Hey neighbors, happy Thursday.

I made it to NC! If you weren’t following me before, I was in GA last week visiting family. Now I’m writing from the Tar Heel State. Be back in NYC sometime in October! Hopefully, just in time for peak fall festivities. Anywho 👇

️ 🧼 For Sale: Bronx laundromat 18 years in biz asks $392K. $120K owner cash flow on $390K revenue. 5-year lease in place. Proven operation with consistent clientele. Buy it.

🍻 Hot Event: Smorgasburg Fresh Picks Beer Fest returns this Saturday Sept 27, 11am-6pm at Marsha P. Johnson Park. Fresh hop beers, Oktoberfest styles, local breweries. $25 = 5 tokens (1 token = 1 pour). Free entry, all ages. Prost.

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“Parents in NYC are in art and finance and they don’t do well with literal shit. Validating this to other people, especially non-parents, is a different struggle. Most of the time, I get the “oh! I didn’t know that was a service” and occasionally, I get the “people should take care of their own kids.”

The pivot: After 13 years as a nanny, she launched a parent coaching and potty training business while keeping her part-time nanny job. "I wanted to do something more meaningful and challenging than helping a family run a household behind the scenes."

Revenue breakdown: Made an extra $10-12K this year through parent coaching and work through the Village Childcare Experts app, plus a $200/hr. speaking engagement.

Seasonal reality: "Potty training is VERY seasonal. I'm busiest in spring and summer, slow down once kids start school, pretty dead during holidays and freezing months." Revenue has doubled year-over-year for the past two years.

Low startup costs: About $900 total over 3 years ($500 for business cards/stickers, $400 for Squarespace website).

Biggest challenge: "Finding work is hard because referring a potty specialist means admitting you hired one, which means admitting you struggled as a parent. It's like referring a marriage counselor."

Guerrilla marketing: "I’ll walk through certain stores and stick my stickers/QR code onto packs of diapers and wipes. I shove business cards into boxes of toys and between books marketed to toddlers." Inspired by a Masterclass episode of Spanx founder, Sara Blakely, who years back would put her products right at the checkout counter even though she wasn’t supposed to.

Smart work-life balance: Still works as a nanny Mondays-Tuesdays with "a very cool family in Brooklyn" for steady income, reserves Wednesday-Friday for parent coaching. "My essentials are covered with my Mon-Tues nanny income. Business income is considered a bonus."

No social media presence: "You won't find my business on Instagram or TikTok. I don't create content or infographics. The most you'll find is when I comment on Facebook threads about potty questions and link my website."

Anti-hustle approach: "I don't have to hustle and grind. I say 'no' to work all the time because it doesn't feel right. I turn away opportunities that don't align with my vision."

Future goals: More speaking engagements and possibly a book. "A couple people have suggested I write a book, but I don't think I know enough yet."

Startup advice: "Make it exist first, make it perfect later."

Cash Confessionals are weekly stories where NYC locals peel back the curtain and expose their money habits.

Living situation: I live with my wife and two cats in Williamsburg near the Graham L stop. We pay $2,636 for a one-bedroom. I like where we are because it has a neighborhood feel with proximity to great bars and restaurants. Manhattan is a bit too hectic for me.

Career: I'm a personal trainer and love what I do. I get to make people move, feel good, and stay healthy. I pay myself a $50k salary plus dividends from my business, with total profit around $130k per year. Combined with about $12,000 annually from investment dividends, my total income is in the $160-220k range. My career goal is to stay training but start investing in other fitness businesses. If I could get partners, I'd love to open a recovery spa. Think Bathhouse but more of a white/jungle relaxing atmosphere focused on recovery and community building.

Expenses: I track everything I spend in a Google spreadsheet. Monthly breakdown: $480 on groceries, $296 dining out, $225 entertainment, and $5-7k annually on travel. My biggest expense after rent is groceries, simply because I don't go out to eat much.

Best money decision recently: Investing in $BABA. I have about $120,000 invested and accumulated most of it during China's three-year bear market. It's up 95% this year, and although I lost sleep over it at times, it's been rewarding seeing it pan out.

Worst money decision ever: Spending on cocaine in my twenties. That was stupid and dangerous. It was about $200/week, and if I went out using drugs, I would spend $200-300/night on alcohol, food, and cigarettes. I'm clean now.

Debt: Zero debt. I don't like owing people money.

Saving & investing: I save $6,000 or more per month when possible. I have a $24k emergency fund and about $400k in taxable accounts, $200k in retirement vehicles. I invest mostly in stocks and some REITs through Charles Schwab, with two taxable accounts, a SEP, Roth IRA, and Traditional IRA. I max out my IRA contributions yearly.

Money rules: Your average hourly rate should never exceed the amount you spend per hour at a restaurant or bar.

Splurges: Grass-fed beef and great food when I go out.

Side hustles: I used to do financial coaching for personal trainers for two years, which added about $40-50k additional revenue to my business.

What are your long-term goals? I want to become financially independent by age 50, where my dividend income covers all my expenses and bills. I won't necessarily retire, but it would be nice to know I can make riskier decisions with a huge dividend portfolio to fall back on. I'd love to own property but not at current market values and somewhere more secluded, ideally near the beach. My current goal is to invest as much as possible and allocate my portfolio toward passive income assets as I age.

Thanks for reading this week’s edition. If you have ideas for stories, know about new business coming soon, or want to do your own anonymous Cash Confessionals submission, let me know!

Josh

P.S.

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