"One More Year" Turned Into Ten. I'm Done Waiting.

Hey {{first_name|Reader}}.

You're about to tell yourself "one more year" again.

One more year of the hard job. One more year of the travel. One more year of missing your kids' games, their homework, their bedtime stories. One more year of watching your partner handle everything alone while you're gone.

And if you're not careful, that "one more year" turns into ten. Your kids go from infants to tweens. And you blink and realize: you've been saying "one more year" for a decade.

This week: a watch that's versatile enough for anything, the trip I'm about to take (again), and what I'm finally doing to make sure "one more year" doesn't become twenty.

Let's get into it.

TL;DR: The Seiko 5 Sports SRPK89 is affordable, versatile, and looks great. I'm leaving for Fairbanks this weekend—24 days away from my family. Again. "One more year" turned into ten. So I'm studying for my CFP to build my way out before I miss the next ten.

(Thoughts on this newsletter? Send me your feedback)

This one's on my radar for all the right reasons. Black dial, orange accents, 37.4mm case, 100m water resistance, automatic movement. It's sporty enough for daily wear, clean enough for anything else, and priced at $415.

The color contrast works. The orange seconds hand pops without being obnoxious. The size is right, maybe a bit on the large side. And it's a Seiko 5, which means it'll take a beating and keep going.

What I Like: Versatile (works for everything), affordable ($415), great color contrast (black + orange), Seiko 5 durability, 100m water resistance

What I Dislike: Honestly? Nothing major. It's a solid watch at this price.

Decision: Not buying right now, but keeping it on the list. If I need a beater watch that can handle anything, this is it.

Need help making your next decision?

I built tools for this:

⌚ Watch Decision Framework ($6.99) — One page, clear answer (link)

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You're about to make a trade-off. Maybe you already made it.

Take the promotion that means more travel. Accept the bonus that costs you three weeks at home. Say yes to "one more year" of the grind because the money's good and the alternative feels risky.

And you tell yourself: "Just one more year. Then things will change."

But here's what actually happens: "one more year" turns into ten. Your kids grow up. Your partner becomes a single parent while you're gone. And you look back and realize you traded a decade for a paycheck.

I know because I've been doing it.

I'm leaving for Fairbanks this weekend. 24+ days away from my family. No per diem. No bonus. Just another work trip that's "part of the job."

This specific trip happens every year. Along with many others. In 2024, I was home for about 6 months. Away for about 6 months. Then last year, I missed my entire last summer with my family, when my wife and kids are off school, because of work trips.

My wife and I keep telling ourselves: "One more year of this. The hard job. The being away. The moving. Then we'll change something."

But when we paused to look back, we realized: it's been ten years. We’ve literally been saying this for a whole decade.

My kids were infants. Now they're becoming tweens. That "one more year" turned into a decade in the blink of an eye.

School events. Games. Helping with homework. Bedtime routines. The daily stuff that doesn't feel important until it's gone.

Watching my wife perform like a single mom while I'm away. Knowing my kids are growing up and I'm not there for it.

And for what? A job that doesn't appreciate the sacrifice and always asks for more.

They accept it. "Part of the job." "Just how it is." "One more year and things will be different."

And twenty years later, they're still saying it. Still missing it. Still trading time for a paycheck that was never worth it.

This is the wake-up call. I'm not doing another ten years of this.

So I'm building faster. I'm putting more time into something else. And I'm making sure the next "one more year" is the last one.

More on that in the next section.

You're running out of time.

Not in some abstract, philosophical way. In a literal, mathematical way.

If you're 38, you've got, if you're lucky, 38 more years ahead of you. Maybe less. Maybe a bit more. But the clock is ticking, and you've likely got more time behind you than ahead of you.

I turned 38 in January. And that realization hit me hard.

I've spent the last ten years saying "one more year." Ten years of missing my kids grow up. Ten years of travel, sacrifice, and telling myself it'll change "soon."

And if I keep going like this, the next ten years will look exactly the same. My kids will be grown and gone. My time will be gone. And I'll have nothing to show for it but regrets.

So something has to give.

I love finance. Always have. Years ago, I completed all the education requirements to sit for the CFP exam. Then life got in the way. I never took the test. (If I am being totally honest here, I made excuses, chickened out and didn’t take it)

Last week, I picked up my CFP exam prep book and started studying again.

The goal: Pass the CFP exam in November. Then work some hours with a CFP to earn my designation. Eventually, start my own practice WAY down the road.

The plan: 5 hours per week of studying. Less TV at night. Dialing back some of the detail in this newsletter to free up time.

The endgame: More flexibility. My own practice. A path out of the job that keeps taking me away from my family.

The alternative: If I don't do this, I will have missed my kids growing up. I will have regrets that I was an absent father.

Screw that.

You can't add 5 hours of studying per week without cutting something.

For me, it's TV at night. It's some of the deep-dive research I do for this newsletter. It's saying no to things that don't move me toward the goal.

Because here's the truth: if you're not willing to give something up, you're not serious about changing.

Most people say they want more time, more freedom, more control over their lives. But they're not willing to cut the TV, the scrolling, the distractions that eat their hours.

So nothing changes. And ten years later, they're still saying "one more year."

You're at your halflife too. Maybe not 38. Maybe 35. Maybe 42. But you're running out of time.

So what are you building?

What credential are you studying for? What side business are you starting? What skill are you learning that buys you leverage in 5 years?

Or are you just hoping "one more year" will magically turn into something different?

Because it won't. Unless you make it different.

Something has to give. What will you cut to make room for what actually matters?

You make small choices every week. Most of them feel insignificant.

Stay at the job that pays well but drains you. Skip studying for the credential because you're tired. Say yes to one more trip, one more year, one more sacrifice.

None of those choices feel like they matter in the moment.

But here's what happens when you stack them:

Ten years of "one more year":

Ten years of investing 5 hours per week:

Both paths take the same amount of time. The difference is what you're building with it.

The 24 days I'm about to spend in Fairbanks? That's time spent. Gone. Can't get it back.

The 5 hours per week I'm committing to the CFP? That's time invested. In 1 year, I take the test. In 3 years, I have my own practice. In 5 years, I say no to jobs like this.

Your choices this week compound the same way.

What are you building? Or are you just hoping "one more year" turns into something different?

(A newsletter like this could be something you want to build. Check out beehiiv)

I leave for Fairbanks this weekend. 24 days away from my family. Again.

But this time is different. Because when I get back, I'll have 5 hours per week locked in for the CFP. Not "thinking about it." Not "one day." Doing it.

You're at your halflife too. Maybe not 38. Maybe 35. Maybe 42. But you're running out of time.

And you're probably telling yourself "one more year" about something. One more year at the job that drains you. One more year before you start building. One more year before you make the change.

But "one more year" turns into ten. And ten turns into twenty. And one day, you'll blink and realize: you ran out of time.

Don't let that be you.

Pick one thing this week. A credential. A side business. A skill. Something that makes work optional instead of required.

Then cut something to make room for it. TV. Scrolling. The stuff that eats your time and gives you nothing back.

You don't need permission. You don't need the perfect plan. You just need to start.

Something has to give. Make it the thing that's stealing your time, not the thing that could buy it back.

Reply and tell me what you're building or what's stopping you. If you're not building yet, this is your reminder: something has to give.

Time is wealth. Own it.

—Ian