Fit For Life as An Entrepreneur

robstein · March 4, 2019, 2:10pm

Hope everyone had a great weekend. The Tampa business trip was a hit, 16 of us in a big beach house, time for education, relaxation and moving forward together.

Right after we came back, I had some minor skin surgery that required a long slice and lots of stitches, on the left side of my left pec, and it knocked me out for the week in terms of using the computer, haven’t gone to the gym and can’t until the stitches come out. So, a forced 2 week layoff isn’t the worst thing, I don’t remember the last time I took that much time out of the gym so and I’m looking forward to the opportunity to recover and get back in it, recharged and ready to go.

Music Business side - my new music website is up, and it looks awesome. Feel free to google it if you want to check it out!

Real Estate Business side - Things are moving along. We now have a name and logo and are filing our paperwork, and have a grand opening date set for later this year. Anyone in the Austin, TX area (or anywhere else of course), please come on down y’all!

Right now I’m fully focused on finishing my writing projects for this year, I have more work than ever and have to finish earlier than ever. One thing Grant Cardone talks about that really resonated with me, is that we should always be seeking new problems. If you’re not having new problems, you’re not growing, and I completely agree. So, being forced to figure out how to do more than ever, with quality, in less time, is a challenge, and I’m glad it’s here so I can work through it and come out stronger.

We’re putting the house on the market at the end of this month, we’re almost ready. Got a huge Salvation Army pick up coming so we can donate everything we’re not taking with us, rather than trashing it. 4 months from now we’ll be in a new place, laying down new roots. We can’t wait.

robstein · March 15, 2019, 6:04pm

Happy Friday!

I apologize for the hiatus in posting. Music season is super busy this time of year, been on a tight schedule.

As I recover from the skin surgery, I’ve been out of the gym for 3 weeks now, officially the longest I’ve been out since I started training. Finally got the stitches out, and I am greatly looking forward to getting back in on Monday, it’s my mental, and physical therapy from the day. That being said, it’s been great recovery and I’m sure it’ll feel awesome and fresh to get back in after the weekend.

Been in an interesting situation this year with writing, moving soon, and trying to get it all done. Typically writing a full production takes 5-6 weeks. This year, to meet my deadlines before moving, I have to write a full production every 2 weeks, never done that before. I’m a huge fan of Grant Cardone, and one of the things he talks about is over promising, and over delivering. If you’ve got the right mindset, and you make a commitment, failure is not an option, and you will force yourself to find a solution. That’s what I did, and it’s working well.

Making a living off of a creative process can be very challenging. It’s not like I sit down and say, “I will now write amazing music for 8 hours,” it doesn’t work that way as any creative artist will tell you. The challenge, however, is when your creativity becomes a business that requires consistency, learning how to be more regimented is a skill of its own and it’s been fascinating, and enjoyable to get better at it. Because I know have to finish my music in these time frames to meet my deadlines, I am writing faster than I ever thought I could. But, it requires a very consistent schedule, for my mental sanity. Being an entrepreneur can be challenging in that you’re always on in your brain, just can’t stop thinking and obsessing about what needs to be done. Because I’ve composed a schedule to stick to, I can ease my mind off of that stuff because I know that every aspect of my business has a designated time during the day, so I can more clearly focus on each time slot. Here’s the breakdown that allows me to stay mentally sane and get it done, keeping in mind I have to get away from the computer throughout the day, I cannot, and will not sit at my desk for 10 hours a day. Unfortunately this puts my wife and I on different schedules, but we’re willing to deal with that for now so we can be together all the time when we move and start our new businesses.

8am - wake, coffee, read
9am - breakfast
9:30 - shower, walk the dog
10-12 - Write
12 - 12:30 - email, logistics, business housekeeping
12:30 - Lunch, read
1:15 - 3:15 - Write
3:15 - Pre WO meal, walk dog, read
4 - Gym
5:30 - shower, head home
6 - Cook and eat dinner with my wife
7 - Hang with my wife and dog
9-11 - Write (wife goes to bed at 9 and wakes up at 5)
11-11:30 - email, logistics, business housekeeping
11:30 - 12 - Read, go to bed

Outside of my designated email times, I have my email notifications off to ensure I don’t get distracted by email. It’s easy to start responding to those and get sidetracked. My family and clients have my phone number if anything important comes up.

As I’ve been out of the gym, I’ve had more time to write this week which has been helpful and put me ahead of schedule.

Books
What’s everyone reading these days? I finished “Shoe Dog” by Phil Knight and “Compound Effect” by Darren Hardy, then moved on to “Sell or Be Sold” by Grant Cardone. Just finished that today, and have more on the list to keep chipping away.

“Shoe Dog” was a great read. Fascinating, and inspiring to see how Nike got started, and the obstacles Phil had to overcome to build his business. Highly recommend!

dchris · March 17, 2019, 1:20am

Shoe Dog is a favorite.

I’ve read the following in last 3 weeks:

I don’t want to talk about it
Effective Executive
Talk like Ted
Invested: How Warren Buffet…
Surely You’re Joking Mr. Feynman
This is Marketing

Just started:
High Output Management
Mistakes Were Made

robstein · March 21, 2019, 3:03am

Great selections! Any of them stick out to you? Currently I’m reading “What To Say When You Talk To Yourself” by Shad Helmstetter. Great techniques for conquering negative thoughts and doubt. I had an excellent conversation with myself in the car today and made some solid mental breakthroughs as a result. I highly recommend it!

robstein · March 21, 2019, 3:10am

Finally got the stitches out, so I had my first session back in the gym on Monday, just did cardio for 45 minutes on the elliptical. I’m hesitant to start moving weight and stretching out my left arm too much still, it’s a pretty large scar and it’s still healing. So, the plan was to do cardio all week, and back to next week with my usual split program.

Unfortunately, I got shingles, and am out of the gym again. Symptoms started late last week, no idea what they were, after a few days did some googling around and promptly went to the doctor. I started on the meds early enough that hopefully it won’t get too bad. Right now it feels like a bad sunburn on the right half of my upper body, from the mid-back wrapping around to the front. Unusual to get shingles at 34, but it happens.

I’ve still been able to maintain 161-162lbs and have been out of the gym for almost 4 weeks now, which really bothers me but there’s nothing I can do about it, so, I move forward. Nutrition has been tight, as always, cut down to about 150g carbs a day compared to the usual 200g, somewhere between 1900-2000 cals.

I take numerous walks throughout the day, pretty much all I can do right now to get out of the office, fortunately it hasn’t been as cold here. Looking forward to being in Austin soon and never dealing with these harsh winters again.

Music business is crushing it, all of the time and money spent on the rebranding, delegating some more responsibilities, was well worth it.

TX Real Estate business is full steam ahead. I finished my 180 hours of course work and tests, and will take the license exam as soon as we move (can’t take it until we’re state residents.) Currently looking for buildings to buy as office space, hoping to find a mixed use building so we can rent the residential portion and cover the costs of our office space.

dchris · March 21, 2019, 5:20am

I’ve read Effective Executive by Peter Drucker 7 times this year. It’s just that good. Also love Principles by Ray Dalio.

I don’t want to talk about it was a good read about male depression. Mistakes were made, but I don’t want to talk about it is an interesting read about cognitive dissonance. Invested should be mandatory for anyone oppposed to investing. Talk like Ted was mostly basic stuff people should inherently know. Surely you’re joking is a light hearted but interesting read. Very quotable.

jackolee · March 25, 2019, 6:19pm

Stephen covey principle centered leadership and 7 habits of highly effective people art two of my favorites.

dagill2 · March 25, 2019, 6:27pm

I’ve read the first half of this so many times. Fantastic book that I’ve somehow never managed to finish.

OTHSteve · March 25, 2019, 6:33pm

We had the Covey team come train the management team at the plant I used to work at in Southern California, back in the 00’s. Good stuff, definitely one of the management books I’ve held onto and revisited.

robstein · March 25, 2019, 8:32pm

Wow, that’s quite a recommendation. I will most definitely check that out!

Thanks for the info there! I have 7 Habits next on my list, currently I’m working through “How To Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie.

WOW, that’s incredible, must have been quite an experience!

robstein · April 1, 2019, 2:24am

Finally getting back in the gym tomorrow after a whopping 5.5 weeks off due to skin surgery followed by shingles, the longest I’ve been out of the gym since I got in the gym. Shingles is still present, but it’s slowly getting better. The pain will be there whether or not I’m in the gym, and I cannot deal with another week off. The gym is my mental and physical escape and therapy, very much looking forward to getting back in.

Lots going on with the business end of things. Busiest time of year for the music business, and the all out effort of rebranding, marketing, etc., is going very well. I’ve surpassed last year’s gross and net income, and have recouped the funds it took for all of the various projects. Very exciting to see my dreams continue to unfold in ways I never thought possible.

Heading to Texas in 3 months, our house is going on the market tomorrow. We’ve been chipping away at getting it ready for a while so it just took a few days of dedicated time to put the finishing touches on it, have a cleaning crew come in, and get some pro pictures for the listing. Fortunately we purchased the house at a great time to buy and it has appreciated. We’ll likely be renting when we get to TX for ease of transitioning, and more flexibility to move when we’re ready.

I’ve probably put on a pound or two in the last month of not going to the gym, I haven’t weighed myself but have been on point with nutrition, eating around maintenance for the last 5 weeks. Starting tomorrow, back on the training split and cut diet to keep leaning out for summer and our big move. The plan is to lose another 7-8lbs before we move, landing around the 155lbs mark.

robstein · April 3, 2019, 7:45pm

WOW I am sore. Following my usual training split, strength is definitely down, about 20-25%, but I know that after a few weeks of training it’ll get right back to where it was. As I’ve been out of the gym for almost 6 weeks until this past Monday, some new soreness is a welcome thing. I’ve never looked forward to cardio as much as I have the past couple days, just the opportunity to move and not be in the house is fantastic, and shingles pain finally starting to subside. Weighed myself at the gym in the afternoon just to see where I’m at, it was 162, so I was pretty happy with that after a 6 week layoff.

robstein · April 7, 2019, 2:14am

Chocolate crisp goodness:

This is my usual pre-bed meal, I’ve been eating it every night for a couple months now and it’s still incredible every time!

Combine Metabolic Drive chocolate protein, 20-30g cocoa, cinnamon, and stevia in a bowl.
Add a splash of milk (I use unsweetened almond milk)
Stir until it makes an icing-like consistency. (This alone makes an AMAZING chocolate icing that’s all protein goodness.)
Stir in cereal
Put in freezer for 90-120 minutes. If it’s in there too long and gets super frozen, just leave it on the counter for a bit, or 30 seconds on a very low heat in the microwave.

Frank_C · April 7, 2019, 3:54am

That looks amazing but I have a problem with cereal. I’ll eat 6 servings in one giant bowl if I have it on hand. I just lose control.

robstein · April 28, 2019, 7:24pm

Been a while and time for an update! Things have been busy and moving quickly here as we transition out of NJ into TX, and all is going well. Time management, fortunately, is a strong point for me after 2 straight years of prep and competition, and I’ve been able to continue moving forward getting done everything we need to.

Our house is under contract, inspections are done and all is moving forward with our closing at the end of June. I’m wrapping up my music projects and will be done June 7, at which point I’ll be going to TX a few weeks before my wife to lay some ground work for our business. Primarily, I’ll be focusing on taking my TX Real Estate License exam and locating a community office space for us to start out of, so when my wife arrives beginning of July, we can be open and operating. Later this year we’ll be purchasing a building for our headquarters, but starting in a WeWork or something similar will allow us to get going and growing right away, with minimal overhead costs to start, more money to put into marketing and growth.

Music business is going well, the investment I made in the promo video, new website and marketing have paid off. This year I’ve raised my company gross income over 30% and personal net income over 50% from 2018, and there’s still more time left in the marching band world for show selection.

I’ve been car shopping for a while, and after much search and consideration, purchased a Tesla Model S, arriving 2-3 weeks. Super excited to get it and drive to TX in it! After reading “Willpower Doesn’t Work” by Benjamin Hardy, I’ve been making a focused effort to improve my environment and make sure I can thrive in it, and this is part of that effort. I got a 2016 Certified Pre-Owned directly through Tesla, it was a leased car and is in perfect condition, with 15k miles and all of the upgrades I want, for $57k.

I test drove the Model 3, which I originally thought was the car I was going to get. Personally, just my .02, I was a little underwhelmed for a $55k car. The interior is certainly minimal, the seats weren’t comfortable enough or wide enough for me, and I like having a display behind the wheel so I don’t need to avert my eyes for navigation, speed, etc. I drove a Model S after, and instantly was hooked. For the build of Model 3 I wanted would have been the same price as the Model S I found, so for me it was a no-brainer. I’m ok with not having full-self-driving capabilities, the autopilot features on the Model S cover everything I want.

Fitness wise, still making progress with this crazy schedule. I wound up having to be out of the gym for about 6 weeks between injuries and illness, and upon starting again, surprisingly did not gain any weight and stayed tight. After 3 weeks back, strength is back to normal and I’ve lost another pound. I was assuming I’d gain some weight, and as I haven’t and still am maintaining solid conditioning, I’m taking that as a sign that my body likes recovery time, and I don’t need to kill myself to keep making progress. The past 3 weeks workouts have been shorter and I’m not going below 5 reps on anything, mostly staying in the 8-12 range with some exceptions here and there, and I feel great. My primary fitness goals are to always eat healthy foods that contribute to my health and longevity, exercise every day in some way, and keep building my physique. I’ve been doing a 4 day split at the gym, with days off of weight training on Wednesday and during weekends, been working out well and on non-training days I get in plenty of walking and stay active.

We just had a vacation for the past 5 days, and man I feel great and recharged. Intense work MUST BE BALANCED with intense recovery, and I recovered intensely. I handed over all business operations to my business manager, first time I ever didn’t answer any emails for 5 days and barely checked it. Putting new business systems in place has been hugely advantageous for my growth, income, and mental state.

Keep pressing everyone!

Also, as some of you may or may not know, I maintain a small list of training and nutrition clients. I keep it capped to a small number so I don’t over extend myself, and can give my clients the time and attention they deserve and need to be successful. I have one opening for coaching, if anyone is interested. My email is my username at Verizon.net.

dchris · April 29, 2019, 12:07am

Glad to hear things are going so well… and congrats on selling the house so quick.

My folks have the same Model S. They love it. I’ve been kicking around buying a Zero Electric motorcycle for the summer. I just need to sell my second truck first.

That’s awesome, man! Did you go somewhere nice?

robstein · April 29, 2019, 7:47pm

Thank you very much!

We went to Philly for a day and night, then to Maryland (near DC) for two nights. We won a raffle last year for a few free hotel stays in Maryland, so we used those and had a great time.

Pro Travel Tip - If you want something, ask for it. The answer to every question you don’t ask it “no.” We stayed in 3 hotels (last 2 were free stays.) In the last two hotels, as we were checking in, I established a great rapport with the concierge and politely asked if there were any room upgrades we could take advantage of. Both hotels upgraded us to suites, for free. Whenever I’m traveling for business I always ask for an upgrade upon check in, and at least half the time, I get it. We had a great time!

Next bit of recovery is scheduled for next weekend, we’re taking a road trip to New Hampshire to see Snarky Puppy. They’re rarely in the US, and we are SO PUMPED. In case you haven’t heard of them, they’re an incredible band, all live instrumental, mind blowing stuff.

robstein · May 14, 2019, 6:06pm

Awesome trip to Newport for the weekend! Picked up the Tesla the day before, beautiful car inside and out, love it. Great purchase for our new endeavors!

While in Newport it was easy to stay on track with nutrition. Fresh seafood everywhere, and I will usually order a protein with veggies and a gluten-free grain, like rice or quinoa or potato. Food was fantastic, stayed tight and back to business this week.

Last week I went to the gym Monday, then wound up taking the rest of the week off, schedule is just too intense with writing, real estate and getting ready to move. Every now and then a week off is a good thing I think, mentally and physically. As long as nutrition stays tight, which it always does for me, there are only positives IMO.

robstein · July 6, 2019, 2:53pm

Hey y’all! (I’m living in Texas now!)

I sincerely apologize for the long hiatus in posting on here. The end of music writing season was absolutely insane, immediately after which I drove to Texas and had a couple weeks here to find a place for us to live, get our business setup, then flew home, packed the wife and pup in the car, and drove to Texas again, finally moved in and almost settled now, living out of our suitcases while we wait for the moving trucks to arrive with our stuff.

The pic above was taken last week at the gym, we’ve joined Life Time as there are a few of them around here, and they are absolutely incredible facilitates. While life has been crazy, training and nutrition have still been a top priority.

During my two weeks running around TX looking for a house for us, before returning home, I brought all of my usual supplements, gym gear, etc., and trained every day. There’s no shortage of healthy food around here, so after a few minutes of looking at menus online, I found my usual go-to spots and ate mostly the same thing every day, which was awesome as the food is outstanding, and I like a nutritional routine so I don’t have to keep thinking about what/where I’m eating.

Breakfast:
-Egg white omelet with peppers, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, ham or fajita steak, avocado.
-Fruit
-Ezekiel English muffin

Pre-WO:
-Rice cakes w/ peanut butter
-Fruit
-Metabolic Drive protein shake w/ unsweetened almond milk

Post-WO (usually dinner):
CAVA (Mediterranean place) - Organic greens and brown rice, chicken, beef meatballs, lots of veggies and tzatziki sauce.
OR
“Honest Mary’s” (local place all sourced local food and you can create your own bowl) - organic greens, quinoa, protein (either ahi tuna, or chicken, or steak), lots of veggies

Pre-Bed:
Usual Metabolic Drive protein frosting and cereal

Now that we’re fully moved in, we’re cooking most of our meals and are grateful to have so many awesome options to choose from to go out.

Last night we celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary at “Perry’s Steak House”, WOW, what a meal. Bacon wrapped scallops, salads, I had a 20oz bone-in NY Strip and Katie had the world famous Porkchop (worthy of the name for sure!), a few drinks and we shared a couple pints of Halo Top back at the house.

So far been able to continue to maintain my weight of 158-159 and have a full six pack, which is right where I want to be. We do have some big events coming up in the fall, as well as a lot of photo shoots for our new business for marketing materials, billboards, etc., including a Cayman Islands vacation in November, so we’re both leaning out a bit to do that. Nutrition is the same as usual, just being strict with not snacking, and we’re also adding 20-30min of cardio post workout, and doing HIIT once a week.

More updates to come now that we’re all moved in. Also - mark the date - we’re having a huge grand opening party for our brokerage on Saturday, October 26th. If you’ve ever wanted a great excuse to come visit Austin, you’ve now got one!

TrainForPain · July 8, 2019, 1:07am

Just discovered this - I like the “real life” write-up! Thanks for the details.

Your earlier post about how you eat on the road was very helpful.
How do you manage training while busy and traveling? Do you have certain “rules” you follow, always do the same thing, just do whatever you feel like for a body part, some combo of those?