I believe the key to happiness is dependent on 3 factors. I call them the 3 Fs.

💸 Finances: I want enough money to feel comfortable and save for the future. I don’t need to be stinkin’ rich, but I don’t want to be money-anxious.

🪽Flexibility: I want control over my time. I want to decide when I work, how often I work, and who I work with and for.

💓Fulfillment: I want my work to be satisfying. I want it to contribute to my legacy, improve my community, and help me lead a richer, fuller life.

I have been at the intersection of all three of these qualities, two at a time but never all at once. Each time, I discovered that missing just one ingredient will lead to burnout one way or another:

I learned about the 3 Fs one at a time. It was like flipping through a deck of cards; I'd achieve one of the three, and then realize there was another F standing between me and deeper happiness.

When I was just a wee baby working my first job after college, my focus was all on the first F: Finances.

I graduated in 2008, at the height of the recession, with a mountain of debt and a liberal arts degree.

I needed money, fast.

I was well aware, even back then, that the phrase “money can’t buy happiness” was BS.

If you’ve ever lived paycheck to paycheck, wondering if you’ll be able to afford life next week, you know money can seriously affect personal happiness.

So I worked my way up the ranks at three different agencies, chasing raise after raise until I started earning enough to feel comfortable.

But to get there, I had sacrificed the second F: Flexibility.

I had to be in the office every day 9 - 5 even if I only had two hours of work to do. I had to sit through pointless meetings, work for terrible clients, and tolerate intolerable colleagues.

So I quit that too, and took a gamble on freelancing. I thought: Even if I lose some money, at least I’ll be able to do what I want with my time.

Imagine my surprise when I actually made more money as a freelancer than I did in agencies. And I cut my working hours in half, leaving me with all the free time in the world to travel and explore and…

Then 2023 came. And very quickly, everything shifted.

The SEO industry was dealt a one-two punch.

​AI flipped everything on its head, and Google released some incredibly chaotic algorithm updates in response.

Suddenly, SEO wasn’t the safe, warm, and easy industry I was used to.

Now, it was confusing and unpredictable and more than a little scary.

The industry I relied on, the one I’d dedicated so much of my life to, suddenly had a big, red question mark over it.

I hate to admit it, but I lost my cool. As is common in times of stress, my brain jumped to the worst-case scenarios.

Losing one client meant I'd be evicted and living on the streets soon.

Unexpected twists and turns in the SEO world meant I should throw out my whole career and start over.

I was losing sleep at night, wondering about SGE and algorithm updates and whether I’d have to start waiting tables.

My job is to be a voice of reason and clarity about SEO for my readers, mentees, and clients. How was I supposed to do that, if I myself felt frightened and confused?

So…

I stopped posting on LinkedIn.

I stopped writing emails to you.

I turned off almost all of my marketing and only worked on the clients I needed to keep my baseline income.

I put my business on life support.

It was burnout like I'd never experienced it before. For the last few months of 2023, I wandered around like a ghost, trying to figure out what the f*** I was supposed to do.

Slowly, that wandering started to feel more like meditating. And as one might expect, meditating revealed the true root of my problem.

I had forgotten about the third F.

Maybe, I realized, the source of my discontent isn't purely about the chaos in the SEO industry. Maybe it's about fulfillment.

After all, I had everything else:

I had the finances; 2023 was the year I paid off my loans and took major steps toward my property and retirement goals.

I had the flexibility; I’ve been living as a digital nomad since 2019, and can be selective about my clients and hours.

But even with all those blessings and privileges, my heart was starving.

I needed the kind of soul-fulfillment I wasn’t getting at work or on the road: Community. Hobbies. Long-term friendships. Art.

So I decided to make some changes.

👯‍♂️I dialed back the travel and moved into an apartment with a close friend back in my one-time hometown, Boston.

✍️ I signed up for a memoir class, and what’s more, actually started writing my memoir (!!!).

🎹 I bought a used keyboard and started taking piano lessons.

🧁I rediscovered my love for baking and cooking.

💗 I started volunteering.

🪡I learned how to cross-stitch.

📖I started reading solely for pleasure.

💞I revived old relationships and forged new ones.

👆 I am not listing these things to brag. I am putting them out there because for many years, I refused to allow myself to do these things.

I told myself that these activities could wait until I was earning just enough and had just enough free time.

But I wanted too long, and I paid the price. At the first sign of trouble, my inner child threw a tantrum. He refused to let me do any work until I gave him some attention.

Now that I've made it up to him somewhat, we've struck a deal. He'll let me work again, but only if I can be honest, open, playful, and true in the work that I do.

That deal made this email possible.

It's also allowed me to look at the state of the SEO industry with a renewed sense of curiosity. Things are still chaotic and confusing, but they aren't so terrifying after all.

In fact, I’m nearly done putting together my new action plan for SEO experts and freelancers, to help make some sense of all this chaos in the industry.

More on that in my next email.

For now, let me ask you: Which of the Three Fs is lacking in your life?

Reply to this email and let me know. I’d love to brainstorm your path to Triple F. 😉

​
- Liam