I Wrote a Book! Behind the Scenes of Retire Early With Real Estate
I wrote a book! If you’re on my newsletter or in one of my courses, you certainly know this by now. But I thought it would be fun to share a sneak peek behind the scenes of my new book Retire Early With Real Estate.
You can get the print, Kindle, and (hopefully very soon!) Audible versions HERE on Amazon. Or you can get a bunch of bonus goodies if you buy directly through my publisher Bigger Pockets.
To make this behind the scenes tour more fun and interesting (for you and me!), I’ll answer some frequently asked questions I’ve received about the book.
What’s the book called? Why did you pick that title?
The book is called Retire Early With Real Estate – How Smart Investing Can Help You Escape the 9-to-5 Grind and Do What Matters More.
I debated using the word retirement. It’s such a loaded word. For example, I could have used similar words like “financial freedom” or “financial independence.” But they don’t quite roll off the tongue or evoke the emotion normally associated with the topic.
So in the end, I thought retirement was a concept people could “get” right away.
What’s the book about?
I wanted my book to be a mix of thoughtful philosophies and extremely practical strategies. So, the metaphor for the book is a mountain climb, which progresses something like this:
- You begin at base camp to prepare for the climb (i.e. understand why early retirement is important and why real estate is a good tool)
- Next, you set goals to understand what you’re climbing toward
- Then you learn the basics of wealth building, which are the same whether you invest in real estate or anything else
- Next, you learn the most useful strategies to build wealth and reach early retirement using real estate
- And finally, you get tips for the top of the mountain when you want to live off your income for the rest of your life
Within that framework, I teach strategies like house hacking, live-in-then-rent, BRRRR investing, rental debt snowballs, 1031-exchanges, and more. And between all of those strategies, I share real-life case studies of 24 other investors who used these different techniques to retire early using real estate.
Why did you write the book?
I asked myself that question many times when I was up to my eyeballs in nearly endless book edits and drafts!!
But in all seriousness, my motivation to write this book was the same as my motivation for this site. I wanted to help people do more of what matters. As Vicki Robins says in one of my favorite books, Your Money or Your Life, too many people are stuck “making a dying.” It’s not that money is the most important thing, but money sure does seem to get in the way.
I felt like I had the knowledge and experiences to help others with this problem. And I’ve found that helpful ideas stuck in my head won’t leave me alone. I’ve got to organize and share them to get a little mental peace!
So you see – the book was one part therapy for me and another part a manifesto to empower others!
What change do you hope readers make after reading the book?
Amazing question! Did you write that?
(Yes, I did. But I’m also talking to myself, so I better get back to the point quickly).
Very simply, I want readers to leave my book inspired and confident in their early retirement plan. The ultimate compliment would be that readers take action. That action may mean getting started with their journey towards early retirement. Or it may mean shifting their current path to get there faster (and happier).
Why do you want people to retire early? Isn’t that lazy, boring, or even unethical?
One of my primary goals with the book is to redefine the concept of retirement.
The message is clear. You don’t have to wait until you’re 65 to 70 years old to retire. As the 24 case studies in the book show, people are doing it earlier than ever in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s.
Plus, instead of waiting for one big retirement event, they’re also enjoying the many retirement plateaus along the way (gotta love mini-retirements!).
And most importantly, retirement isn’t just sitting around doing nothing. It’s simply a shift in priorities and an expansion of your life options.
Retirement means you can stop selling out to jobs or schedules you don’t like. It means you no longer have to make decisions with money as the primary consideration. Instead, you can put your values, close relationships, and core life priorities in their proper place at the center.
I would love to see a growing movement of early retirees who use their newfound financial autonomy to make the world a better place – one life, one family, and one community at a time.
Are you getting paid to write this book?
I sure hope so! As of writing this the week of the book’s Amazon release, I’ve only seen money going out!
But yes, this is certainly a for-profit project, although I could have done many OTHER projects that are much more profitable. I’ve heard from plenty of other authors who remind me that you don’t write a book to become rich or to earn a high hourly rate!
But regardless, I happen to think profit generation is a perfectly reasonable, sustainable, and even preferred method of making the world a better place. Part of my early retirement goals is to use my time and financial resources to support and build social businesses. So, the more money, the better.
Building a Social Business by Nobel Prize winner Muhammad Yunus and Conscious Capitalism by John Mackey and Rajendra Sisodia are two of my favorite books on the topics of using business for good.
How did this whole book publishing thing come about?
The seed of this book started in a coffee shop conversation with Brandon Turner, an amazing author, podcaster, and friend over at real estate mega-site BiggerPockets.com. He suggested I write a book that Bigger Pockets would publish.
I pitched the idea to them soon after and the rest is history.
I couldn’t have picked a better publisher because their mission is perfectly aligned with my own. And I also can’t imagine managing all the details they handled for me so that I could focus on the book itself.
What’s next for you?
Other than sleep?! Lol.
I don’t have any other book plans in the near future. But remember that whole ideas-in-my-head problem I tend to have? If another set of important ideas puts pressure on me, I’m sure I’ll have to organize and share them!
But in the meantime professionally, I’m focusing more on teaching online courses here on coachcarson.com. I love the online course format because it allows me to more directly get involved and help people.
I’ll also continue writing my blog. And I hope to build out a larger library of helpful videos on my YouTube channel.
And personally, I’m looking forward to lots of time riding my kids to school on our bikes, helping with homework, and just being around home after living abroad for 17 months!
Thank you for your support!
I appreciate your interest in the book. Thank you for those of you who already bought, reviewed, and shared it.
You can buy the print, digital, or Audible versions at my Amazon book page. And if you feel inspired to share and help me spread the word about the book, I have a book sharing page with ready-made quotes, graphics, and more.