Honest confession time again.
Today, all I really want to do is eat and sleep.
Perhaps it is the change to the clocks, setting them back an hour late last night?
Or perhaps it was the football game followed by Halloween festivities and several adult beverages?
Add to that a cooler, cozy, somewhat rainy day and then … bam!
Lethargy Man emerges!
Well, too bad, Lethargy dude.
You have an article to write and 15,000 steps to clock, so your eating and sleeping will need to conform to those two goals first and foremost.
Thus … get ’er done is the name of the first game.
Two long walks down, two more to go. And now the blog article.
Yesterday, I wrote about how a goal setter, a problem solver, and an opportunity seeker would approach going nomadic for a full year.
Today, I gave some thought to how these types of people would pick between the 12 cities I am considering for testing a second apartment.
A goal setter is going to have one primary objective.
Does that city help with achieving that objective, and is it the best one for achieving it?
More than likely, a goal setter is also going to focus on career opportunities more than the other two types.
A problem solver is going to focus on what is currently missing in their life and diagnose the cities based on whether they solve for those concerns.
Also, a problem solver will lean toward the choice that solves those problems with the least amount of friction.
They will likely pick two or three things to optimize in the selection.
For example, you may want a lower cost-of-living area, and you may want to avoid state income taxes.
Those two criteria can narrow the list immediately.
An opportunity seeker is going to look at trends.
Where is this city going in the near future?
Is it a winner, a loser, or a has-been?
They want to be on the cutting edge.
For example, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Santa Fe, New Mexico, was a real cultural beacon for transplants. I would call it a has-been now.
It’s still a very nice place, but it was replaced by Asheville, North Carolina, and Austin, Texas, as the “it” places of the last decade (the 2010s).
I think Seattle wore that crown for a lot of the 1990s and 2000s, but has slipped considerably due to its high cost of living.
Portland was up there, too, but it has really slipped a lot in the last 10 years.
However, an opportunity seeker is also going to look for places that generate the most potential for random serendipity.
Things can arise there, unexpected doors can be opened, and there are lots of opportunities to explore.
Once again, I see myself as falling more into the problem-solver type of approach.
I am like Goldilocks.
I like everything to be “just right” and in proportion to my desires.
However, I also see that I am assessing the cities based on their vocational attributes, too.
In fact, that is probably one of the best reasons for relocating to a new place.
At least it was before I reached FIRE.
That said, I am also looking at these 12 cities from the perspective of “where is this place going?”
And I want more random opportunities to arise.
I am thus, perhaps more of an opportunity seeker in this decision than I typically am.
The other thing revealed to me by doing this thought exercise is that I might want to pick a lane and stay in it.
What do I mean?
Well, I think I am wearing all three hats when I consider the cities on the list.
And that is muddying the waters.
For example, if I went with the goal setter perspective alone, I think the list drops to only five places to seriously consider because they are better places for music.
If I look at it from an opportunity seeker perspective, I will likely favor larger cities on the list than smaller ones.
That makes five of the cities pop to the top, too.
Three of these were also part of the goal setter perspective.
Oh, well, there you go. Just focus on those three, as they are on both lists.
But then my little Goldilocks problem-solver self gets tweaked.
Hold on, Buckeroo.
What are you really trying to solve for with this second test apartment?
And that tells me that I should wear that hat predominantly.
It is the one that will yield the type of decision I will be most comfortable living with for a couple of years.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t tell you what the two or three factors are that I am solving for currently.
On the one hand, it is about reducing the isolation I experience in my PNW home.
All 12 cities can help accomplish this. Therefore, that criterion can be set to the side somewhat.
Regardless, I have my answer.
Use the problem-solving approach for this lifestyle design decision.
Now I just need to decide on the top two or three criteria that are most important.
Oh boy, let’s see if I can do that!