Months after experiencing the profound loss of his mother, J.D., the founder of the personal finance platform Get Rich Slowly, has announced a major shift in his personal and professional trajectory. In a candid update to his readers, he revealed that the psychological fog following his mother’s passing has finally begun to lift, igniting a renewed sense of motivation and a clear determination to prioritize his own well-being.
After spending weeks of deep soul-searching alongside his partner, Kim, J.D. arrived at a realization that has fundamentally shifted his perspective for the coming months. Above all else, he has declared that 2023 will officially be designated as the "Year of Me."
For J.D., this pivot represents a dramatic departure from decades of habitual self-neglect. More than ten years ago, he established a successful personal tradition of assigning overarching themes to specific months and years. Whether he focused his energy on physical fitness, writing, or dating, these intentional blocks of time consistently yielded positive and fruitful results. However, as the years progressed, this practice gradually fell by the wayside, replaced by a lifestyle that consistently relegated his own needs to the background.
Reflecting on his past habits, J.D. admitted that he has spent far too long placing himself second, third, or even ninth in his own life. Beginning immediately, his primary objective is to center his physical and mental health above all external distractions for the foreseeable future. While acknowledging that adopting this mindset initially triggers feelings of selfishness and discomfort, he emphasizes that neglecting one’s own health ultimately undermines the ability to show up effectively for others. By investing time and energy into his own well-being, J.D. believes he will ultimately become a better resource for his readers, friends, and family.
For the audience of Get Rich Slowly, the transition is expected to remain largely internal rather than disruptive. J.D. reassures his readership that the core mission and output of the platform will persist, though readers may notice more organic reflections, increased creative momentum, and the eventual completion of the site’s long-awaited de-design.
Crucially, as part of this personal recalibration, J.D. is deliberately stepping away from rigid publishing schedules and production quotas. Moving forward, he intends to write only when compelled by authentic inspiration rather than forced obligation. This philosophy is directly reflected in his recent creative output, which includes engaging with personal development exercises from the book Designing Your Life during moments of quiet reflection. Rather than adhering to a strict corporate blog format, J.D. is embracing a more conversational and fluid approach to sharing his journey.
The Courage to Be Disliked
Much of J.D.’s recent philosophical groundwork was shaped during a Thanksgiving road trip to California with Kim and her family. To pass the time during the long drive, the couple listened to the audiobook The Courage to Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga, a work that explores the psychological framework of Alfred Adler.
The book, which J.D. notes might be more accurately titled The Courage to Be Happy, offered a dense collection of psychological insights that initially required significant discussion to fully comprehend. Finding the Socratic dialogue format of the audiobook somewhat cumbersome for casual review, J.D. plans to revisit the material in a digital Kindle format to extract and analyze the most impactful passages. He has also hinted that the insights gained from Adlerian psychology may eventually materialize into a full review or summary article on Get Rich Slowly.
A Values-Driven Life
The philosophical themes of the trip resonated deeply with notes appearing in J.D.’s Readwise application, particularly a passage from Stephen R. Covey’s foundational work, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Covey writes that the ability to subordinate an impulse to a value is the essence of a proactive person, whereas reactive individuals are driven entirely by feelings, circumstances, and environmental conditions.
Recognizing that he had drifted away from his core values while losing control over daily impulses, J.D. has already begun taking concrete measures to realign his life. Practical steps have included the removal of distracting applications such as Reddit and Hearthstone from his iPad, effectively clearing the mental and digital space necessary to reintegrate his core values into daily practice.
While these shifts point toward a more conversational, essay-driven format for his upcoming posts, J.D. maintains that longer, deeply focused articles will remain a part of the platform’s future. For now, however, embracing a values-driven life and prioritizing personal well-being under the banner of the "Year of Me" takes precedence above all else.
