Dear Followers,
The past year reinforced a principle that underpins the Relax to Rich (R2R) philosophy: long-term results are the byproduct of disciplined systems, not constant action.
During the year, markets experienced recurring volatility, rapid narrative shifts, and elevated speculation across multiple asset classes. Against this backdrop, R2R remained focused on its core mandate: capital preservation first, followed by steady, risk-aware compounding.
Rather than pursuing incremental short-term gains, the emphasis throughout the year was on strengthening portfolio structure, clarifying risk exposure, and improving the repeatability of decisions. These efforts were deliberate, often uneventful, and intentionally resistant to market noise.
— William December 31, 2025
📈 Performance Snapshot
What mattered most in 2025
Returns were strong, but the deeper win was process stability: risk controls stayed intact, and the portfolio remained positioned to survive stress without forcing bad decisions.
R2R’s edge wasn’t prediction. It was structure: quality assets + margin-of-safety execution + intentional options + patience.
💼 Current Portfolio Holdings
🧭 Investment Philosophy and Execution Review
R2R operates under a small set of durable principles:
✅ Focus on high-quality assets
✅ Keep a Margin of Safety
✅ Use options with intention
✅ Stay patient, let time and compounding do the heavy lifting
Execution against these principles was uneven at times, but directionally consistent. In other words: not perfect, but systematic.
1) ✅ Focus on High-Quality Assets
R2R concentrated on a few “wide moat” engines and aimed to hold them through noise.
🚗 Tesla (TSLA) Quality as a technology platform
Why it fits “high-quality”:
Moat + manufacturing advantage: vertical integration, battery efficiency, production innovation.
Data advantage: real-world driving data creates a high-barrier compounding dataset for autonomy.
Financial robustness: strong cash generation and “fortress-like” balance sheet characteristics.
Optionality: Robotaxi, AI, Optimus embedded “call options” on future markets.
R2R lens: Tesla is not just an automaker, it’s a compounding platform where optionalities matter, but only if risk is managed so you can stay solvent and stay invested.
📦 QQQ / Nasdaq 100 A basket of innovation moats
Why it fits “high-quality”:
Concentrated ownership of dominant, cash-generative innovators.
High R&D intensity: today’s leaders invent tomorrow’s markets.
Index “self-cleansing”: removes laggards and upgrades winners.
Liquidity and efficiency: institutional-grade vehicle for compounding.
R2R lens: QQQ is a “quality engine” that pairs well with disciplined options use and systematic hedging.
🐉 Tencent The digital infrastructure of China
Why it fits “high-quality”:
WeChat as a daily-life operating system (massive retention moat).
Capital allocation strength (a “Berkshire of tech” feature).
Gaming cash-flow engine + fintech toll-road business.
Shareholder-friendly behaviors (buybacks, value unlocking).
R2R lens: Tencent blends stability (utility-like) with upside (VC-like), which is rare.
🤖 Nvidia (NVDA) Full-stack AI platform quality
Why it fits “high-quality”:
CUDA ecosystem lock-in = switching costs at scale.
Pricing power + hyper-quality cash flow profile.
Positioned for “AI factory” infrastructure and sovereign AI buildouts.
Optionality in robotics, simulation, and autonomous systems.
R2R lens: Nvidia is no longer just chips, it’s platform dominance, and platforms are where compounding lives.
2) ✅ Keep a Margin of Safety
This is where R2R becomes less about “what I like” and more about how I behave.
Pillar 1: The Offensive Engine (Alpha Generation)
Objective: acquire high-quality assets at a discount.
Maintain a curated watchlist of high-quality businesses.
Estimate intrinsic value and define a Margin-of-Safety strike.
Use cash-secured puts instead of chasing price.
Two outcomes (both acceptable):
Stock stays above strike → keep premium as income.
Stock drops to strike → get assigned at discount, with an even lower basis after premium.
Pillar 2: The Defensive Moat (Liquidity Management)
Objective: ensure dry powder is always available.
The 20% Hard Deck: keep around 20% net liquidity in cash/cash equivalents (e.g., T-bills).
Treat cash as an option on future opportunity, not “idle money.”
Sweep premium income back into the reserve to keep it replenished.
Pillar 3: The Risk Governor (Systemic Protection)
Objective: reduce crash risk and control leverage.
Monitor aggregate portfolio delta exposure; stop adding bullish risk when it exceeds limits.
Use SPX hedging to separate stock risk from broad market risk.
Build hedges systematically (collar-like structure): sell SPX call spreads to fund SPX puts/put spreads target “low-to-zero cost” protection
Result: the portfolio is engineered to be harder to break, so the investor can stay calm and stay invested.
3) ✅ Use Options With Intention
R2R treats options as tooling, not lottery tickets. The intention is to move from High Anxiety → Relax to Rich by designing risk and cash flow.
Intention A: “I am a landlord of assets” (Generate cash)
Cash is inventory → sell cash-secured puts to get paid while waiting.
Stocks are assets → sell covered calls to rent out upside when extended.
Goal: manufacture a “dividend-like” yield.
Intention B: “I build a fortress” (Self-funded hedging)
Refuse ruin risk.
Use premium income to buy protection, aim for a self-funded shield.
Intention C: “Buy fear, sell greed” (Harvest volatility)
In panic (high IV), sell puts when premiums are expensive.
Set margin-of-safety strikes, don’t chase price.
Win by cost basis superiority, not prediction.
The Whole-Profit Equation (R2R)
R2R does not rely on hope or a perpetual bull market.
Whole Profit =
Capital appreciation (quality assets)
Premium income (time + volatility)
Hedging gains (crash monetization)
4) ✅ Stay Patient, Let Compounding Do the Heavy Lifting
2025 behavior was the proof:
No stock trades for the whole year, except being assigned Tesla in March.
The rest was “boring”: reading, reading, reading, reading...... thinking, writing, sharing, and golf.
The philosophy is simple: most investors don’t lose to bad assets, they lose to bad behavior (overtrading, overreacting, chasing narratives).
A key reminder from market history (as reflected in the chart from FT):
Intraday trading contributes surprisingly little to long-run wealth building.
The bulk of compounding comes from holding through time, capturing the “overnight” and long-horizon return stream.
R2R translation: If you want the compounding, you must earn the right to hold through structure, liquidity, and hedging discipline.
🤝 R2R Community Building (2025)
Starting in May 2025, the mission expanded: build the Relax to Rich Club as a platform to record thinking, share learning, and empower long-term investors with patience, discipline, and intelligent strategy.
1) 🌐 Building r2r.club
Active publishing months: 8 (archives begin May 2025)
Total articles published: 224 (aimed for near-daily publishing)
Weekly Recaps: 32 consecutive weeks of portfolio updates documented from Week 21 (May) through Week 52 (Dec)
Key themes: Value investing (Buffett/Munger principles) Business analysis (Tech + AI deep dives) Psychology (smart crowd vs panicked mob) Systems thinking (process over prediction)
A personal belief: increasing high-quality inputs is one way to fight “entropy” . Publishing became part discipline, part learning engine.
2) 🧵 Growth on X (Twitter)
Started in May 2025 with the intent to share a disciplined approach.
From ~500 followers in June to ~4,000 by December.
The operating principle stayed consistent: no numeric follower target, the only real target is the count of good strategies and analyses shared. followers are a byproduct of value
🔭 2026 and Beyond, Focus Areas
Keep the same investing principles quality assets margin of safety intentional options patient compounding
Read more, share more keep strengthening the system and the library of thinking
Golf: break 90 the struggle is real （and frustrating）, but it’s the same game: process, reps, discipline.
✅ Closing Remarks
2025 was a year of strengthening foundations, refining practice, and reinforcing discipline.
The work wasn’t about capturing headlines. It was about building:
structured thought
transparent action
calm execution
Thank you for engaging with R2R, believing in the philosophy, and growing alongside a community committed to long-term, thoughtful investing. See you next year.
Stay patient. Stay focused. Turn volatility into cash flow. Let compounding do the heavy lifting.
-William | Relax to Rich Club
⚠️Disclaimer
I am not a licensed financial advisor, and the information shared here reflects my personal investment decisions and opinions only. This content is for informational and educational purposes and should not be construed as financial, investment, or trading advice. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Investing involves risks, including the potential loss of capital.