Category: Philosophy

Posts on how the path to becoming Rich Enough can bring happiness, presence, fulfillment, and joy into your life.

You can save the world today

You can save the world today

How we spend our money shapes the world. 

But I’m getting ahead of myself.  Allow me to rewind a little…

400 million years ago a plant stored some light energy from the Sun as glucose.

With this beautiful equation:

6CO2 (carbon dioxide) + 6H2O (water) + light energy 
= C6H12O6 (glucose) + 6O2 (oxygen)

A short time later the plant was eaten by a sea creature and the energy was stored in its body.

1 month ago that energy was pumped from deep underground, where immense time and pressure had converted it into oil.

This incredibly useful (and finite) base material could then be used to make chemicals and plastics (found in nearly every product we use).

This particular batch was refined into gasoline.

I think you know where this is going…

A tank full of fossils

Last week you filled up the fuel tank of your car.

This morning you converted that 400 million-year-old energy into enough kinetic energy (with some waste heat, sound, and light) to push you and an average of 2 tons of car on your commute.

Throughout the year this habit will cost you over a month of work (based on average running costs and earnings).  Plus potentially over a year of work to buy the car (if new and bought with finance). 

It is likely some extra energy (and money) was wasted due to all the other people, in the way, in their 2 ton vehicles.

Some of these journeys were necessary and some were not.  Some of the people in that queue could have chosen to cycle instead.

Instant improvements

Imagine if everyone who could, woke up tomorrow and decided to cycle to work.

Roads would be instantly clear for those journeys that had to be made: by ambulance, car, van, or truck (most of which are electric and self-driving … in this Utopian future of course).

Benefits for you and for the world

For those who had chosen to cycle: their fitness levels and overall health would begin to improve immediately.

As would their mental health as they reconnected with nature and the changing seasons.

A feeling of well-being would flood through them, as the exercise triggered endorphin production.

Their sleep would improve immediately as well.

The honking horns, impatience, and road rage that come from constantly being stuck in traffic are replaced by smiles exchanged with oncoming cyclists on the bike tracks.

This catalytic change of habit, leads to a cascade of benefits:

  • You appreciate nature more when you spend time in it
  • Air pollution is reduced massively
  • Cities could be designed around people rather than cars
  • This encourages a virtuous circle where more people choose to move closer to where they work and walk or cycle
  • Our impact on the climate is reduced
  • Unnecessary waste of this useful material is reduced overnight

Any day you choose to cycle you boost your health, fitness, and wealth.

The money you spend changes the world

Imagine if those same people decided to switch their electricity supply to a renewable energy supplier.

Maybe they add photo-voltaic cells to their roofs.

If they made the simple changes to buy fewer things.

And pay attention to the amounts and types of packaging the things they buy have.

The money we spend has an almost instant impact on what gets created and how it gets created.

You don’t have to wait for someone else to change the world for the better.

You really can be the change you want to see.

Choose how you spend your money.  Be the inspiration for those around you.  Change the world.

A beautiful future

There is a beautiful future ahead of us.  This future includes all that is good from humanity’s progress.  Just without the unnecessary waste.

A future where we look after the only planet we have (for now).  Where we live in balance with nature.  Where we realise where the true value lies and we appreciate the abundance.

The moment you step onto the path that leads you to grow rich enough, you make the immediate changes that improve the world.

It’s the ultimate win-win 🙂

Minimalism

Let’s talk about minimalism.

The path to financial independence (FI) often leads gently to a degree of minimalism.

I have noticed that as my desire for more disappeared, I started to re-evaluate all of the things that I had bought in the past.

Things cost more than money

One of the benefits of paying more attention to spending, was the realisation that, quite often, buying things actually made me less happy.

A build up of anticipation, a short thrill on purchase, followed fairly quickly by the inevitable buyers remorse.

People spend a significant proportion of their lives thinking about the next thing they are going to buy:

Researching, browsing, planning, shopping.

Some things demand regular attention:

  • Cleaning
  • Repairing
  • Storing
  • Keeping warm
  • Keeping dry
  • Finding
  • Charging up
  • Filling up
  • Emptying
  • Protecting
  • Insuring
  • Upgrading
  • Replacing

You could lose years of your precious life, just to looking after objects.

Free your mind

More than anything each thing takes up some space in your mind.

You can end up caring too much about keeping the thing and keeping it in good condition.

Things clutter up your mind as much as your house.

Things lead to more things

Lots of things lead to the purchase of yet more things (especially houses and cars).

Before long you could find yourself looking for a bigger house (or external storage) to store all of your extra things!

Freeing up space in your life

For at least a couple of years we have been doing sweeps of the house and things are either sold, given away, given to charity, recycled, or thrown away.

This process makes you realise how hard you have to work to get rid of things.

Which makes you all the more careful about letting anything new into your life.

Things really have to justify their place in our home by adding a lot of value and fulfillment to our life.

I’m always amazed that there is still anything left to come out of the house but it keeps piling up in our clearing warehouses (under the stairs or in the attic) before finally going to a new home.

Pausing before letting any new thing into your life

It feels good to pare back the things you own to those that truly enhance your life.

The exercise also strengthens the habit of pausing before letting any new item into your life.

Some things get to stay

Minimalism could be taken to an extreme but what we’re really after here is the perfect balance:

We’re looking for enough.

Some things get to stay:

All of our outdoor gear gets to stay.  As we’ve had incredible adventures thanks to this stuff.  These things easily justify their place in our life.

Likewise, the family bikes, the camera, the Sonos speakers, our iPhones … and of course the books, all get to stay 🙂

Buying high quality when you do buy

When you decide that a thing is truly worthwhile.  That you’ll get a lot of use from it and it will add a lot of value to your life.  It is often worth buying the highest quality you can.

Cooking equipment, coats, walking boots, tools, are all examples where it is worth buying high quality items and keeping them for a long time.

Store things in the second-hand market

We now always look to buy things second-hand to start with.

These days: people buy, barely use, and then discard things for the latest model.

There are always incredible, good-as-new things, on offer for a fraction of the original price.

I have used this technique to buy a barely used Digital SLR camera for a sixth of it’s original price.

Looking back at the changes I’ve made since stepping onto the FI path.  Buying second-hand is one change that has made a big positive difference.

You end up with a high quality lifestyle for a fraction of the price.

Rather than storing things you’re not using in your garage or attic.  Simply sell it and you can always buy something similar later if you find you need it.

Anything that hasn’t been used for 6 months is a good candidate to sell.

When you store your things in the second-hand market you don’t have to worry about them at all.

Someone else takes care of keeping them in good condition, keeping them warm and dry, and storing them.

We bought a campervan once, had an incredible year of family adventures, then sold it for a small profit that meant it paid for its running costs.  But that’s a story for another day.

Having what you use and nothing more

There is something incredible about having just what you use and nothing more.

There is freedom in having enough.

Give yourself the gift of time by clearing out your clutter.

Less time being owned by your things.  More time and space for living.

A simple step to take today …

Look around your house for anything that hasn’t been used in 6 months.

Satori

Whenever you slip into presence (satori) the beauty of the world is immediately apparent.

“In Zen a glimpse of presence is called satori.  Satori is a moment of presence, a brief stepping out of the voice in your head, the thought processes, and their reflection in the body as emotion.  It is the arising of inner spaciousness.” – A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle

Whenever you slip into presence, the beauty of the world is immediately apparent.

There is a sense that everything you could possibly need is already yours.

A sense that everything is going to be alright.

A strong feeling of gratitude and of joy!

Just as much beauty

There is just as much beauty on your doorstep as there is anywhere in the world

There is just as much beauty on your doorstep as there is anywhere in the world.

One of the things that was unexpected on the journey towards FI was a very strong feeling of being on vacation that would sweep over me on weekend days or even week days.

When each day contains:

  • Time in nature
  • Time to do things together as a family (just playing games, or going for a walk, or reading a book to the children)
  • Exercise
  • Learning
  • Healthy food
  • Good music

Then you realise these are the valuable things that make a vacation a vacation.

All of a sudden every day has the potential to feel that way.

You can appreciate the beauty of the world right where you are.

Two worlds

There are two worlds sitting alongside one another.  From one you can see the other but not vice-versa.

One world concerns the never-ending chase for more and is driven by the ego.

A world full of comparison and the resulting unnecessary unhappiness and stress.

This is the world of shiny things.  A world of bigger is better.

This is the world that puts unimportant things above important things.

The material world where shows of wealth (often backed by debt) are more important than true wealth.

Where income and conspicuous consumption are more important than net worth and being rich enough.

This is the world of waste.

In this world thoughts about the past and future take over the now.

Life is not lived in the present but is a constant stream of should-have-beens and only-whens.

It is the world of the never satisfied.

It is the world of waiting.

The true shining beauty of nature is lost … a backdrop to the shiny trinkets.

Nature is only assigned value when it can be owned, framed, bought and sold.

But why not just take a walk through that beauty.

The sea view is just as good (if not better) from this kayak bobbing on the waves as it is from the clifftop multi-million dollar second home.

Stepping into this other world

So we come to the other world.  The world of joy in the simplest things:

  • clean cold water
  • a comfy bed
  • the warmth of a fire
  • good company
  • good books
  • good music
  • beautiful ever-changing nature

Where enough is more desirable than more.

Where right here and now are enjoyed and experienced regardless.

Where depth is more valuable than what is on show.

Where integrity is more important than what others think of you (there will be so many different opinions anyway).

Where awareness of what is truly important highlights a beautiful and wonderful world and puts a spotlight on the madness of not protecting it.

In this world everything of value is already yours to experience.

You feel true peace and true joy.

Laugh out loud moments and a tendency to smile.

You can be truly happy for your friends and family, enjoy their successes, and be truly present to listen.  There is no comparison.

You have enough and you understand what makes you happy and fulfilled.

You have time and wealth in abundance.  This world is friendly and helpful.  Life is a dance.

What does success look like in this world, for it is not measured in the same way:

Openness, calmness, balance, joy, and energy flow through you and into the world, affecting those around you.

You have experienced amazing places and grown the skills that matter to you.

You have a balanced life that has time for those close to you, time for your health, time for joy, time for beauty, time for learning, and time for creating.

Step into this world and you will be rich enough.

Instant benefits on the road to FIRE

Instant benefits on the road to FIRE (financial independence - retire early)You can benefit today from taking a step towards financial independence (FI).  The greatest benefits come way before you have plenty of money and can retire early (FIRE).

Some of the biggest benefits come the moment you step onto the path to freedom … meaning they can be yours today … right now.

So settle in and let me tell you my story in the hope that something in there helps you in your life.

Five years ago I took my first deliberate steps towards FI and began a process of change that resulted in improvements in every single area of my life:

  • I gained more happiness, health, time, and wealth
  • Became calmer and more at peace
  • Noticed the beauty of the world more
  • Became increasingly creative
  • My relationships improved
  • I felt stronger and better able to choose my response to events in life

All of this from a fairly simple change of habits and a fairly major change in outlook on what is important in life.

This change began in January 2014 after I had spent the Christmas break reading Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin & Joe Dominguez and then happened upon some of the early FI blogs.

A simple change of habit

The simple, subtle, but powerful change in habit was just to be aware of how the money I spent made me feel.

As I went through each day, I paid attention to how much fulfillment I was getting for each expenditure of money.

I did this by noting down each thing I spent money on, but you could do it just by paying attention as you spend.

The other thing to bear in mind is how much each purchase is costing you in terms of the amount of time you have to work to buy that thing.

Your real hourly wage

Work out what your real net hourly wage is:

money that comes into your bank account each time you get paid / the number of hours you work over that time (including commute time).

This number can always be in your mind and will help you reset what a reasonable amount of money to spend on things is.

What you think of as a small amount of money can easily creep up, as you earn more over the years or when you use debt to buy things.

Towards a more fulfilling life

These small changes in habit lead to a slow but profound change in outlook.

I gradually realised that the things that made me happiest, the most fulfilling uses of my time, cost nothing at all:

  • Taking a walk with family and friends
  • Going out for a cycle ride or a run
  • Reading inspiring books
  • Listening to music

Good habits

Some key habits changed that had massive positive impacts on every area of my life (health, fulfillment, happiness, wealth) …

I started to commute by cycle regardless of the season.  To begin with this was a significant challenge as the route is a 30 mile round-trip and fairly hilly (over 1500ft of climbing).

I soon found this was the most satisfying part of my day, as it gave me physical exercise, meditation time, time in nature, that all added up to a massive improvement to my life.

Old habits

The other thing I noticed was the craziness of my old habits:

Whenever I drove to work I could feel the frustration at being stuck in traffic.  I was aware that this habit was robbing me of my fitness, health, money, and polluting the air around me.

I looked around me at all the other unhappy looking people stuck in their over-size metal boxes and the inefficiency was apparent.

Some of these people were stuck in traffic, to reach a job they were working, to pay for the debt they had taken on, to pay for the car that was trapping them there.

All the while cyclists darted past on their faster and healthier journeys.

After a while it became clear we only needed one car for our family of four and I sold my car.  This was one of the biggest improvements in my spending, freeing up thousands that could be invested each year.

Happiness increases as you spend less

Most of the benefit of the FI path comes from the realisation that your happiness and fulfillment actually increase as you spend less.

At least as important as the increasingly large FI fund you build up, is the knowledge that you can be happy while spending a fraction of what you used to.

Almost as a side-effect of the focus on an efficient and joyful life you can end up saving 75% of your income (which could mean you are less then 10 years away from financial independence and retirement if you choose).

Everything good gets to stay

You really don’t miss out on anything either.  The approach leads to the removal of waste (of time and money) but everything of value in your life, everything worthwhile, is still there.

Vacations are taken, good times had, delicious healthy food eaten, beautiful places and moments fully enjoyed, music from the world’s best musicians streams into the house via high quality speakers, ideas from the world’s best thinkers available on the bookcase or the super computer in your pocket.  Being rich enough is a truly wonderful place to be.

Stepping out of the game

One of the unexpected benefits that came early on the road to FI was the dropping away of envy.  A good example of this was with our home.  We had moved from our tiny two bedroom starter home to a bigger four bedroom home in the country.

We had followed the usual path of maxing out our borrowing as we earned more money and fully expected to continue to move up to bigger and bigger houses as we could afford the payments on the bigger mortgages.

When we realised what truly made us happy in life though, we realised we already had more than enough house.  When family or friends moved into bigger houses we could be truly happy for them without envy.

We had stepped out of the game of conspicuous consumption and it felt really good to be free.

Becoming Rich Enough

Becoming rich enough is choosing true wealth over the appearance of wealth and that is what Grow Rich Enough will help you achieve.

Stepping onto the path to becoming rich enough, you will end up with more:

  • Time
  • Health
  • Happiness
  • Freedom
  • Wealth

A simple step to take today …

Pay attention to everything you spend your money on and notice how it makes you feel and for how long.

The Grow Rich Enough Book

Grow Rich Enough book

The Grow Rich Enough book will help you make the positive changes in your life to get you to financial independence (FI), to freedom, and to early retirement.

You will find instant benefits as soon as you step onto the path.

This book will show you how you can…

~ Retire early
~ Increase your happiness
~ Increase your wealth
~ Feel calm and fulfilled
~ Find freedom

In short, it will show you how you can become Rich Enough.

Buy Now on Amazon