Kelly AlhooiePelviBiz, Pelvibiz · Healthcare Business Strategy Assistant

I used to play ocean sounds by my fireplace because I couldn’t afford to live by the beach. Now I

8 Sept 2026 · 1 min

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1:26

In this motivational monologue, Kelly Alhooie explains how she turned a distant dream of living on the coast into reality by first visualizing the lifestyle—playing ocean sounds by her fireplace—and then progressively immersing herself in the environment through short‑term rentals. Each year she escalated her commitment: a brief stay in La Jolla Cove, a month‑long Airbnb, a two‑month stay, and finally purchasing a house in the neighborhood she had tested. She emphasizes the principle of "investing in ideas before you have the money," arguing that acting as if you already possess what you desire creates a feedback loop that intensifies motivation and guides concrete actions toward the goal.

Chapters

You must invest in things and ideas that you have before you actually even have the money to make it happen. As you can see, this whole coastline is really what I dreamed of. This is pretty much my backyard here. And the reason why this is actually a reality is because I took many different steps to make the dream come true. And the first step was, I was sitting in my living room with no money by my fireplace, having a plant sound machine that sounded like the ocean, and pretended that I was literally right here in this spot. And the reality was I couldn't afford to be here in that spot. So I acted like I had it. The next year went by. I rented a house right over there in La Jolla Cove, and I came out for 2, 2 days, and I spent time just exploring the place that I wanted to be, getting a sense of what it would be like to be here. But what did that do? It made me want it more. It made me go after my dreams even harder. The next year I came out, rented an Airbnb here for 1 month straight. Again, live the lifestyle. Is this truly what I want? I got to experience it. The next year I rented it for 2 months straight. And then I came to the neighborhood that I bought a house in and I said, this is where I want to live. If one comes on the market, then we're going to get it. My realtor— one came on the market, we got the house, and now this is my backyard. And I cannot tell you enough how it's super, super important to experience something when you do not have it yet, even if it's just this much.