Adventures in Lifestyle Design from a Path Less Traveled
The Blessing of Poverty and Simple Living
Being broke is actually a very enlightening experience. I would recommend that everyone do it at some point in their lives. It really makes you understand what you really need to live off of.
Back when I was a cubicle drone, I made $42,000 per year, which let me live pretty comfortably. In fact, I lived a rather simple lifestyle back then too, so I could save about $500 out of each paycheck and either dump that into savings or use it to work on some personal project I had at the time. Yet for some reason, I didn’t believe that I was particularly well off. All my friends were making more than me. $50,000 or more.
The truth, however, is that you don’t really need that much money to live off of. Everyone likes to joke and reminisce about how things were so much cheaper “back in the day.” Maybe they were cheaper, I don’t really know. I’m only 27, which really isn’t that old (although it does seem to be considerably older than most of the other bloggers I follow).
I really think that we just got tricked into thinking that we need more fancy toys. Toys cost money, and so we need higher paying jobs (or at least a household with two breadwinners) to afford all the shiny gadgets.
What kinds of things do we think we need that just gobble up our paychecks?
Well, lots of people are still under they hypnotic spell that they need to own a 2000+ square foot house even though many families have done just fine in past generations with homes less than half that size.
And of course the only place you can get a house like that is in the suburbs, which are designed around cars (not humans), so you need a car or two.
Then there’s the fact that there’s nothing to do in the suburbs, so you need TV’s, DVD’s, and video games to entertain yourself in addition to all the other toys you might collect.
When you live in the suburbs you have to take care of your lawn, so get a lawn mower, spend a fortune watering the grass and dumping chemicals onto it. After all, you wouldn’t want the neighbors to think poorly of you because you’re lawn might have a yellow patch or *gasp* a weed!
And of of course all this gets even more pricey when we think that we need the biggest, best, newest versions of everything! Is a 2009 BMW really necessary to drive to and from work when a ’98 Corolla would get the job done at a fraction of the price? Or better yet, why have a car at all when you could just take the bus or walk? (yes, I do understand that not all places have great public transit–see my point above about suburbs)
It really does all add up. I believe that in most places in the United States it is possible to live quite comfortably on $20,000 or $30,000 a year. The problem is that we believe that we need to have all these fancy things in our lives. They add up, they really do. When I think of what I could be doing with $42,000 today, it really boggles my mind! When you’re not chasing fads and trying to impress everyone, life really can be cheap.
I know that being broke is not fun and it can be stressful to worry about how you’re going to pay the bills, but I always like to look for the silver lining in everything. In this case, I’m not cluttering my apartment with all sorts of useless crap and worthless baubles.
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This is true :) our world is swept up in material goods and everyone is just gathering more and more debt. By their mid 20s most people have thousands of dollars of debt and are just working everyday to pay it off. Only to get into more debt as soon as possible.
A read of ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’ covers all of this, how we are conditioned to go to university, get a job, get some debt, get a more high paying job, and get more debt…
Some of the happiest people in the world live on $1 a day. And some of the richest people I know look like they are living on $1 a day.
@Suprah,
Thanks for checking out my blog. I read Rich Dad Poor Dad once when I was very young. Most of it was over my head at the time. Maybe it’s time I picked it up again.
Also, I remember reading somewhere recently that the global poverty line was something like USD $1.25 per day. Really makes me wonder as an American why so many of us seem to think we need to live of 100 times that each day.
The best things in life are free. We don’t need to acquire the things we want to be happy, we just need to open our eyes and see the beauty of life.
But I also believe that we should live our life to the fullest; and that means exploring our abilities and using it. The effect of course is material rewards. :-)
Clayton,
I believe we are on a similar journey. Although slightly different in that I am working (after being laid off for 3 months.) I have a wife and daughter to support, so the “blessings of poverty” would affect them also. I have slowly brought the family on board with a less materialistic outlook, and I am working towards making a living from my writing and the web.
It’s funny that you mention “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” in your comments. I have the book at home, and will start reading it as soon as I finish the other two books I’m reading. I would also recommend “Millionaire Next Door,” as it shed some light on how millionaires really live.
@Eric
I must agree that it can be difficult to get family members on board with a minimalist lifestyle. But (assuming you maintain the same income) they will probably like the fact that they can get better quality possessions and have less clutter by focusing on what is important.
Thanks for stopping by my blog. Hope you come back sometime.
@Walter
Hey, welcome back Walter. Yeah, I know what you mean. Trust me, if I had the choice, I would be flooding my bank account with money and enjoying life a lot more.
I’m just trying to appreciate the lot I’m in (for now). I’ve loved the idea of living a minimalist lifestyle, and being broke is forcing me to live one. Hopefully I can hold onto that once I start making some money.