I took these photos on the celebrations in Agadir after Morocco historical victory against Portugal on World Cup Qatar 2022. 🇲🇦
Celebrating Moroccan soccer team
In Morocco one more time
You already know that Morocco is now an addiction to me so I’m actually travelling here again on a very extreme adventure trip on my KTM 690 enduro R.
Morocco is the essence of everything I love about travel.
Started from Tangier and crossed zig zagging the country till the Algerian border, went in the Atlas mountains and played on the Merzouga sand with the infinite engine of my 690R. I travel most of the time on a single track which is absolutely the funniest way to enjoy the nature and the real spirit of adventure.
Most of the time I end up in the middle of notwhere, sometimes I find small villages where I can have delicious food and maybe spend the night in a family hotel for less then $20 (breakfast included). Is common here to be hosted by families, see this post. Moroccan are super friendly and always ready to give some help in a way or another. In this 5 weeks trip I had flat tire twice, an out of gas (on a remote mountain) and minor problem on the bike due to a small crash in the sand. Have had all the proper assistance from locals and… some free tea. I love to interact with locals which is for me the best part of the journey. On my 10 years on the road and 72 countries I had so many experiences with locals and let me tell you, people are amazing all over the world. I’ve had only good experiences (excluding a couple of occasions where I got into trouble, but maybe we'll talk about that in another post).
A flat tire.. that’s a part of the game
Morocco has variety and an exotic feel that has fascinated travellers since long before the modern traveller arrived. Morocco is the dream destination for adventurers. Escape the hustle and bustle of the city and head out to experience the majestic Sahara Desert. Ride and adventure bike through the shifting sands of the tallest dunes of Morocco, marveling at its untouched beauty. I’m in paradise. Wow. Just wow. If you’re a lover of serious adventure riding, Morocco is your place.
There are not many places in the world where you can ride from amazing twisty mountain passes to the best desert dunes in few hours. I enjoyed the breathtaking and inspiring landscape in the Atlas, then head into the Sahara desert where I spent my nights in the desert tent.
Out go gas in the middle of nowhere
Spectacular landscapes, clear skies and… the colours. That’s Morocco.
Oh! Never waste an opportunity to entertain the children
Repositioning
Sometimes I take a vacation (it's really curious to take a vacation when you basically live on a vacation) to reconsider some key points of my life. From time to time is pretty cool to stop the clock for a moment and re-set your priorities.
So, I took some important decision that have a strong impact in my life:
Basecamp: I call my “Basecamp” the place I live between one trip and another, and till now this was in Italy. I decide to move it to Morocco as I am deeply in love with this country. Plus, my wife is moroccan. Therefore, from now on, I can say that Morocco is my country. I❤️🇲🇦
Nest: I call my “nest” the place where I go to relax and just enjoy the life, my wife and my dog. I bought a beautiful cozy house in Croatia and as from now this is my cave. I love to live close to the sea.
Bikes: I’m in love with my bikes but I really have too many of them so I starts selling to thin out my garage. I’ve just sold the 350EXC, the 500EXC, the 1290SAS (2020) and the HP2 Megamoto (yes, I own a BMW also, please don’t laugh at me) and the Harley (do not say anything!). I’m selling also the 1290 SAR so my garage would be the following:
450EXC ~ 2021, my beloved enduro bike
690SE ~ 2022, for extremely adventure trips
950SEXY ~ 1997, there’s nothing to say about it, just whoa!
1290SAS ~ 2022, my travel adv. bike
In few weeks I’ll go for a new trip, a really hard one, stay tuned, it’ll be an insane adventure.
DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME
Let me tell you a story.
There was a child who dreamt of being an astronaut. But his mother told him that it would not be possible, as did his teacher, his professors, the priest and all the people in and around his life.
They told him to go to school, to find a normal job, to have a family and a normal life.
In the long run, they convinced him, so he married an average woman, moved into an average house with average mortgage and had average friends. A very average life indeed.
But in the very last hour of the last day of his life, he remembered that he wanted to be an astronaut and suddenly he realised that he had wasted his life.
One of my mentors told me that short story and I love to dwell on it finding its essence: the meaning of life.
Each of us has their own, so, go for it and find yours.
When I was a child, my dream was to travel the world, so in a such a way, I succeeded. But what was the price I paid to be the man I am now? I practically fought with everyone along the way. It was not easy but I love to say I was just lucky, because Mrs. Lucky only dates the brave.
Guys, I’ll never be tired of saying: DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME. Life is really a breath, the days roll up within weeks, months, years. Tic tac, tic tac. No way out, time passes and the vast majority of people waste it on sterile, meaningless activities.
Please do not be one of them. Leave the fears behind, follow your dreams and do it now.
Love,
Johnny
Focus on career or building a business?
A common challenge people face is whether they should focus on career to have a high paid salary or building a business.
For me, the answer is "neither".
I don't focus on my career or building a business. I focus on developing my mental attitude as investor and make money works for me. That’s my focus.
What has happened is that my investments are doing very well, they pays my bills, and my gas.. I have a super lean life, I don’t carry useless stuff, useless investments, useless relationship. I developed the superpower to say NO and my life became breathtaking as a consequence.
This approach fosters sustainability & longevity, but also requires knowledge & awareness.
Always remember:
Energy Is The North Star
Health is energy, it’s vitality. If you don't have energy, you'd better go knitting.Health, mental and physical, is a must.
Nutrition plan, workouts, meditation. Your body is your temple, your mind is your greatest asset.Structured business.
You’re still working for money? Ok, don’t worry, I was on that page too. Just start gathering information from the right sources and be consistent. Making money while you sleep is a sublime pleasure.Have fun or die.
Stay Focused
What’s stopping you from achieving the results you really want?
In 80% of the cases the answer would be the lack of focus.
Confucio once said “The man who chases two rabbits, catches neither”. I couldn't agree more. If you want to achieve something, you must be laser focus on it.
That’s the process:
set you goal, according with your values
visualise it like an obsession
focus on it
So, stay focused on what you do. FOCUS stands for Follow One Course Until Successful. That’s the secret. If you’re spending more time on social than reading books or study something or project your life, you are in a big mess, change it.
Stay focused on your goal!
Stephen Curry didn’t become the top NBA 3’s shooter by playing tennis on the weekends.
Keep your eyes on the ball, stay focused, don’t mess around.
Your life is yours, your future is in your hands.
Put yourself first in everything
What are your priorities?
Do you prioritize your work, career, or parties over your health?
The main reason why men fall off the wagon is that they prioritize other areas of their life over the most important, their health.
Let me be clear in it: everything starts from your body. Willy-nilly, you will spend this earthly life aboard your body, so it is in your own interest to treat it as best as you can.
Here, my advice is to put your body, and therefore your general well-being, first of all. By doing this, you will have much more energy and you will attract better things in every area of your life. If you feel energetic with peak fitness, you will be able to be better at your career, make more money, be a better father / husband and be in a better mood in general.
It's such a simple concept, but many men put family or career ahead of health, sacrifice their ability to give to their family or give their best at work, and ultimately sacrifice their health.
It's a lose-lose game, nobody wins.
Put yourself first in everything, love yourself and stay selfish, consider yourself before everything else.
When you put yourself first, everything changes.
Shooting in NYC
Spent the last week in New York, a city I deeply love for many reasons the most important of which is inspiration. I had the privilege of spend some time with my friend Roey who is a professional photographer, obviously I took the opportunity to be taught some photographic tricks. Here is my work, NYC in B&W.
We have too much and not enough
We have too much.
Too much stuff, too much stress, too many obligations.
Yet we don’t have enough.
Not enough time, not enough money, not enough energy.
We should choose to be happy, physically, financially and emotionally. We should live a prosperous life, finding our balance.
But most of us don’t.
Personally I have identified three types of happiness:
Comparative happiness:
We compare our happiness with the average happiness of our environment, We measure what we have instead of what we are.Conditioned happiness:
We will be happy when we will achieve this or that, when we will possess this or that and so. Never-ending loop.Absolute happiness:
We decide to be happy, with whatever we do. We choose the best for us and the forces of the universe coalesced in our favour.
Happiness is love
Living by passive income
I’m about to hit $50k/mo from my passive real estate investments, and let me tell you..
If you want to be a full time traveller, enjoy all the beauty things that this planet has to offer and live the life you really want to live, you have to be financial free. And with financial free I mean earning money while you sleep, enough cash to cover all the expenses the life of your dreams demands. Got the point?
I have 6 streams of income:
Real estate
Commodities
Companies dividends
NPLs
Portfolio
Interests from deposits
No amount of active income feels as good as passive income and today I’d like to say something about passive income from real estate.
An analysis, to use for your own passive targets:
Take your annual income, and multiply it by 10.
This will give you roughly the amount of net worth you need to have to COMFORTABLY replicate you active income.
Start with one piece of real estate and use leverage. Leverage is the key, stop thinking in terms of TFM “time for money” and start using the word “leverage”. TFM doesn’t work. If you’re still renting out your time for money, you are in the wrong side of the boat. Leverage, leverage, leverage.
Without leverage you’ll never be financial free.
Develop skills and critical thinking and use OPT (Other People Time) and OPM (Other People Money).
Make sure debt service coverage is at 1.3 or higher so the debt doesn’t cost you anything. And make sure it cash flows ~3% of the total “value” of the property.
Don’t spend the money for at least the first year.
Let it build up it’s on cash reserves. That way you never have to worry about it vacancy or maintenance costs.
Keep your lending to MAX 75% LTV.
That means even if a lender only requires 20% downpayment, put down 25%. This keeps you from over-leveraging and you’ll be glad in the long run.
Rinse and repeat.
And don’t rush through it. The process is fun if you make it fun!
The 1290 SAS after 10k miles
I have ridden around 10,000 miles on the new 1290 SAS through Switzerland, France, Spain and Italy and I’d like to share my feeling with the new orange beast. The bike is not just cool, is really surprising, we could spend hours talking about the phenomenal engine (oh my god that engine), the sound of the new Akrapovic or the sensational new design.. The 2021 model has been totally revisited from the previous model, I am one of the lucky guys who possessed both the S and the R version with whom I traveled 4 years throughout Europe and South America covering over 70k miles and very often, especially in South America, in off road, with the R version.
From last June I have the new thrilling 1290 SAS and I’m so in love with this new prodigious toy. First thing to consider is: S or R version? Easy choice guys, if you ride most of the time on-road and you go off-road from time to time, the S is the best choice. If you are an off-road guy but sometimes you ride on-road, then take the R. Be aware that the 2 bikes are similar but designed for different uses; the R is incredible on the off but on the asphalt has some limits that the S outclasses (bending angle, braking, intersection on a curve, etc.). So, choose the one that suites best your riding style (and please don’t be that guy with the R version with road tires).
KTM have thrown a lot of thoughtful details at the Super Adventure, the new 1290 is really another bike and I want to summarize my impressions of the 3 main things that most impressed me:
Chassis
Longer, lower, a blade on the road. You have the feeling that the bike wants to tackle the curve and bend as much as you can, breathtaking. That’s so funny and you have the feeling that you are stuck on the asphalt. Just incredible.Suspension
Yes, if you know me a bit you probably know that I am a suspension maniac and that’s totally true. I am a suspension fanatic. Let me be clear, there are 3 things that make up 80% of your motorcycle safety: tires, brakes and suspension. So, always pay huge attention to these 3 dudes.
The WP’s latest semi-active forks are WOW! You can set it up as your convenience and on the go, just managing the main control on the left on the bar. Preload and damping settings of suspension have never been so easy to set, just try, play with it and enjoy the road. There is also the anti-dive function (that can be turned off, if desired).Electronic
Yes, electronics have nowadays an important role on bikes, without electronics you literally can’t handle the 160 hp of these beasts, unless your name is Brad, Miguel o Danilo. You can easily switch between riding modes, sport, street, enduro, rally, rain in few seconds and in the Rally mode (my favourite) you can also regulate the TC from 1 to 9, according with your riding style.
Moreover, the new 1290 has a big, coloured dashboard where you can check everything with a glance. Green is fine, yellow means there is something to check and it could be low tire pressure or low fuel or the oil still at a low temperature. Red means you have to stop asap, you are almost out of gas (like I did) or you punctured a tire or something else.
I’ve had also the opportunity to try the CCA system, in the highway on a commute day. Guys, impressive, really impressive. The settings are so easy and the system really works! The bike magically accelerates and breaks keeping the distance you preset from the vehicle ahead. It keeps you so safe.
This bike is addictive, so powerful and technologically advanced that astonished me. Now I am thinking about the next trip, many options, stay tuned, I'll reveal it very soon.
Hope you enjoyed the article, joint my newsletter below!
Your beliefs influence your life
If there's an area in your life in which you feel stuck, or don't get the results you'd like to get, you probably have some limiting beliefs. Don’t worry, I was black belt in limiting beliefs when I was much younger. Please tell me if this sounds familiar...
From time to time you:
- Make excuses.
- Complain about almost everything.
- Cultivate in negative thoughts.
- Have bad habits.
- Talk to yourself in limiting and unhelpful ways.
- Feel anxiety your fears.
- Worry about failure and making mistakes.
- Procrastinating.
- Think about indulging in perfectionism.
- Practice self-sabotage behaviors.
Your belief systems are not aligned with the goals and objectives you would like to accomplish, which is why you often feel stuck, unfulfilled, and frustrated and than you start finding excuses and postponing your goals. You say:
"I will plan my meals this Sunday."
"I will do a workout this weekend."
"I will go to bed earlier."
The list goes on and on and on.
You are just dragging down and sabotaging your potential.
If you won't identify your limiting beliefs and rewire them, you won’t be able to overcome obstacles and problems. You will fail to attain the outcomes you desire.
That is inevitably one of the main reasons why hopes and dreams never manifest into real results.
Beliefs determine how you feel about yourself, how you feel about others, and how you feel about the events and circumstances of your life. They are at the core of who you are. As such, they influence every aspect of your life in every conceivable way.
The biggest problem with limiting beliefs is that you probably don’t even realize you have them. So, find your limiting beliefs and start killing then one by one.
Your life will be grateful.
My framework to be in good shape
Have been asked many times how I can keep my body in a good shape while travelling the world on an adventure bike. My answer is quite always the same: commitment.
Being a full time traveller sometimes would be tricky, no need to tell that is not easy to eat clean everyday or have a good workout when you are in the middle of nothing. Be clear on it: constancy has the best reward for your body, energy, your mood and soul. Maybe, as you get older, the fire burning in your belly may dim, or maybe you don't make your health & fitness a priority. Let me give you how I divide my commitment in three main part, here’s my framework:
NUTRITION see also this post
✔️No Dogma: I know what foods work best for my body so I go for it eating slowly and building awareness.
✔️ Proactive: I take the time to meal prep, I have a game plan when eating out, and snack smart to avoid over eating.
✔️ I track food macros and calories & I drink intake.
MOVEMENT must read it
✔️ I find ways to move more, avoiding sitting as much as I can, and make being active a part of my lifestyle. I love HIIT, stretching and strength workout.
✔️ I combine smart strength training with quality movement to stress my body in the right ways. HIIT twice a week. This will both build strength and boost my metabolism.
✔️I practice as much as I can some activities that I enjoy doing like tennis and swimming. It’s far easier to get moving when you want to move.
MINDSET
✔️ Get Clear: Why do you want what you want? Get clarity on your why and consistent action will follow.
✔️ Sleep well: I optimize my sleep with a specific night time routine (I use iPhone bedtime).
✔️ Manage Stress: breathing, yoga, meditation, walking, or nature to manage stress.
The Brave quotes
Go light or stay home
My KTM 1290 loaded with Mosko Reckless 40
Being a minimalist it is one of the things that has had the greatest impact in my life as a traveler. I travel light, I take with me just the essential, and when I need something more, I buy it on the road. No better way to travel on a bike.
But I am not the rule, I’m the exception. Social media are full of pictures of motorbikes full loaded, with many languages, bags and sometimes even tires on the top. We must admit that they are certainly very scenic photos and that they make a nice effect.
But, be realistic, why take all that stuff with you? Why some guys travel on a motorbike with 6 T-shirts, 3 pair of jeans, 7 panties, 4 pair of shoes and counting? I saw a video of a guy carrying an axe with him, I swear. Why they carry useless stuff?
The answer is: INSICURITY
As adults we develop a sense of discomfort when we leave our comfort zone, and we often tend to identify comfort with the ephemeral security that we believe is given to us by material things. That's why some people tend to fill their lives with everything, and travellers are not an exception. I met many motorbike travelers in difficulty due to the excessive load of their motorbike, others who took an infinite time every day to load it, still others who lost important objects in the infinity of their load.
The day you understand that everything beyond the essential is useless, and therefore harmful, you give yourself and your life a new freedom.
There is nothing wrong with being insecure but weighing down your life and, in our case, your motorcycle with useless things, is a waste of time and energy.
Break the pattern, change the way you see security. Doing what’s uncommon requires an uncommon approach and an uncommon mindset and belief system.
So, be light, be agile, be minimal. Take with you the essential, you don’t need nothing more.
Never stop playing
They say “don’t grow up, it’s a trap”, never were words more true.
We start getting older, when we stop paying, when we lose that sense of joy that only kids have, that kind of emotion that push you to jump from the bed to go to the football field, or for a ride on your bicycle, or just go with your mates to make some problems..
My elementary school teacher said I have some issue with focus, “attention deficit” she said, but the truth is I just wasn't interested in studying, I always wanted to play.
It was my blessing.
George Bernard Shaw said “We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing”, can’t agree more. Keeping alive the desire to play has allowed me to take life not too seriously, it has allowed me to cultivate the curiosity (one of the foundations in my business). I've practically spent my life playing with everything. Sometimes I got hurt, but even that, and above all that, helped me grow.
But guys, stop playing small. It’s an insult to the force that created you. To embolden yourself, associate with bold people and please… Dream big! If your dreams are not bold, daring, and a little frightening, well then they are not dreams.
I don't feel like a mature person, I am a responsible person. I leave maturity to those who have the time to understand it, I remain a child, and I continue to play.
New projects
I’m writing this post from the seat 9B on the flight that is taking me from Casablanca to Venice, Italy. I’ve spent the last months in Morocco travelling like crazy as I’m in love with this country and the last week in Casablanca, I had the time to fix some priorities and to work on my next project. I live between one expedition and another and sometimes I need to stop and focus on sharpen the blade. So, here my next project:
The book
I started writing a book with a collection of my experiences on the road and some lessons I gave from the life, not only on traveling but also in business, relationships, friendships etc. My goal, as usual, is to inspire my audience to live a free, rich, brave and full life.
Next Expedition
I’m going to travel in Europe till October then, from November I will move to A) South America B) Africa, that’s depend a lot on the situation world-wide with this F*****g virus. The new 1290 Super ADV S is waiting for me, ready for the next trip and in few weeks I’ll be on the road again.
Tackle my Clutter
What is enough? Enough is a very personal metric. I am a minimalist person, I travel most of my time but, by nature, we all tend to collect stuff, and in a such way I am not different. I realised I have too many T-shirts, shoes, a car I don’t use, too many bikes in the garage, 3 bicycles, 16 helmets and a couple of cabinets full of motorcycle gear.. So, from time to time, I do the “spring cleaning”. But this time I do strongly. I sell everything, everything. I will just keep the very essential.
Stay on the list
I realised I’m late on my list, so I want to put some checks on it this year. I wrote that list 20 years ago and it’s still my lighthouse. You have a bucket list?
A positive mindset
Living on the road could be an astonishing experience, but sometimes something go wrong, suffer a theft, puncture a tire, lose your phone, or… crash. When something bad happens, what do you normally do? Do you get stressed out or feel helpless? I did, for so long till the day I discovered that getting mad and not get quickly over it, is just a waste of time.
When something bad happens, I do everything possible not to fall into stress. I don’t focus on the problem, I shift my mindset towards a solution. I learned the hard way that something good can always come from something bad.
I broke the chain between Chile and Argentina, nearest village at 60 miles. I slept in a mountain shelter and in the morning I met a guy who invited me on a three days horse tracking. Was fantastic.
Got an accident during my vacation in Italy and forgot to sell my Bitcoins as my plan was.. You can imagine the rest of the story.
I suffered a ligament contusion in my knee while training on a enduro bike and during the physiotherapy I discovered a new Taylor made way to train my legs and now I’m much stronger and with a better posture.
I have several experiences like these. It's all mindset. All perspective. We control our attitude, effort, and focus. If we choose, we can maintain a positive mindset in the face of any adversity.
I’m a KTM Ambassador
I have the immense pleasure of announcing that KTM has chosen me as their official Adventure Traveler Ambassador.
Everything started the last February, I was in Morocco, sipping my tea and checking email, and I got one from the KTM marketing dept. with some compliments for my work on the travels and a video call invitation.
The call was super informal and friendly, KTM has recognised me as a global and authentic traveller and they would love to associate the brand to me. They didn’t beat around the bush, they went straight to the point: “KTM is looking for an official adventure traveller, we have a long list of potential candidates, but we want you, you’re in?”
Few days later I was at the KTM HQ in Mattighofen, Austria welcomed by some cool guys with the orange T-shirt, everyone here is smiling and friendly and I felt at home since the very first moment. I’ve got the opportunity to visit the KTM Motohall then I tested the new 1290 Super Adventure S for a day (I’ll write something on that beast the next days cos it really deserves) on some twisty roads in the Austrian hills. After discussing the terms of the collaboration, they took me to the lobby at the main office where a shiny 1290 S was on display and…. "well, this is your bike", BOOM!
In a nut shell they just want me to continue to do my journey, in the exactly way I did till now, true to my style, nothing more. The word here is “authenticity”, they want me to tell my story to the KTM audience, a real traveller who can tell a real story. That’s it.
Shooting time…
Sometimes life is really ironic, when I was 14 my dream was to ride a KTM but at the time I had no money to afford it, now at 51 KTM calls me offering the iconic most prestigious model, the 1290 Super Adventure S - the top bike for long distance travellers as I am. Plus, they will provide all the gears, tires, assistance, technical and logistical support and much more.
With my friend Paolo Cattaneo
This means that in the next expeditions I will have KTM by my side and the opportunity to test all the new products and materials of our magnificent brand.
I am actually planning the next adventures, some news are coming up shortly, stay tuned.
And the best is yet to come.
The amazing KTM team for the very first day of shooting
The traveller's Apps
Let’s talk about Apps. I was asked several times what are the apps I use more, so here my list which of course doesn’t include the obvious App we all daily use like Telegram, WhatsApp, Instagram etc..
My Ride by KTM
Find some amazing, twisty roads with the KTM App. You can also connect it to your bike and see the directions at a glance on the dashboard. It’s cool, only for KTM lovers..
Guro Maps
My favourite maps app ever, strongly recommend the pro version.
Maps.me
GPS is not enough and sometimes you need to check this App which works on and offline. It’s free.
Google Maps
Yep, you already know it.. (Terrain mode)
Accuweather
Best App to check the weather, free.
iOverlander
It helps me sometimes to find an accomodation, a camping spot, a gas station or just PoI marked by another traveller. Free-
Booking
From time to time I reward myself with a good hotel..
Xe
Best app to convert currencies, a must for travellers.
CyberGhost
With CyberGhost you can fake your location. That’s would be important when you book hotels or flights because some companies have different prices for different countries. Fake your location to a poorer country that the one you’re in and often you find much better prices for the same service.
Dropbox
Best cloud to save your files and photos, a must for you.
Evernote
Keep all in order man, always. Nothing best than Evernote. Can’t live without it.
Cronometer
If like me you are in a nutrition plan, that’s the App for you. Cronometer tracks your calories and macros. A must for fitness guys.