Brenton HaydenBRENTON HAYDEN CONTRIBUTOR Founder of Renters Warehouse I dont know why the word lazy gets such a bad rap -- Im a big fan of lazy. Heres why: Lazy is a smart mans motivation to get from point A to B as quickly as possible. A lazy person knows theres lots of life and fun to be experienced, so finding the shortcuts through the slough just makes a lot more sense than dragging your feet down a long road. Lazy can help you build a multi-million dollar business in a few short years and reach retirement in your 20s. At least, thats how I decided to do it. Everyone has their own version of what happens after we die. Mine is simple: you are dead. You are dirt. The end. Game over. Thank you and goodbye. To some, this could be very troubling, and if youre not careful, you could misinterpret this belief and make it an excuse to do nothing. Its all futile anyways, right? Absolutely not. Related: 6 Myths About Retirement We Need to Retire Believing I only have one shot, I could not be more motivated to craft the exact life I want to live. I mean, what did I have to lose? With retirement as my starting point, I decided $7 million after tax was the number and age 27 would be the deadline. I was 21 at the time with only one year of operating my own thriving business, Renters Warehouse, under my belt. The numbers for my property management company were already looking good and the trajectory was definitely heading towards my seemingly lofty ambitions. It was time to walk the walk. I meticulously set forth to build a business that I could exit when the time was right, with employees and management that were just as vested in the long-term vision as I was. With my self-imposed retirement goal nipping at my heels, I focused on building bench strength at Renters Warehouse. This meant having a president groomed to be CEO, an office manager capable of becoming my operations manager and a litany of cross-trained employees that were hungry for professional growth. Transparency being paramount, I empowered key executives by giving them full access to the books, called on them for crucial management decisions and made sure they had a hand in the branding, funding and hiring decisions early on. Woven into our company culture was the idea that leadership comes from all corners. It wasnt long before the encouragement to step up would inch me closer and closer to stepping down. Related: 4 Obstacles to Early Retirement and How to Overcome Them After talking such a big game for seven years, the time came to meet this retirement I had envisioned for myself. It didnt come with that big blast of confetti you might have imagined. If anything, the dawning of this new era came with apprehension, and of course, a little fear. By 2013, I had built a business I was proud of and now had a net worth of just under $20 million. Months past my 27th birthday, I was on vacation with my wife in the Virgin Islands. Caught working with my laptop, a very important interrogation took place: Didnt you say you were going to retire when you were 27? It was time to move on. You can imagine that telling people youre planning to retire after less than a decade of work can get you some disapproving looks. I probably couldnt sound lazier if I tried. All too often, people associate retiring to handing in the office keys for hammocks and golf courses. What about those who grow to love their office just as much as a golf course? I refuse to believe it has to be all or nothing. Retirement means I can choose when I want to work and when I want to golf. Maybe next week I venture off to Peru and the following week I plan a media tour to expand our franchise awareness. Designing each day of your life is a privilege. Its a privilege earned through the proficiency in which you design your team and your companys culture. Call me lazy or ambitious, just dont call me on vacation -- or my wife might have a few words for you. Who knows, it might be just what you need. Related: Why Millennials Should Become Entrepreneurs Now Sign in or Post as Guest Kyle Beakey Tiara Sturdivant Kathurima Ringera Dinda Timperon Amruta Das Rafiq Khan Vaibhav Daga Dale McCord Reveleth Cagula Steven Suliawan Dennis Joosten Yagnesh Hari Jenny Sim Pat Phillips Traveling4ever 7 HOURS AGO @Traveling4ever Travel is the only thing you spend money on that will make you richer ....realy? interesting.... LikeReply Eric Fitzgerald Eric Fitzgerald from Facebook10 HOURS AGO Matt Young this is that guy I was talking about earlier today LikeReply Lakshmi Raj Lakshmi Raj from Facebook11 HOURS AGO True LikeReply Bindu Madhavi Komandury Bindu Madhavi Komandury from Facebook11 HOURS AGO Early retirement sound great but how far it can be accessible LikeReply Hernan Pigatto Hernan Pigatto from Facebook11 HOURS AGO Smart LikeReply Aien Delos Santos Magundayao Aien Delos Santos Magundayao from Facebook11 HOURS AGO Mond Melissa Franzrainier Fritzgerald Franc LikeReply Eddie Yanez Eddie Yanez from Facebook11 HOURS AGO Want to retire young inbox me Im expanding my business in California LikeReply Lorenzo Turner Lorenzo Turner from Facebook11 HOURS AGO Ha, yeah the right side to exact. LikeReply Mitchell James Reeves Mitchell James Reeves from Facebook11 HOURS AGO Royce Dinsmore LikeReply Sonia Wong Sonia Wong from Facebook12 HOURS AGO Bettina Czou LikeReply Danielle Powell Danielle Powell from Facebook12 HOURS AGO Sara Graybill LikeReply Eric Kottner Eric Kottner from Facebook12 HOURS AGO I turn 27 in 2 days so thats out of the question, but yes. Lazy can build it up because you learn how to delegate your business and in essence have people in your business working on the business and growing it. Trying to do this until Im 30 :). LikeReply Daniel Kurlapski Daniel Kurlapski from Facebook12 HOURS AGO Michael Rizk LikeReply Ainsley Micallef Ainsley Micallef from Facebook12 HOURS AGO Dating coach for men Kobe. LikeReply Kobe Morfin Kobe Morfin from Facebook13 HOURS AGO What kind of bussisness do u have? LikeReply Amazeme Bi-u Amazeme Bi-u from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Ambitious.... and lazy;-) working with your brain not muscles:-) LikeReply EmilRichter EmilRichter 13 HOURS AGO You son of a... wp totaly inspired me to work my butt off, but im older than you were, so 5 years till im 30! LikeReply Helena Sefcovicova Helena Sefcovicova from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Repost! This has happened with several other articles. Is Entrepreneur running out of content? LikeReply Anthony Castellani Anthony Castellani from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Sure it can! ;)) LikeReply Al-Jee R. Bankz Al-Jee R. Bankz from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Al-jee Al-Jee R. Bankz LikeReply Paul Hudson Paul Hudson from Facebook13 HOURS AGO If you want to find an easier way to complete a task, hire a lazy person to do it. LikeReply Adam Pallozzi Adam Pallozzi from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Nicko Dundai interesting perspective... LikeReply Mike Walsh Mike Walsh from Facebook13 HOURS AGO seriously. click bait. LikeReply Pranav Dodeja Pranav Dodeja from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Deepak Dodeja LikeReply Pranav Dodeja Pranav Dodeja from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Harshil Dodeja LikeReply Pranav Dodeja Pranav Dodeja from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Natashaa Dodeja LikeReply Tracee M. Penchion Tracee M. Penchion from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Strategic! LikeReply Adam N. Williams Adam N. Williams from Facebook13 HOURS AGO I agree, how did he do it? LikeReply Claudia Herrera Claudia Herrera from Facebook13 HOURS AGO All of the above * love it* LikeReply Yesenia Villota Yesenia Villota from Facebook13 HOURS AGO Giovanni Gracias LikeReply Zoran Arapović Zoran Arapović from Facebook14 HOURS AGO Laziness is what brought me to entrepreneurship. Who wants to work til 65 and hope for a good pension? Brilliant article LikeReply Austin Mcdonald Austin Mcdonald from Facebook14 HOURS AGO Samuel Ross Goudeau LikeReply Jaden Tee Jaden Tee from Facebook14 HOURS AGO Cool LikeReply Charles H Mousseau Jr Charles H Mousseau Jr from Facebook15 HOURS AGO TJ Flamini LikeReply Grant Chapman Grant Chapman from Facebook15 HOURS AGO Yes! Awesome :) LikeReply Show More Comments Powered by Livefyre VIEW COMMENTS (127)
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 13:21:57 +0000
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