William Lee is on the Loose….Costa Rica Look Out!
” We welcome all Mavericks to come visit. We do not expect Mavericks to pay for their stay here. Our purpose is to inspire you so that you can leave here with something more than you had before. “
“We have room to bring in one more partner who sees our vision and can help alleviate the mounting overhead we have. While my cost of living has risen 2-4 times that of NYC, my lifestyle has increased 10 times. Are you that candidate? Regardless, come and stay at TRIBE and leave inspired. :)” -William Lee
(Note from the editor: Rose Ayers)
Anyone who has spent some time on a Maverick adventure knows that one can always count on Will to instigate some shenanigans. He is not afraid to explore outside of the box and he guarantees to take you with him! I had the privilege of catching up with Will and learning more about his latest project: Living “la Vida Loca” in beautiful Costa Rica.
Why Costa Rica:
Being a native to NYC, I had a feeling that I was too comfortable. It was the same stuff over and over and I was seeking a new inspiration that short-term travels couldn’t provide.
I travelled around with a back-of-the-mind expectation that when I find the place that I want to move to, I would do it. I considered Denver, Austin, San Fran, LA and Vancouver (B.C.). I also looked at Kula Lumpur, Manilla, Hong Kong and Singapore but embracing the hot, humid climate was just not my style. So as much as Asia was in my heart, I wrote it off for the time being.
It made sense to be in a place where the cost of living was lower than NYC. After all, having a web-based business makes such deployment possible.
I first discovered Costa Rica when my friend Darren Olstad invited me down for his birthday party. Maverick members Robert Hirsch and Mike Dillard were also staying at the same house. This was a huge surprise and pure coincidence as they were not there for Darren’s birthday.
Costa Rica is a friendly place. The military was dismantled in the 70’s in favor of spending on education. Costa Ricans are some of the most non-confrontational people and the workforce is gaining some notice. English is spoken in Santa Ana, where is stayed.
The time zone works out great in conjunction with the United States (central time) and the climate is warm year-round. Access to organic fruits and vegetables is easy, despite seeing an abundance of overweight people here (oddly). Labor is cheap ($400-$600/month starting salary for a maid; $1500/month starting salary for computer geeks).
When I first visited Costa Rica back in May of 2012, I found myself in a magically designed concrete home in the middle of the jungle in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, which is not far from the Nicaraguan border. This home was so beautiful it had won a spot in the ultra prestigious Phaiden Architecture’s Book of who’s who in the world of architecture. This had been a lifetime achievement for Rolando, the architect, whom we also befriended. I am convinced that he will design my house shall I, along with the TRIBE, build one here.
The house had two large concrete pillars that were inspired
by a pair of mushrooms the architect found on the property. They also served as a means to funnel rain water throughout the house; most of which trickled into one of five pools. Spending a night there gave me unforgettable experiences of rare croaking frogs, the symphony of different birds singing, howling monkeys, and trees from the immense wildlife that whispered as the wind blew through them. In the distance, I could see playful, white faced monkeys dancing about in the tree tops. Behind the trees I could see white mist spraying off of two waterfalls that never dry up year-round. Incredible.
That first taste of Costa Rica was so amazing, I felt as if a piece of my heart had been permanently captured.
While I chose not to live in the jungles for business related matters, I knew I had to be close enough to get away for a weekend retreat if I needed to, which is why I chose Santa Ana. Being only 3 hours away and near the center of the city, it seemed like the perfect place to settle down.
Our house in Santa Ana is situated on a mountain overlooking most of the Central Valley. The Central Valley is formed by mountains on each side. On our side, you can see rich mountains covered with all sorts of fauna and birds while on the other side, two active, un-inhabited volcanoes. We have a perfectly panoramic view of the volcanoes from our house. Every hour the cloud formation between the two peaks changes shape. I cannot begin to tell how gorgeous it is! Every moment spent here is breathtaking, and I am constantly finding new reasons to be inspired. The neat thing about on top of a mountain in the Central Valley is the micro-climate. It is dry and breezy…like the perfect, perfect day in NYC. Ah. When there are forecasts for showers, we get to sit on our dry balconies and watch lightening strike beyond the horizons of the volcanoes.
How Mavericks can get involved:
I have two partners in this project we call TRIBE. Our first version involves sourcing and setting up a live-in work environment that fosters growth, inspiration, and happiness in both personal and business lifestyles for everyone who works and/or lives here. We have ongoing masterminds and have already had visits with some incredible entrepreneurs. Not even 6 weeks into the project and we had over a dozen guests arrive independently, each with incredible businesses and/or energy and value to offer to our TRIBE.
Our experience in launching the first home in Costa Rica will help us figure out and design the blueprints for future TRIBE establishments in an ever expanding network of enriching workplace lifestyles for the enlightened entrepreneur.
Our motto for TRIBE is to create five star living with a 6 star community. Essentially, living in our own boutique hotel with a staff that is excited to be a part of the “TRIBE” family. They not only come to work for work, but also come into a lifestyle where they can expand their own personal horizons/goals. We give them the support, knowledge and training to get there.
As an example, we have dance classes each morning where we invite our staff to participate. We want to help them hit their personal goals as well as their professional ones in an enriching environment that encourages that.
We have an assistant chef in training who is learning recipes for various diets (raw, vegan, gluten free, Asian and eventually, Kosher) so we can accommodate any guests with specialized diets. Some guests may even come and go on a juice cleanse.
Both my partners have their own online businesses and there is a definite synergy between us all. We self fund this for our own use and realize TRIBE will not work without amazing entrepreneurs looking for a place to visit. We welcome all Mavericks to come visit. We do not expect Mavericks to pay for their stay here. Our purpose is to inspire you so that you can leave here with something more than you had before.
Brief Bio of Will’s Partners:
Darren Olstad specializes in internationalization of your assets/businesses. He is the quintessential agent that understands Sovereignty. He is also a child prodigy, owning 5 businesses (and selling most of them) before he was 21; never finished high school.
Brian Lee is a super badass affiliate marketer. In just a few days of 
working at TRIBE, he launched a CPA campaign with the founder of a CPA network who also came to visit and earned them both a cool quarter mill. Just like that. He is a good guy with a good heart.
Together, we see alignment in the vision we have for the developing versions of TRIBE. Eventually, we want to expand to places we want to be outside of Costa Rica. It shows a lot of promise as we are networked with other Tribe-like communities that want to be a part of this.
Currently, we have 7 bedrooms, a large open office environment separate from the living areas of the house, a developing gym, sauna, pool, hot tub to name some of the amenities.
Situated in a gated community with our own security, maintenance, driver, etc, we are on active search for the perfect house manager who will double as the concierge.
How you can help: We have room to bring in one more partner who sees our vision and can help alleviate the mounting overhead we have. While my cost of living has risen 2-4 times that of NYC, my lifestyle has increased 10 times. Are you that candidate? Regardless, come and stay at TRIBE and leave inspired. 🙂
In the next five years, we expect to have TRIBE exactly the way we designed it to be and are working on our next TRIBE location.
Hope that gives you a good summary of what my Costa Rica project is about!
Will, you are amazing! Thank you for sharing with us. If you have any questions about TRIBE or just want to go visit Will in Costa Rica, please contact Will at yourbuddywill@gmail.com
