RRR5: Balance, Interview w/Sergio Castaneda, Global Voting Rights, and the Unsolved Opioid Crisis
♎🎤❎💊
Hey, everyone. Welcome to our fifth installment of RRR… it sounds weird to say, but I actually can’t believe the manner in which we’ve gotten here. I knew from the moment I began ideating about creating this publication that I would have some level of success. The idea of success, to me, was only that I’d feel passionate about the work, and grow personally from the undertaking.
Another thing I knew was that I would really struggle to post at a weekly cadence. I am not the busiest person ever, don’t get me wrong. However, I have enough going on that adding an entire newsletter to my plate was surely going to burn me out quickly. Well, thankfully, I was wrong!
Now, this isn’t to say it has been nothing but smooth sailing. It is of course really difficult to find big chunks of time dedicated to crafting language, ideating on and researching topics, editing the posts before they go out, and so on. However, one thing that hasn’t happened is a loss of interest or a feeling of dread when it is time to bear down and create the content. On the contrary… I usually am feeling unsettled because I wish there was more time to do the work!
A big thank you goes out to each one of you that continues to support this project with your eyeballs and time. Some of you have even gone above and beyond, providing useful feedback on what I should continue doing and things I should consider changing. I can’t thank you guys enough 🙏🏼.
In Recent Times…
It’s so hard to find balance in life… isn’t it? I’m not talking about balance on paper, either. I’m talking true, authentic, I have my life on a yo-yo type of balance.
It’s easy to step back and look at how you might be perceived by others to have a good balance. If I examine myself through this lens:
I have a job that I absolutely love. It also affords me a very reasonable schedule, with some flexibility built into it. I can be remote, or go into the office.
I get to the gym to do strength training 4-5 times a week.
I play sports for cardio and enjoyment 4-5 times a week (typically basketball, tennis, or soccer).
I have a friends that I love deeply.
I sleep ~8 hours a night.
I spend lots of time with family.
Wow, I sound like I have it together to the outside world! Well, maybe I sound like a cuckoo, I don’t know 🤷🏻♂️. But once we peel back the onion of my life, we would find that I have a super hard time achieving balance, and both my mood and energy can suffer from that.
For example, I was all over the map for several weeks, culminating in our family trip to Maine. When I returned I felt tired, a bit irritable, and bummed out because of the Lyme Disease diagnosis 🤒.
So, I thought I would shut the engine down for a bit to rest and recover. What I ended up doing was spending way too much time alone. My days have consisted of waking up in the morning, working, going to the gym in the afternoon, coming home, making dinner, reading, and sleeping. Notice how many elements from my previous list are still present!
That cycle was on repeat for two weeks and now I am really feeling the negative effects from lack of socializing. I tried to create balance in my life and failed.
There is no silver bullet for this issue, and there are inevitably going to be times in which we feel a bit discombobulated. However, let’s try and bring conscious awareness to how our little decisions on a daily basis are contributing to or detracting from a healthy balance 🧠.
Readings of the Week
“Live more, need less: The link between minimalism and happiness” by Mirna Šmidt
This week I revisited some readings about the art of minimalism. I encourage anyone who ponders the question of how they can become truly happy, to familiarize themselves with some minimalist concepts. If nothing else, the thought exercise of “what would I do if I had to strip away excess in my life” is one worthy of undertaking. Minimalism is closely related to the practice of mindfulness, something that has dramatically grown in popularity in recent years.
Minimalism both starts with mindfulness – asking ourselves how do we want to live every moment in our life and asking that questions from moment to moment – but it also creates much more space for mindfulness. It is all about slowing down, reflecting and noticing our priorities and wishes, and being fully present in those few things that we choose to dedicate our time and life to.
“Discovery of chemical means to reverse aging and restore cellular function” by Impact Journals LLC
I first heard about this discovery in the July 14th edition of the “All-In” podcast. As a quick aside, if you’re not familiar with the “All-In” pod, it’s quite heavy on business, markets, technology, and considerably pompous discourse at times 🤣.
Anyways, this article from Impact Journals describes a discovery that suggests previously dangerous methods of rejuvenating human cells can be done much more safely, through very conventional methods of administration:
The team at Harvard envisions a future where age-related diseases can be effectively treated, injuries can be repaired more efficiently, and the dream of whole-body rejuvenation becomes a reality. "This new discovery offers the potential to reverse aging with a single pill, with applications ranging from improving eyesight to effectively treating numerous age-related diseases,"…
Do read :).
Junto Club w/Sergio Castaneda
Thanks to each of you for your patience the last couple of weeks while we prepared this.
As a refresher, I teed up my interview with Sergio in RRR3. As part of the interview process, Sergio answered many written prompts in addition to spending over an hour on the phone with me. I want to publicly thank Sergio for being so generous with his time 🥂. Without further ado…
I started by asking Sergio a bit about his childhood growing up in Reading, PA. I believe childhood to be extremely formative, so I thought we might start there for some clues as to why he is where he’s at today…
Growing up, I didn’t have much of a childhood as I helped my parents run their bodega (Mexican corner store) since I was 12, which might lead to why I am so driven to have fun and experience life now to make up for lost times. My parents both did not speak or read English well at all, and also came from the very poor side of Mexico so technology was all extremely new to them, they did not have running water where they grew up if that says anything. With that being said, I was on my own for essentially figuring out everything…
I remember having to go to Circuit City as a fourth grader and having to select and install my first computer, completely on my own. I’ve been going to the City of Reading government offices since middle school to help my parents get their annual sale licenses, helping translate official documentation and getting the requirement paperwork in place. It has definitely humbled me and taught me how to be independent at a young age. But I wouldn't change it for anything as it made me who I am today, it made me realize that there truly are no excuses for anything in life.
Q: Where do you think your work ethic comes from?
So both of my parents made the leap to leave their immediate family and come to the United States from Mexico all alone. Just to think about that is honestly fucking insane. My mom lost her mom at a young age, and rather than stay with her dad and 3 younger siblings like most people would, she decided to come to the US alone for a better life. And two years before that, my dad left both of his parents and 9 younger siblings to come to the US, also alone. They could have chosen the easy path, staying with what they know with their families in Mexico, but instead chose to find something better, even if it meant doing it alone.
Unfortunately for them, they did not have much of an opportunity to capitalize as they barely spoke English and never finished high school. Then they accidentally had me at a young age and [were] forced to work any job they could just to provide for the additional costs of having a family. And so I grew up seeing my parents working their asses off. And they are still working their asses off. My whole life essentially, they have been running a bodega and working it 365 days a year, 12 hours a day. But their number one mission was to just make sure my little sister and I had a good education so that we could have a better life.
And so for that, my number one motivation is to not let their bravery go to waste. I not only want to create a legacy for myself and family, but to give back to my parents so they no longer have to work as hard as they do. To retire them early. It’s the least I can do for them handing me over “The American Dream”.
Q: Talk about where you are in life now. What originally made you get into the Airbnb game? Was it a particular moment? Something you’ve always wanted to do? Is that pretty much your only focus in terms of earning a living right now?
I currently own and manage Jungle House, a luxury Airbnb business in Central Ohio where some of our vacation homes have been rated as Top Places to Stay in Ohio and Columbus. Check us out -> www.junglehouse.org
I have always had the entrepreneurial itch, in high school I used to sell candy bars out of a binder to pay for gas money. I just never knew what I wanted to do exactly per se. But I loved to travel and have stayed at Airbnbs many times before. So back in 2018, I had the crazy idea to rent out a small studio in Downtown Columbus for $710 a month and essentially “flip” it on Airbnb (nowadays the strategy is called Rental Arbitrage but back then it wasn’t a thing). It was risky in that I now [had] a second lease that I am obligated to now pay, on a strategy that was in violation of the lease.
And it panned out, for over a year that studio brought in over $2,500 monthly and I lived frugally to save to eventually buy my own real estate. Now five years later, I own 10 Airbnbs and rental arbitrage 3 others, this time with it being allowed in the lease (haha). Running a hospitality business has become a passion of mine, rather than a job. It allows me to to hear everyone’s story, to show them the hidden spots in town, to help our guests create that fun memory that they will cherish forever with their loved ones. Now that is what I strive to live for! “Making one person smile can change the world. Maybe not the whole world but their world.” And that is what I love to do, to help others smile and be their hospitable host!
Speaking of hospitable hosts, I have also been featured as a co-author on an international best-selling book called Hospitable Hosts, [in] which a group of top-rated hosts from around the world came together to write a chapter on how we got started as well as any tips and tricks we have learned along the way. I also invest in the stock market, do some cryptocurrency mining, and have an e-commerce business that another company manages, but Jungle House is my primary focus.
Q: You’ve mentioned some other work you’re doing with Airbnb, can you expand on your relationship with their business?
A few years ago, Airbnb chose 250 of their top hosts worldwide to represent them as an Airbnb Ambassador, in which I help new hosts get started on Airbnb, guiding them on optimizing their listing and hosting their first guests. To date, I have consulted over 2,300 hosts from all over including hosts from Central America, South America, Canada, Mexico, Europe, etc!
Q: what has the experience been like? What are some of the main things that you’ve learned? Could be about taking care of a property, how to be successful on Airbnb, or how you need to balance your work with other pieces of your personal life.
I have honestly learned so much. One of the main things I quickly learned (and [am] still learning) is to treat your business as a business, and stop trying to do everything yourself. I used to run everything myself and it became extremely hectic.. REALLY quick. There are many hats to wear and only one head to put them on, from guest communication, cleaning, maintenance, finances, marketing, etc.. the list goes on and on. I quickly learned to surround myself with a team that I could grow with and leverage off one another’s strengths!
It has been a work in progress, but it is at a point where my team handles 90% of the day-to-day and my role is essentially a board member to their operation, while focusing on team development as well as acquiring more properties. This has truly helped with my work-life balance, which was a weakness last year in 2022 and a priority to improve earlier this year. I have started to [prioritize] my personal health, getting into meditation twice a day, purchasing a Sauna blanket from Higherdose to hit the sauna every morning with a cold shower right after, and making it a habit to work out consistently each week again. I have also learned the magic of “Do Not Disturb” on your phone, which has forced me to not think about work early in the morning until after my morning routine above, and not think about work late at night either.
Q: Who is helping you out with running the business?
At this point, I would be nothing without my team. They are the reasons why I am able to scale up and continue to acquire more real estate to add to my portfolio. My team consists of an Executive Manager who manages the entire team and whom eventually will become the CEO of the business. Under her, we have remote team members who help handle everything from the cleaning, maintenance, guest experience, marketing, listing optimization, sales, technology, etc. That allows me to focus on revenue management, looking for more real estate to acquire, and helping to empower my team on improving!
Q: Talk about some of the highs and the lows… are there times where you’re seemingly just scraping by, or even taking losses in a given month? On the contrary, what is it like when business is good?
When I first started hosting, I was running a few Airbnbs part-time on top of my full-time job. It was amazing financially. One particular Friday afternoon at the end of 2019 at work however, I had enough of the corporate BS and decided to suddenly quit my full time job. And just like that, I was officially unemployed, with an Airbnb side hustle that quickly had to become my primary gig. It was definitely tough for the first couple of months financially while I adapted to a huge “pay cut”. Not to mention, Covid happened a few months later. But with any struggle comes an opportunity. Covid was about to wipe out half of the Airbnb market which meant less competition if we could just capitalize. I made adjustments to our marketing and optimization strategies and quickly saw higher occupancy rates and revenue than ever before, and have not looked back since. We have been profitable every month (besides one month) for over four years straight and now regarded as one of the top places to stay in our city…"
Q: Talk about the city of Columbus. Why are you so concentrated in that area? What are some of the dynamics happening in the city that make it a good place for your operation?
Columbus was recently named one of the nation’s top five hottest housing markets according to Realtors.com if that tells you anything. It has the nation’s second largest university in Ohio State University, contains an award-winning convention center and has historically been recession proof in both real estate and business growth. There are always events occurring in Columbus which brings in consistent demand for accommodation.
At the end of the day, my Airbnb business is just a strategy to maximize cashflow on my long-term real estate investment. The fact that I am able to capitalize on both Airbnb demand and real estate growth is a win-win.
Q: What are your goals? How long will you do this and when would you be ready to take a step back? Is there anything that comes after this in terms of your career?
My current primary goal is to continue to acquire real estate until I own 34 Airbnb homes by end of 2024. And I am determined to hit that. After that, I would like to slow down to open a new chapter in my life and start a family with my better half, Dominica, which will be my primary focus then.
But I never intend to sell or stop the Jungle House business, as we are the best at what we do and intend to continue to push myself and team to be even better. However by then, I would like to pivot into consulting, as that would allow me to give back to the community and help others striving to build a legacy for themselves!
(Here’s a link to the chapter in Hospitable Hosts which features Sergio, if you want to read more).
To me, a couple major themes come out when you listen to / read what Sergio has to say:
Bravery - how many people will leave their safety net behind in pursuit of something greater for themselves? How many people would even take a pay cut to go from one job to another early on in their career? Put yourselves in the shoes of his parents, leaving behind everything they had in pursuit of something greater. I think it’s important to have empathy for how truly brave people can be.
Reflection - this ties in really closely with bravery, because it is indeed radically brave to have an honest look at yourself and where you are in life. His candid view of the importance of his team to his current operation and lifestyle, in addition to how he wasn’t cut out for being happy within the confines of his corporate job are shining examples of a mature, self-reflective individual. Transparency with yourself is a pre-cursor to finding happiness, in my opinion 🤷🏻♂️.
It’s often soft skills that separate successful business people. It’s one thing to have know-how, or technical understanding of something complex (I personally think real estate is complex but others may disagree). For that knowledge work in practical ways requires the bravery, reflection, and interpersonal skills, all of which are evident in Sergio’s journey.
On a personal note, I’m really proud of him. Thanks, Serg, for sharing with all of us 🥂.
Maybe the next time we do an interview, I’ll introduce a podcast / video element 🤔.
Voting Rights
Courtesy of The Progress Network, I got this awesome chart in my inbox recently. Certainly, a universal right to vote doesn’t mean voter participation and that process simplicity is being prioritized the way it should be (I still don’t understand why we aren’t voting with something more sophisticated than a ballot box in the US, but that’s for another day). Nonetheless, it’s easy to forget that relatively, the world we live in continues to become a better place as time goes on.
Assuming you were born in the same geographical area, what era would you choose to be born in? I’m feeling pretty good about my ‘95 birth date… 😃.
NBA Average Points Per Game, Over The Years…
In the modern day NBA, there is rampant three point shooting. Often times, it is cited as the number one factor to explain today’s boom in scoring. I want to offer a different hypothesis, which is simply that the skill level of today’s NBA talent pool dwarfs what we have seen in the past. To be sure, that doesn’t mean every NBA player today is better than every NBA player of the distant past, I certainly don’t believe that to be true. More so, I believe the talent pool to be much deeper. I would go a step further and say that teams are also constructed, and play in a much more sophisticated manner. Let’s take a look at a chart that plots and NBA teams’ average points per game, Pace (defined as the amount of possessions a team uses per game), and three point shot attempts.
Pace as a measure was introduced just a handful of seasons before the three point line was added to the game in the 1979-80 season. There are a lot of interesting sections of the chart to hone in on, but I am intrigued most by 1979-1999. You are looking at twenty years of non-negligible growth in three point shot attempts, coupled with a decrease in scoring.
I would argue the efficiency gains on three point attempts (measured by things like points per attempt) in recent years is more of a cause for the scoring boom than the three point attempts themselves. This speaks to a talent pool that is more adept at long range shooting, as it’s been emphasized as a borderline prerequisite skill in modern NB teambuilding practices.
The correlation with Pace is about what I would expect.
Someone much older than me needs to tell us what the heck was going on in the early 60s! I’ll read about it someday soon, I’m sure 📖.
Drug Overdoses In The U.S.
Apologies for the morbidity to close out this weeks edition, but I think it’s important that we consider the scale of the drug problem in the U.S.
For context, the 2021 number of drug overdoses is more than twice the amount of car-accident fatalities in the U.S. for the same period.
I’ve been hearing about the opioid crisis for quite a while. Anecdotally, I remember hearing lots about it as far back as 2016 or so. It’s a bit mystifying to me that we can’t seem to get this tragic issue under control. Perhaps, what’s more mystifying, is the amount of energy and resources dedicated to other, less pertinent problems (forgive me, it is truly too easy to make a dig at La Sombrita).
Now, I’m not saying that there aren’t programs and organizations that have their sights set on alleviating drug abuse. That would be disingenuous.
However, it’s shocking we haven’t established a comprehensive approach to remedying this issue. I have to imagine some combination of regulatory measures, mental health initiatives, and economic programs to uplift struggling Americans would put a serious dent in this issue. I think it’s reasonable to assume that combination would propel us towards progress on other frontiers as well.
I wonder if you all will agree with me; doesn’t it seem like we can’t do anything big in this country anymore unless an issue is viral on the internet? The drug crisis has been dragging on for a long time, I wonder if there is attrition in the attention it gets from news outlets and media companies 🤔😔.