After navigating a period of profound personal grief and extended introspection following the death of his mother two months ago, personal finance writer J.D., founder of the widely read platform Get Rich Slowly, has announced a major shift in his personal and professional trajectory. In a candid update to his readers, J.D. shared that the emotional fog surrounding his loss has finally begun to lift, leaving him motivated to reengage with productive pursuits. However, this return to productivity comes with a significant twist: for the foreseeable future, he is placing his own physical, mental, and emotional well-being above all external obligations.
According to J.D., the decision crystallized after weeks of deep soul-searching conducted alongside his partner, Kim. Recognizing that he has spent years relegating his own needs to the background—often ranking himself second, third, or even ninth behind other responsibilities and distractions—he has declared 2023 to be "The Year of Me."
This philosophy marks a return to a practice J.D. utilized more than a decade ago. For several years during that period, he regularly assigned thematic focuses to specific months and years, a strategy that yielded substantial success in areas such as fitness, writing, and dating. Over time, however, this deliberate approach to personal development fell by the wayside as daily life and external pressures took over.
Now, J.D. is reviving the concept on a much larger scale. Starting immediately, his primary objective is to prioritize himself for the next year or more. He acknowledges that making this choice initially triggers feelings of selfishness and discomfort, as it runs counter to years of conditioning that prioritized work, obligations, and the demands of others. Yet, he has concluded that making excuses for neglecting his health and personal balance is no longer tenable. For the foreseeable future, J.D. is positioning himself as his top priority, operating under the conviction that prioritizing his own well-being will ultimately make him a better person for those around him—including his readers and loved ones.
For the regular audience of Get Rich Slowly, J.D. reassures that the core experience of reading the site will remain largely unchanged. The transformation is primarily internal, driven by a conscious decision to grant himself permission to put his own needs first. While this shift is expected to generate fresh inspiration and material for his writing—and finally bring about the long-awaited completion of the site’s ongoing redesign—J.D. is deliberately stepping away from rigid publishing and production schedules. Moving forward, he will write and publish purely when inspiration strikes rather than forcing content simply to meet arbitrary deadlines. The announcement itself was born of this newfound flexibility, written after completing an exercise from the book Designing Your Life while waiting for a scheduled phone call with a friend.
The Courage to Be Disliked
This internal restructuring has also been heavily influenced by recent media consumption. During a Thanksgiving road trip to visit Kim’s family in California, the couple listened to The Courage to Be Disliked by authors Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga. The book, which J.D. notes might more accurately be titled The Courage to Be Happy, explores the psychological worldview and interpersonal theories of Alfred Adler.
The audiobook provided substantial food for thought, prompting J.D. to plan a return to the material in Kindle format to review and capture key passages. Written in the style of a Socratic dialogue, the book presents complex psychological concepts through conversation. While J.D. found the conversational format slightly cumbersome for quick referencing, the underlying wisdom resonated deeply with his current state of mind. He indicated that he may eventually publish a full review or summary of the book on Get Rich Slowly as he continues to process its lessons on autonomy, interpersonal relationships, and personal responsibility.
A Values-Driven Life
The theme of personal alignment was further reinforced by a highlighted passage from Stephen R. Covey’s classic work, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which surfaced through his Readwise account. The quote emphasizes the distinction between reactive individuals—who are driven by passing feelings, environmental conditions, and external circumstances—and proactive individuals, who possess the ability to subordinate immediate impulses to carefully considered and internalized values.
Reflecting on Covey’s words, J.D. realized that he had temporarily lost his grip on impulse control while drifting away from his core values. Recognizing the need to course-correct, he has already begun taking concrete steps to curb reactionary habits, such as removing time-consuming applications like Reddit and Hearthstone from his iPad. The broader implementation of the "Year of Me" represents the next logical phase in realigning his daily actions with his fundamental values.
As J.D. embarks on this deeply personal chapter, readers can expect a more conversational, spontaneous approach to the content published on Get Rich Slowly. Rather than adhering to traditional, structured articles, future posts may take the form of shorter, reflective updates and fragmented thoughts as he continues to navigate this values-driven journey of self-prioritization.
