Finding My Writing Rhythm
My goal this year is to write chapters 9 through 15. So far, I’ve finished chapters 9, 10, and 11, so the year’s off to a great start. I’ve been building better habits lately, and the writing’s really starting to pick up momentum. At the start of the year, I struggled to fit in three writing sessions per week, but by February and March, I found my rhythm. Things were going so well that I decided to raise the bar.
Taking It to the Next Level
The plan is to write four times a week: Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. That way I get Wednesdays and the weekends off. If I can manage that consistently, I’ll try to go for a full Monday-to-Friday routine. It would be such a win to write every weekday and move closer to my dream of publishing a book.
Clutter Kills My Creativity
What blocks my creativity the most is clutter. So I’ve made decluttering a priority on my to-do list. Of course, I can’t tackle everything at once, especially one particular personal matter. When my dad fell ill, I inherited all of his things. He’d run a photography store since the late 1970s, and while photography meant a lot to him, it’s not really my thing. So these items aren’t something I can or want to keep. At first, it was tough emotionally to part with pieces of his life’s work, but I’ve come to realize they’re just things. They served a purpose once, and now it’s time to move on.
Selling on an Auction Site
I’ve been listing most of his things on a site called Tradera. It’s great because it’s an auction platform, and sometimes the bidding really takes off. I list items once a month to keep things structured, and I even bought a scale so I can easily calculate shipping costs. My main focus is on selling dad’s stuff, but I also sell other items on the platform because you never know what people are interested in.
Decluttering Brings Me Energy
This became somewhat of a detour, but I’ve realized how much these items stress me out. At the same time, I can see the progress: the piles are shrinking, and money is coming in. That gives me energy. Honestly, I’m really grateful to have this project to focus on, especially when the stock market is shaky.
Investments Aren’t Going So Well
My portfolio hit a record 190,000 SEK in February, but then the market took a dive, and now it’s worth 127,400 SEK. I’ve stayed away from the sell button, which I’m proud of. Whether that was the right decision remains to be seen, but it feels wrong to sell at a big loss when I still believe in the companies I own.
I Have Confidence in My New Strategy
I’m still confident in my new approach, which involves reading the market and carefully evaluating when stocks are worth buying. I’ve shifted my focus away from dividends, and surprisingly, that feels okay. Though I’ll admit, I miss seeing the dividend forecast. Then again, I don’t miss those dividend cuts.
Choosing Patience in a Volatile Market
Given the current volatility in the market, I’ve decided to stay on the sidelines for now. I don’t have much cash left to invest, so my options are limited at the moment. If some of my favorite stocks experience significant dips, I might consider selling others at a loss to free up funds. For the time being, I’ve decided to stay passive and wait for a more stable opportunity to arise.
Time to Let Prospect Capital Go
I did make a few trades recently. I sold Prospect Capital, as I’m phasing out traditional dividend stocks. That one had been trending in the wrong direction for too long, and it felt good to finally let it go.
Alphabet Felt Like a Safe Bet
I recently bought shares in Alphabet Inc. Class A, as it’s always seemed like a reliable stock to own, steady with minimal volatility. From search engines to cloud computing, they have a hand in so much of what we use today. While Alphabet has not been immune to the recent market downturn, I’m still confident in holding onto it for now. The company’s strong fundamentals give me confidence that it will weather this storm.
The Index Just Keeps Dropping
I added more to my position in the S&P 500 tracker when the index was approaching a 20% drop, but since then, it has continued to decline. The big question now is: how much lower can it go?
It Is What It Is
As things look now, I probably won’t hit my goal of 200,000 SEK by year’s end. It felt like a no-brainer to set that goal at the end of 2024 since the portfolio was growing so quickly. But what the market does over the next year is anyone’s guess. For now, I’ll just keep a low profile and wait it out.
Staying Focused on Long-Term Goals
In the end, investing is all about finding balance between patience and action, risk and reward. The market will always have its ups and downs, but staying focused on your long-term goals is what truly matters. The journey is never straightforward, but with each decision, I’m learning and adjusting. And that’s what keeps it all interesting.
I just have to be clear that I’m not a licensed financial analyst so I’m not giving any advice. This blog post is just pure inspiration. Remember that you invest on your own risk!