Everything is Investing

Episode 002: Life as a Portfolio: A Framework for Better Returns

Synopsis

In this episode, Jared Bowers moves from the "what" of Vested to the "how" of the Everything Is Investing (EII) framework. He argues that portfolio management is not a niche skill for Wall Street, but a universal operating system for navigating human life. Jared breaks down the three "investing macros"—Time, Energy, and Money—and explains why we must view our lives as a collection of accounts where there is no such thing as a neutral action. Whether you are managing your health, your marriage, or your retirement fund, you are making deposits or withdrawals every minute of the day. This episode concludes with a practical "Mindshare Audit" to help you stop being surprised by your results and start taking command of your trajectory.

Sequential Outline

I. Establishing the Framework: The Pilot’s Dashboard

(0:41) Foundational Operating System: EII is the core framework for everything Jared teaches. Before diving into specific real-world case studies, it is essential to understand the underlying "operating system."
(2:03) The Pilot Analogy: A pilot doesn’t hop into a jet and fly at 600 mph immediately. They first spend months learning the systems, the gauges, the dials, and the controls.
(2:42) High Stakes: While money feels like high stakes, the responsibility for your own life and the well-being of those you care for is even higher. Understanding the system allows you to apply principles effectively rather than acting on impulse.
(3:17) Accessibility: This framework works regardless of where you start—whether you are currently "below zero" or in the top 1%. It is a "white belt to black belt" progression.

II. Redefining the Portfolio Manager

(3:47) Everyone is a Resource Allocator: Portfolio management is not limited to those managing multi-million dollar funds. We are all resource allocators choosing from a "menu" of investment options many times every day.
(4:20) Life Accounts: Every aspect of life—relationships, health, career, faith—should be viewed as an account that can be managed, budgeted, trimmed, or reallocated.
(4:40) The Literal Definition of EII: Every allocation of your limited resources (Time, Energy, and Money) is a literal investment that produces a return.
(5:02) The Myth of Neutral: Every action is either a deposit or a withdrawal. There is no neutral gear; your accounts are either growing or shrinking based on where you direct your resources.

III. The Three Investing Macronutrients

(5:38) 5% About Stocks: For most people, the stock market represents 5% or less of the "investing game." Even for professional investors, the vast majority of life-investing happens outside of public markets.
(6:03) The Macros: Time, Energy, and Money:
- Money is just one macronutrient. Time and Energy are often far more critical to the highest-stakes accounts like family and health.
- Even with money, most of your "investing" isn't in stocks; it's the daily decision of where to direct cash flow to solve problems or create value.
(7:35) Universal Application: The same tools Jared uses for professional portfolios (tracking, benchmarking, rebalancing) are the tools he uses for his spiritual life and fitness.

IV. Mapping the Accounts of the Life Portfolio

(8:51) Examples of Key Accounts:
- Health & Fitness: A portfolio of physical movement and nutritional inputs.
- Marriage: Shared interests, trust, and service built primarily through time and energy.
- Friendships: A portfolio of people you invest in and who invest in you.
- Career: A portfolio of accumulated experiences, projects, and education.
- Parenting: Often a "one-sided" investment focused on launching a healthy, upstanding human into the world.
- Spiritual Life: A portfolio of prayer, service, learning, and practices.
(12:31) Happiness as a Return: Fulfillment is the cumulative return of how well you are investing in the accounts that align with your purpose.

V. The Rule of Returns: Trajectory and Responsibility

(13:15) The Caveat of Exceptions: Jared acknowledges outliers—cancer (citing his mother’s healthy lifestyle but short life), failed businesses, or external tragedies. Not every bad outcome is a "bad investment."
(14:06) The Rule vs. The Exception: While exceptions exist, in the vast majority of cases, outcomes are the direct or indirect result of investment decisions.
(14:42) You Get What You Pay For: If you consistently deposit into a "mediocre marriage" or "unhealthy body" account, the resulting state of those accounts is not a surprise—it is a result.
(18:46) "Why Are You Surprised?": A core Vested question. Looking at your current account balances typically reveals exactly where your resources have (or haven't) been flowing.

VI. Reframing Failure & The Danger of "Average"

(19:42) Failure as Poor Returns: Reframing failure as "poor investing" makes it solvable. Investing is a skill that can be learned; it is only a permanent failure if you reject the opportunity to learn.
(20:37) Average is Terrible: In modern society, being "average" in health, marriage, or finances is actually a borderline disaster. Average is not a target to shoot for, but a point to move past.
(21:37) Investment Failure: Below-average outcomes are rarely moral failures; they are usually failures of resource allocation.

VII. Long-Termism and the Power of Compounding

(25:52) Investing vs. Gambling: Investing is a long-term strategy focused on ownership. Gambling is a short-term hunt for immediate gratification.
(26:44) Compounding: This is one of the most powerful forces in existence, but it only lives in the long term.
(27:56) The Buffett Model: Warren Buffett’s fame isn't just his returns; it's his eight decades of consistency. He didn't hit $1 billion until age 60. Most people quit long before the compounding truly takes off.
(30:13) Staying Invested: The only way to make meaningful progress in what matters is through long-term consistency and focus.

VIII. Top 1% Results and the Role of Mindset

(31:13) The Cost of Meaning: High-impact outcomes require high-impact costs. You cannot run a marathon on talent alone; you run it because you "deposited" 5,000 miles of training.
(32:30) Putting in the Reps: Hard work doesn't get "lighter," but you become more capable of doing it without fatigue.
(33:36) The Expectation Gap: You cannot expect Top 1% returns (in health, wealth, or relationships) while providing Bottom 50% inputs.
(34:21) Mindset Determines Trajectory: Your mindset (Wealthy/Abundant vs. Poor/Scarcity) sets your investing ceiling. You can be a "wealthy person" without money yet if your trajectory is correct. Conversely, someone with money and a "poor mindset" will eventually lose it.

IX. Practical Tool: The Mindshare Audit

(37:55) Behavioral Truths: Tracking tools (time logs, budgets) don't lie. They reveal what you actually care about.
(38:04) The Drift Test: Pay attention to where your mind settles when on "autopilot" (showering, driving, riding). Your mind settles on your highest priorities.
(39:35) The Three Categories of Drift:
1. Over-Allocation: Addiction, waste, or vice. (Things you spend too many resources on).
2. Under-Allocation: Regret, guilt, and "stuckness." (Things you know you should invest in but aren't).
3. Proper Allocation: Passion, purpose, and calling. (Areas of high impact and positive returns).
(41:40) Diagnostic Value: If your mind drifts to categories 1 or 2, you have a trajectory problem. If it settles on category 3, you are realizing the returns of a purposeful life.

X. Closing: Purpose vs. On Purpose

(44:12) The Key Question: "For what purpose?" If you can't answer that, you can't invest "on purpose."
(45:10) Next Episode: A deeper dive into the "Investing Macros": Time, Energy, and Money.

Quotes to Remember

"Investing is the default. Not investing is not an option."

"Trajectory is more important than your current state."

"Discipline, patience, and effective effort, when done together, are rarely defeated over time."

"Why are you surprised? Look at the investments being made, and you shouldn't be surprised at the balance."

Jared’s Current Mindshare Audit (Top 3):

Housebuilding
Podcasting
Money