Financial Asceticism vs Financial Freedom

[MJ DeMarco]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7cQLDdWniM


Over the next coming months, I hope to transcribe The Great Rat Race Escape 's audiobook into a pictorial / animated form over at YouTube.

The above is the first installment, which ties in nicely with this prior forum thread on the FIRE Mindset.

It touches on the difference between TIME freedom, and FINANCIAL freedom. They are not equal.

My gripe is not about how people choose to live their lives (none of my business!) but about culture/media redefining terms to suit narratives.

 

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[The-J]

If money rules your life, you're a slave by definition.

---

To expand on your point:

Budgeting is a key example of "discipline equals freedom": by being tight with your money now, and putting your meager resources into things that can grow your means, you can have freedom later. Let's say you earn $3,000/month post-tax and work/commute 50 hours a week, and your expenses are $2,000/month. You've got $1,000/month and 118 hours to do whatever you want, so what do you do?

Sidewalk: spend it on stuff and experiences, or gamble on crypto or highly shorted stocks

Slowlane: put in their 401k/TFSA and invest in ETFs/mutuals/indexes or put toward education to increase earning potential, or save for their own home

Fastlane: invest in your own business, knowing that it might earn $0 today but is part of a plan to earn more later.

The Sidewalker lives life with no budget and thinks they're free, but will be stuck working for the rest of their lives. The Slowlaner has a budget and is doing "the responsible thing" by letting outside forces that they don't understand determine their ability to retire. The Fastlaner also has a budget, but is building an asset that belongs to them.

Now let's look at TIME. How do they spend their time?

Sidewalk: all extra time is spent on consumption. Consume, consume, consume.

Slowlane: extra time is spent on formal education to improve earning potential through certificates... until they're comfortable, then they consume, consume, consume.

Fastlane: extra time is spent building an asset and doing what's necessary to build that asset. Consumption is kept low, and they prioritize family and only the closest friends who understand their process.

This is what the process looks like when you're working your job and trying to build something. On the surface they all look the same: just average Joes with average jobs. But look deeper and it becomes obvious who you should bet on.

 

[Guest-5ty5s4]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7cQLDdWniM


Over the next coming months, I hope to transcribe The Great Rat Race Escape 's audiobook into a pictorial / animated form over at YouTube.

The above is the first installment, which ties in nicely with this prior forum thread on the FIRE Mindset.

It touches on the difference between TIME freedom, and FINANCIAL freedom. They are not equal.

My gripe is not about how people choose to live their lives (none of my business!) but about culture/media redefining terms to suit narratives.

View attachment 39041

"Kinda like a guy calling himself a girl so he can beat the ladies on the track."

LOL MJ you are awesome.

Anyway, looking forward to watching all of this!!!

 

[Awaken Study]

Saw this meme and thought of this video.

The same way Covid has had a $2 billion marketing/ad Budget, The tiny home/fire movement has had persuasive marketing through YouTube and documentaries.

This forum has shown me the tiny movement is a script too. Teaching people to be content with 200sqft rather than wanting an actual house.

Undoing the script is so hard. I purchased land in May with the intention of buying a $2,000 wall tent and living on savings until my business increased enough to cover my expenses.

But slowly I'm learning to want bigger and better for myself. Not just the bare minimum.

 

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[Antifragile]

We’ve always had plenty of food when I was growing up in the USSR. I know this for a fact because I remember, when I asked for more my mom would say “you’ve had plenty!”

FIRE is real financial freedom. Freedom from having to make those horrible hard choices people with money make. Where and how much food to buy, clothes, maybe even what car you want, or a house. Painful choices.

And folks, money isn‘t everything in life…

… there are also stocks, bonds and real estate. You avoid it all with FIRE. Just imagine how great you could live on an unemployment cheque from the Government in a 10 year old trailer. Freedom!

/eeee




Disclosure, I know next to nothing about FIRE and may be way off from what they are preaching. The above post is only there to poke fun at the general concept because I don’t see budgeting as financial freedom. It’s an oxymoron.

 

[BizyDad]

We’ve always had plenty of food when I was growing up in the USSR. I know this for a fact because I remember, when I asked for more my mom would say “you’ve had plenty!”

And folks, money isn‘t everything in life…

… there are also stocks, bonds and real estate.

Have you considered stand up comedy?

 

[Kevin88660]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7cQLDdWniM


Over the next coming months, I hope to transcribe The Great Rat Race Escape 's audiobook into a pictorial / animated form over at YouTube.

The above is the first installment, which ties in nicely with this prior forum thread on the FIRE Mindset.

It touches on the difference between TIME freedom, and FINANCIAL freedom. They are not equal.

My gripe is not about how people choose to live their lives (none of my business!) but about culture/media redefining terms to suit narratives.

View attachment 39041

Fire tends to attract the crowd that hate their job, think business is too hard and stock market always go up.

Once your mind is closed to what is possible”you accept that cutting cost is the only way for wealth accumulation.

 

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