Cash Flow Outside Your Day Job

Andre Nader spent nearly a decade at Meta, got laid off, checked his accounts, and realized he never had to work again. Three years into semi-FIRE, he breaks down the math and psychology behind financial independence for tech workers, how to calculate your enough number, RSU selling strategies, and giving yourself permission to spend.

Listen to this week’s episode.

We polled 314 Long Angle members to put numbers to the most common cash flow sources outside of a day job.

The two most established ways to generate yield outside of a paycheck are rental properties (40% of respondents) and dividend-focused public equities (38%).

More than a quarter have income-focused private investments like private credit or real estate funds. Active income sources like consulting/advisory and side businesses are less common, suggesting many prefer capital-based income over trading more of their time.

We also asked what percentage of respondents’ monthly cash flow comes from these alternative sources. About half said below 25%. The more surprising finding is that 22% derive over three-quarters of their cash flow from outside sources, effectively decoupling income from employment. 

Members in the discussion thread pushed back on the framing itself, noting that the income versus growth distinction is largely psychological. Still, several members described preferring to spend cash flow rather than sell shares.

Read all 53 comments on the topic inside Long Angle.

Summer is here and travel season is in full swing. Last fall, we polled 425 high-net-worth travelers asking about their primary airline for loyalty rewards, miles, and lounge access. The data is a few months old but the preferences haven't changed.

United's MileagePlus came out on top at 31% of respondents, followed by Delta SkyMiles and American AAdvantage.

The result is partly a geography story. United's hubs in San Francisco and Los Angeles put it squarely in the backyard of tech founders, executives, and investors (the core of the Long Angle membership). For many, airline loyalty follows naturally from where they live and where they fly most.

Beyond the top three airlines, transferring points from credit cards to airlines has become an increasingly popular alternative to single-airline loyalty. Rather than accumulating miles with one carrier, members described using Chase Ultimate Rewards or Amex Membership Rewards to feed into multiple airline programs.

See how airline loyalty and premium credit cards both compare and complement each other in our recent blog, The Best Credit Cards for High-Net-Worth Individuals.

Venture capital rankings have long been criticized for being subjective and light on methodology. A new working paper from researchers at Stanford and Ohio State takes a more data-driven approach, drawing on 230,000+ investments across nearly 13,000 VCs and 30 years of data.

The methodology scores 100 VC firms across six factors: valuation, dilution, net profits, value add from board seats and lead rounds, human capital decay, and value allocation (firms vs. individuals). Here are the top 10 preliminary firm rankings for the year 2023:

The broader finding is that the top 5% of VCs account for roughly 90% of industry profits. In venture, manager selection is everything.

Two firms in the top 15, General Catalyst (#10) and Lightspeed (#14), are among Long Angle’s venture partners.

Learn more about Long Angle Investments.

Effective July 1, Long Angle’s minimum net worth requirement for new applicants will increase from $2.2M to $3M USD. 

The threshold will continue to exclude primary residence equity but include all other assets (liquid and illiquid).

Anyone who applies before July 1 will qualify under the existing $2.2M threshold.

Join 8,500+ members. Take 5 minutes to apply.

Chris Bendtsen

Insights Lead, Long Angle

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