Aloha my friends.
Writing to you from my Airbnb in Koloa on the island of Kauai! This is Jonah Baer with the Baer Necessities, where I share what I'm learning, doing, and the journey along the way.
For those of you who might have missed me in your inbox last week, I'm very sorry. This was the first week I've missed sending a Baer Necessities since I started this endeavor in November! And I don't plan to make it a habit. I'll be honest that I feel a tad bit guilty and that I let you guys, and myself, down.
But it is what it is. I gave myself a goal to limit the amount of time on my computer as much as possible while I'm in Hawaii. At the same time, missing last week reminded me how important writing this email is to me, my personal growth, and general mental clarity. And hopefully you missed me in your inbox too. If you didn't, that's okay. The unsubscribe button is at the bottom.
Anyways, I'm back in the saddle this week and excited to share some stories from my travels.
This week's email will be different. Since I started writing the Necessities, I haven't told many personal stories or experiences, because there haven't been many stories to tell with the quarantine. Well, now I do.
Hawaii is an absolute DREAM. It's definitely living up to the hype and better than I thought it would be. I might write a longer post about the trip soon, but here are the highlights:
- We spent 4 days in Honolulu with a crew of 5 others (a couple of whom I knew beforehand). Originally, a few of my Venture For America friends told me about this trip but I've met so many new people on the trip too.
- On our first full day in Honolulu, we unknowingly chose one of the most advanced hikes in Hawaii called Ka'au Crater. Without a doubt, it was the most challenging (both physically and mentally) hike I've ever done. Everyone in our group agreed. We were totally underprepared (with the amount of water and food we brought) and did not realize how strenuous of a hike it was. It ultimately took us 8 hours to get through the 8-mile hike with a lot of hiccups and wrong turns along the way. But it was also one of the most beautiful hikes I've ever done. I could write an entire post on this hike so stay tuned.
- After Honolulu, we flew to Kauai where we've been staying for the last 12 days along with 20+ other twenty-something who are all working hard (or hardly working
) from the island. Kauai is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to and it's definitely going to be hard to leave. - Because of the large time zone difference, most of us wake up in the wee hours of the morning (between 4 and 6 am) to start work and finish by early afternoon so we can explore the island, hit the beach, hike, surf, snorkel, or whatever is on the plate for that day. One of the best days I had last week was when I did some deep work in the morning for Gilded, spent the early afternoon surfing (and actually standing up on my first wave!), snorkeling on Poipu Beach, and then drove an hour out to Wimea Canyon to hike Kalepa Ridge. It was an ideal day.
- Life here feels like camp for grown-ups or college. With 3 Airbnbs right next to each other, it's so nice to walk out the door and find someone to hang out with at any time of the day. Since the quarantine started, I almost forgot how much I love community, meeting new people, fun outdoor activities, adventures, and traveling the world. There's a sense of community here that I haven't felt in a long time since we entered the Q. And Hawaii couldn't be a better place to do it since the number of COVID cases are almost zero (plus you have to receive a negative test before coming here). I can see myself doing these digital nomad / co-living experiences for a long time. The flood gates to travel and digital nomadism are opened for the masses, and I don't think they're ever closing again.
) from the island. Kauai is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to and it's definitely going to be hard to leave.My time in Hawaii is not over quite yet. In fact, I don't even have a flight back yet! I might hop to another island before I go, but I'll be coming back to Tennessee very soon to spend Passover with the family.
Lastly, I have some advice for friends my age without any major obligations yet: there's no better time to get the f@#$ out of your house or apartment lease and test out the digital nomad life anywhere in the world (if your job allows it).
We've reached a critical inflection point in the future of work where you don't need to physically stay in one place. It's not going anywhere. You can go wherever, so why lock yourself down to one city? I think we're going to see a wave of post-college (or college-aged) kids traveling the world together for long-term travel. Long-term travel doesn't have to be something you wait until retirement for anymore (it really shouldn't be). In fact, some of my friends from this trip are building a program called the Co-Creation Community (CCC) where 20-30 people will pick a place every quarter to spend a month in an Airbnb across the country or world (when the world opens up more). You will see more and more communities like this popping up. There's no better time to jump on the train (literally).
That's it from me. Here are a few cool things you should check out:
- Vitalik Buterin (founder of Ethereum) and Naval on the Tim Ferriss Show: When Vitalik talks, you should listen. As the founder of Ethereum, he speaks truthfully about the groundbreaking technology, decentralized finance, NFTs, and considerations about the future. It's a double whammy of an episode because Naval interviews him.
- Thread from Julian Shapiro on why he's moving away from San Francisco to a remote ranch (and his reasoning behind why he's moving and where he wants to move to).
- Waking Up App: This is the meditation app, created by Sam Harris, that I've been using for the last 2.5 years. I've been meditating with friends in Hawaii and everyone says it's the best meditation app they've ever used. I agree. Along with meditations, it also has a ton of conversations and lessons on topics like mindfulness and the how the mind works. If you're looking to build a mediation habit, use this link for a free month to check it out yourself.
I tried adding some images of my Hawaii trip to the body of this email but Sendfox (the email provider I use) doesn't allow me for that. Respond to this email if you want some cool pictures of my trip!
Quote I'm Pondering on Taking Risks (which I stole from James Clear's newsletter this week):
“Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and being alone won’t either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You have to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes too near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself that you tasted as many as you could.”
Source: The Painted Drum
That's it from me! As always, let me know if there's anything I can do to help you out or if you just want to catch up. I'd love to hear from you.
I hope you have an amazing week ahead and not getting too upset over your busted March Madness bracket. And go Noles!
Until next time,
Jonah Baer
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