more than you'd like to admit for a long time.
They say entrepreneurship is the ultimate self-discovery
I agree.
Here’s a little story.
I've had my fair share of failures in the past with my side hustles, and each one taught me a valuable lesson.
Here’s my last one.
When we closed our gluten-free bakery, I realized two things:
1. If it’s not your dream, you don’t go full throttle. You have to burn for it in order to go the extra miles.
2. It's not just about working hard. Being in the right boat is crucial to success.
So, I asked myself.
What are you passionate about?
What is a topic you could talk about day in and day out?
I try to understand complex topics, black boxes, and break them down into simple chunks. It gives me a sense of control.
Understanding how businesses make money and why some make more than others.
Analyzing stuff, understanding it, and finding the hidden nuggets that move the needle.
These are the things that keep me busy at night.
Weird - I know.
But how far can I go as a one-man show?
There are great examples and yet it's not an easy path. But I love building things, so it felt like the right direction to take.
Some context.
Since 2008, I've been investing in stocks and have come to realize that most people most of the time (including myself) don't understand what they're doing when buying stocks – pretty risky.
It's like driving a car blindfolded but with way more money at stake.
When buying stocks, you ask at least three questions:
1. Is it a good company?
2. Is there enough potential?
3. Is it fairly priced?
Sometimes you win big in the stock market and then it’s easy to confuse genius with a bull market.
And when I lost money, I just stayed silent.
In the beginning, I used to rely on gut feelings for investments. Later I developed a schema that often worked, but there was room for improvement.
I want to develop a program that can help others understand in an easy way whether a stock has a sound foundation or not, regardless of their financial knowledge. Knowing, that it’s not all hard science.
There you have it
Building stuff, analyzing stuff, and independence.
But here's the catch - just five months ago, I had no idea about programming.
Despite that, I once led a project team with a 2-million-euro budget to develop a fully functional app.
So, the coolest thing for me, therefore, was seeing my first Python prototype calculate basic stock multipliers like PE-Ratio, Shareholder-Yield, … of over 5,500 US stocks in less than 6 seconds.
Though I have some basic knowledge of coding and financial analysis, there are still gaps I have to fill.
That’s obviously my "why"
I may not have an impressive track record or a big investment portfolio, but I have the curiosity and determination to overcome the challenges ahead. I now understand why some of my stock mishaps happened.
I don't pretend to have all the answers, but I'm willing to find them and want to understand how the big shots did it.
I want to embrace the task and the suck that comes with it and show that it's possible to start with little knowledge. I'll stumble over the blunt rocks of reality along the way and tear my shin here and there.
But that’s obviously my "why."
It took me about two years and a lot of sleepless nights to find that out.
A special thanks to my wife. She’s not getting tired of giving me (tough) feedback. One of the reasons I love her.
In the end – you and me, we together – will know more.
We will be able to answer the final question.
Will it fly?
And if it flies, how far?
What’s next?
In the next parts, I will break down how I built my prototype and my new life up to the point where I’m right now. My goal is to post once a week. Let’s see where we stand by the end of the year - in 279 days.
So, come join me on this journey on push the subscribe button.
Let’s learn together, and who knows? We might just come up with something amazing.
Best,
Michael
P.S.
And if you think there is somebody I should get in touch with, feel free to give me a nudge.
Great take … thank you, have a great Sunday!