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Picture The Life, Not The Millions You Want

By Frugaling 3 Comments

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Rich Kids of Instagram photo
Photo: Rich Kids of Instagram

There’s a powerful allure to the “self-made millionaire.” Across vocations and incomes, some of the most viral and popular articles in the personal finance world provide how-tos to readers. And if they’re not step-by-step guides, articles tend to showcase people who’ve succeeded in their path to great financial success.

The lesson is simple: watch and learn. View a role model, and copy the steps to success. Seemingly, this is propagated as a convenient and regular method for monetary gain. Unfortunately, every individual is different — from intelligence to net worth to credit rating. Each of these factors can influence your ability to hustle and follow in these role models’ footsteps.

Too frequently, affording a lifestyle is purely linked to income and wealth. That goal of riches seems empty to me, what do you think? What if we reversed this strange paradigm and reviewed the life, rather than money, we want?

Today I wanted to introduce a new method for success that downplays the millionaire status for something more lasting and rewarding. The following are 5 key elements for a fulfilling and happy life, and may just provide the riches along the way!

Photo Rich Kids of Instagram
Photo: Rich Kids of Instagram

1. Freedom. This is continually at the top of the heap for financially savvy worker bees. Freedom allows for free time, family time, and fun time. Often, more work and income are seen as the pathways to this goal. This ironically can propel us further from freedom and enter into a vicious work-cycle that only perpetuates our desire for more down time. When we scrub away goals of financial riches, freedom and time become crystal clear. Reduce any discretionary spending (if possible), and you’ll suddenly see more money in your pocket — all while maintaining and/or reducing time spent working. Now, you can read that book with your newfound free time (just make sure to check it out of the public library)!

2. Autonomy. People love choice and independence. Heck, as children, our first words are usually “yes” and “no” (right after “mom” and “dad”). We are born, bred, and instructed in the world of autonomy. Imagine for a moment the toothpaste aisle. Can you picture all the options, rows, columns, and sale items? Every time I walk by the toothpaste I’m bombarded by the variations — uncertain where my money is best spent. With more money, we get more choice. With riches, we are able to choose grander items — upgrading from a Ford Pinto to a BMW 7-Series. But this is the unfortunate influence of massive advertising dollars. Will the BMW 7-Series make a fundamentally whole and self-actualized person? Unlikely. And that brings us to the original point of this list: fulfillment. Let’s make fulfilling decisions that last, not spontaneous purchases that fill wants and cravings.

3. Self-worth. The things we own tend to say a lot about us. There’s actually a professor, Sam Gosling, that wrote a book called Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You. He points out some pretty self-explanatory conclusions about your living spaces. Your home represents you, and can often provide a sense of self-worth. Remove your items, and who are you? Really, I mean it… Without your iPhone, Macbook Air, furniture, photos, and material goods, tell me about yourself. Can you do it? I bet you can, because your self-worth and personhood is bigger than anything you own. After years of shopping sprees and poor financial planning, I realized that once I stopped spending wantonly, my self-worth soared. This is an intrinsic trait that requires inner worth and work — your bank account will never provide true self-worth.

Photo Rich Kids of Instagram
Photo: Rich Kids of Instagram

4. Health/Safety. There are countless examples of wealthy people having bodyguards and security teams. Their money is frequently seen as a path to safety. But this is comically out-of-whack, as the wealthier you become, the more threatened you may feel. Frankly, the stories of billionaires being kidnapped for ransoms should scare anyone. What this tells us is that there’s a middle-ground for wealth and safety. The safest and healthiest levels seem to center on getting your health needs met and living in a proper shelter. Again, this doesn’t require millions.

5. Companionship. I dream of hosting lavish parties in a loft apartment; preferably, encapsulated in the clouds with glass windows. Something modern to look out at the world. What my heart and head is really getting at is a desire for friends and companionship. It speaks in funny ways, when it desires these simple pieces of fulfillment. Companionship and connection with other people is fundamentally human — we are social creatures. But money isn’t necessarily required for that. Sure, you may not look like the Rich Kids of Instagram, floating on a yacht full of tanned 20-somethings, but there are people who care and will be around when the going gets tough; again, regardless of the digits in your bank account.

Filed Under: Save Money Tagged With: Autonomy, Billionaire, Choice, Companionship, freedom, health, Millionaire, rich, Rich Kids of Instagram, Riches, RKOI, Safety, Self-worth, Wealth

Find A Roommate And Financial Freedom

By Frugaling 4 Comments

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IMG_4288

As a student, I feel like a pinball getting smacked around from location to location. I’ve moved about 9 times in my adult life. I’ve lived with significant others, friends, acquaintances, and even by myself. I trekked across campuses, cities, and the country. After two years living alone, I found a roommate and will make my tenth move this summer. Today, I wanted to spend some time reviewing my current and future living situations, a hesitancy regarding roommates, and the effect on my budget.

My Man Cave

Two years ago, when I received my admission to graduate school and decided to move to the Midwest, I was ecstatic, but clueless about housing. I didn’t need much – just a roof over my head and basic utilities. I jumped at an opportunity to live in the university apartments. I hadn’t seen the outside or inside of them, but the price ($435 a month for a one bedroom) was unbeatable.

Look at these digs!
Look at these digs! Perfect for a window air conditioner.

What I found was both decrepit and lovable. The apartments bubble with rust. A perma-dirty linoleum floor greets my toes when I slide out of bed each morning – you never get used to the cold. The faucets run a yellow/red when they’re not run regularly. My circular thermostat doesn’t account for certain parts of the apartment, which seem to be unprotected from the harsh, Midwestern cold. Cinder blocks are stacked high on the walls, painted over in what can only be assumed to be lead paint. A thick coating of asbestos lines the ceilings.

Despite misgivings, it’s my home, and I love it. Actually, I find it comical how much I don’t want to leave my current apartment, and I’m only leaving because the university is demolishing them.

Forced to move again, while balling on a serious budget with severe time constraints, seemed impossibly difficult. Then, the university notified everyone that new apartments were being built in time for my departure from the old ones. I could just move right into them!

Luxury Living At A Price

Over the last decade or so, the university considered a construction project to repair and rebuild the flood-damaged, aged, asbestos-filled apartments. Year after year seemed to pass without resolution. When I moved in summer 2012, I heard the whisper of change – a private bidder on public lands.

Then, a resolution quickly swept over the university apartment system. New buildings, contractors, and contracts would be drawn. The private company would revitalize this community with opportunity, design, and (supposedly) affordability. Tenants would see a brightened exterior and feature-filled interior. The costs would unfortunately need to increase, but we were assured they’d be manageable.

Something seemed askew about allowing private bidders onto public, university property, but the messages seemed positive. A few months later I found out the price: $875 per month for a one bedroom. In other words, more than 100% what I paid when I first moved!

Despite balling on a budget, I resigned to the fact that my 60-70 hour workweek wouldn’t enable me to tour many places. I would accept whatever they required. I signed a lease last year, much to my dismay and confusion. How could the university charge $875 per month for student housing?

Wake Up And Smell The Budget

Even though the price of rent was steep, I relished my independence, at the expense of my budget. I wanted to be frugal, but not that frugal. This new rent would decimate everything I worked towards over the last 10 months. I balanced my budget and created a tiny surplus for each month. But paying $875 a month would mean losing about $3000-4000 per year, plus student loans with at least 6.8% interest APR. I can’t even calculate the true cost of this decision.

Over the course of this semester, I’ve been working hard at not working. Essentially, I reached burnout, and to counteract these notoriously awful feelings, I decided to spend more time going out with people. Being able to socialize and meet new people has been one of the best experiences of my life. It’s kept me sane amidst my crazy-busy life.

Thankfully, meeting people also meant finding those in similar situations: looking for roommates. Over time I found someone that was excited about living together and could afford to split a two-bedroom apartment. The mental math was easy: rent would be $550 per month.

The challenge for me was realizing my prejudices towards having roommates. In the end, I realized that opting for the expensive rent was a cop-out to finding a roommate and managing my delicate budget. The reality was that I didn’t have independence until I was free from debt. I’m looking forward to having a new roommate, paying off even more student loan debt, and freeing myself from the burden of an unbalanced budget.

What have you done to save on rent, housing, etc.? What do you think about living with roommates? Any recommendations for me?

Filed Under: Save Money Tagged With: apartment, Budget, Burnout, Finances, freedom, Frugal, graduate school, housing, moving, rent, roommate, Student Loans, university

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