Greetings from Tokyo

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Candidate,

For the last few weeks, my wife Cass and I have been traveling through India and Japan.

We started in India, where we took our family to a tiger safari in Ranthambore, visited the markets of Delhi, stayed at incredible hotels, saw my grandpa for his 98th birthday, and ate 50 different tandoori meals.

Then we set off for the second part of our trip: Japan! I visited Japan two years ago and have been looking forward to learning more about Japanese design, taking private architecture tours, staying at stunning hotels, having quiet time for reflecting, and learning more about Japanese culture and food.

I've been sharing my highlights over on Instagram, and I wanted to share some of them with you here.

Our first day in Tokyo, we explored our hotel, Moxy Tokyo. I always show you special things about luxury hotels, so I wanted to show you what a more affordable hotel does right.

What do you notice about the lobby? Notice the details and think about WHY they offer what they're offering and who they're serving. Everything is very intentional.

This is a very affordable hotel. I think we booked it with points. Good rule of thumb: When staying in a city, it's good to economize, since you're probably not going to spend much time in the room.

To save on costs, look at the clever things they do.

Or having one ironing room per floor. Who needs irons? (Well more of you should say yes, based on your wrinkled ass clothing!)

For practical purposes, virtually nobody uses irons. So they centralize one iron per floor. This lets them cut down on maintenance and space.

Lots of millennial-focused hotels are cutting back on unnecessary items like ice machines, and instead providing bigger lounges, coworking spaces, or fun events.

Look at this:

For anyone traveling and economizing, this is a godsend. This would make no sense in a luxury hotel, but here it's perfect.

Expensive or cheaper hotels aren't better or worse. They're serving different markets with different desires or needs.

While in Tokyo we also stayed at a luxury hotel: the Aman Tokyo.

What do you notice about the decor here?

I was excited to share a behind-the-scenes tour because it's a stunning hotel. But this was extra special for us. Cass treated us to this stay because her business has done so well this year.

I'm so proud of her! She left her full-time job, launched her business 18 months ago, went through the ups and downs of being a first-time entrepreneur, and can now splurge on one of the best hotels in the world.

(We've helped thousands of students start and build businesses so they can have these moments too. We teach this in our program Zero to Launch, and I've opened it for you until midnight tonight.)

Now a room tour at Aman Tokyo. As we go inside, notice the blend of traditional Japanese design with modern touches. What else do you notice?

How does the room make you feel? What's different than a typical hotel room? DM me on Instagram and let me know.

Things I love: Huge desk with nothing on it, but it's hiding cables inside. Huge table and tray, also basically nothing on it. Very minimalistic in design. Sliding doors leading to a huge closet, large areas for our luggage. Tatami mats that reflect traditional Japanese design. Soft lighting.

I'm a simple man. I now demand the simple comforts of a gigantic hinoki tub with heated charcoal floors, views of the Imperial Palace, and a massive room with 24/7 staff.

After our hotel tour, we set out to explore more food and drink in Japan. We made reservations at a few key places where we wanted to eat. Then we left the rest to be flexible.

Let me take you behind the scenes of an Omakase dinner, where the chef chooses what to serve.

I love that each of these chefs has spent his or her life training, and we get the privilege of eating their selection for a couple special hours.

I remember when I used to love Taco Bell and couldn't understand people who "wasted" money at expensive restaurants, since "I could get full for $10." I didn't understand that there were other reasons to eat out than getting full. One of many money psychology lessons I've learned.

The next day, Cass and I got to take a tea-making class and visit a local coffee shop I had researched. I spend a lot of time looking up a few places I really want to visit when I travel.

We also got to eat Japanese pancakes. I am obsessed with Japanese pancakes. (In NYC I go to Hi-Collar).

What have you noticed about our time in Tokyo so far? DM me on Instagram, I read every one. And stay tuned for an upcoming email about our time in Kyoto!

Ramit Sethi
CEO, I Will Teach You To Be Rich

P.S. What creates habit change in the real world? I'll be discussing small changes that can transform your life with persuasion master BJ Fogg on Jan 7 at 92Y. Learn more and get tickets here.