Freedom Is Worth It: What Does It Look Like For You?
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Freedom seems to be the single biggest thing that most of us humans wish for. I know I rarely stop thinking about it.
And for most of us, money is the golden tool that will set us free.
Like many of you, I’m a slave to my employer. With no other way to cover my living expenses for any significant period of time, I have no choice but to show up every day, and do whatever I’m asked.
I’m a slave to the bank too. They are holding my house ransom, and if I don’t keep sending them their monthly demands, they can kick me out on the street.
Achieving financial independence would set me free of these shackles. Life would be wonderful then!
But I’m still a slave in so many more ways.
To my desire to eat food that is bad for my body.
To my iPhone — it’s a terribly convenient crutch for those many moments of minor discomfort or boredom, when for some reason I’d rather not just enjoy the moment I’m experiencing instead. And I just can’t resist that little ding that tells me I have a new email — even though it’s usually junk.
To what other people think of me. I like to think I don’t care — I definitely don’t want to care — but there’s something in my subconscious that makes me act in ways I probably wouldn’t otherwise.
To coffee first thing in the morning. I don’t even notice the impact the caffeine has on me, but for some reason, I just need it.
To the taste of these BBQ-flavored Pringles that I’m eating right now. I literally can’t stop, now that I’ve popped.
To my impatience — it’s caused me to make some rash investment decisions in the past that I’ve regretted, not to mention borrowing money I don’t have to invest with, just to try grow my wealth faster. Fortunately my investment plan is helping set me free, getting stronger and stronger the more I work at it.
But there’s still tremendous room for greater patience in other parts of my life.
To chocolate — at least I have a sweet tooth to blame for that.
To moving my head and body in tune to my favorite electric guitar riffs — the air guitar just takes hold of me, and my face contorts into some very unnatural ways (only when I’m alone of course — not even my wife has the pleasure of seeing this!). But I really don’t mind being a slave to this when it happens.
To my moods — especially when I’m very tired.
To my need to constantly be doing something — I absolutely love just stopping and smelling the roses, but it’s not always easy.
To my laptop. There’s a whole world of possibility inside it, whether it’s creating something from scratch at the touch of a keyboard, discovering new ideas and knowledge on the vast internet, or using it to earn a living. But there’s a whole world away from the laptop that I’m definitely not spending enough time in.
To the status quo — I have grand ideas and aspirations, but a powerful inertia keeps me from gaining much momentum.
To the tiredness that often overwhelms my body early in the morning, keeping me in bed an extra 30 minutes, when I should be jumping out of bed to make the most of another precious day. Who knows if I’ll get another one tomorrow?
To those two extra pieces of pizza that push me past the point of feeling comfortable. Thankfully my metabolism is still going strong, keeping things in balance — for now.
To the defensive reaction of my ego when it’s being challenged — even when it’s actually not. Just because my wife asks me why I still haven’t filled in those forms, doesn’t mean she’s telling me I’m stupid, or looking to start an argument. Just because someone doesn’t like my idea, doesn’t mean they are telling me I’m wrong (and stupid).
But that internal ego just thrives on conflict. Such a useless waste of energy.
To my comfort zone. Imagine what I could achieve if I wasn’t so afraid of change, or of failure.
To many of the thoughts that come into my head. Often I confuse some of these simple thoughts with reality, which leads to some warped perspectives of the world, and myself.
That’s not to say I need to be free of all these things. I can graciously accept some of these limitations of my body and mind, and feel as if life is absolutely wonderful. In fact, it already is.
But some of these freedoms are worth aspiring to.
The best part is, most of these freedoms can be achieved without a multi-million dollar portfolio – although that doesn’t mean they are any easier.
But funny enough, freedom from some of these things would most certainly help accelerate the path to financial freedom. And then again, some chains are far easier to break when you’re financially independent, and have the time and energy to commit to those endeavors. It’s a virtuous circle of freedom.
Most of us can picture what life will be like when we achieve financial freedom.
But who knows what some of these other freedoms could do for us?
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Jason Murphy is from the huge island that is Australia. He’s on a mission to help others escape the noise in their lives, particularly from the incessant investment media, and find financial serenity so that they can spend their valuable energy and time doing what is most important in their lives. This is the same journey that Jason’s on himself. You can contact him via his website here.
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