Most of the time, we focus too much on money. Take a breath. I’m not saying we shouldn’t work for money. Yes, we need cash to pay rent, buy clothes for our kids, and occasionally eat out. If you’re a foodie, who doesn’t like an occasional crème brûlée? Treats cost money, by the way. Money allows us to do these things, but don’t confuse money with purpose.
Living a meaningful, joyful, purposeful, and intentional life should be your dream. Sleeping won’t enable you to live your dream. Wake up; don’t keep dreaming about your best life at some point, get up and seek to live that dream. Otherwise, it was just a nightmare after all.
The balance between money and meaning
If we obsess over money and earning more without truly understanding why we need it in the first place, we will miss out. While saving and investing money is key to buying ourselves time to pursue a meaningful life, we need to understand the balance.
Every decision in life has opportunity costs and trade-offs. The idea, the end goal, should be a good life a meaningful one, lived with intention.
This good life isn’t a Defender parked in your driveway; in fact, I suspect the reason your car is parked outside the garage is that there’s no space inside. Some things you think you would use one day are just overfilling your space. Perhaps it’s too many clothes in your wardrobe who knows, “I will wear these one day,” the day that will never come.
It’s okay if your good life involves these expensive goods and some once-expensive but now junk in your storage. I suppose the good life is different for everyone; just be intentional about it, that’s all I’m saying. Don’t let the world define this for you. You don’t need a dictionary, by the way it’s your life after all.
Money should never be your goal. Wisdom notes and scripture tell us that the love of money is the root of all evil.
If we determine the elements of a good life, most people would be shocked to realize they don’t need, for instance, R20 million to retire from their day job and pursue their dreams. Maybe our good life is way less than what the normal narrative tells us we need.
Peace, my friends, I’m not preaching to you; you get to define your enough. If your goal is R20 million, it’s okay to define it on your terms and then go for it. Just be cautious, though the rat race has no winners, only casualties. I heard someone say it well:
“You can win the rat race, but in the end, you are still a rat.”
The more money, the more desire
If money were the goal to happiness, lottery winners would be the happiest people, but this is not the case. With more money, more desires are born. That’s our nature; don’t beat yourself up. We are all the same it’s coded in our DNA.
Before I turned 30 a while back (oops, not too long ago I’m not old, my friends, just can’t help the grey beard; I should probably buy hair dye one of these days), I thought if I bought an iPad, I would be happy.
Got the iPad, and a few weeks later, I was thinking of something else maybe a brand-new car. It’s called the hedonic treadmill in psychology. Apparently, everyone suffers from this condition, whether you have more money or your savings are zero.
You see, these nice goodies don’t satisfy, but in fact, they lead to wanting more instead. The easy medicine? Be content with less, since you will never have everything your heart desires.
Take comfort in the simple pleasures of life; that is real wealth. Use your money to buy you peace and freedom, not only goods; that is your time.
If money is your goal, you might as well give up, since you will never have enough. In fact, the more you have, the more your heart wants more. The money game is truly a hamster wheel; it goes round and round. It’s always a moving target, by the way like chasing after wind.
Saving and investing are not deprivation but prioritising
Ever felt like you’re depriving yourself when you put money aside for savings or investment? This is how humans like us sometimes think. This is rather ill-informed reasoning.
Instead, view saving and investing as re-prioritisation. It’s putting your money where your heart is that’s your freedom, freedom from the chains of a salary.
It’s like eating healthy food, good for you but hard most of the time, particularly early on. Cook that sweet potato; it’s way healthier than rice or standard potatoes. Mostly, things or behaviours that are good for you are hard to live by; we all know that no need to write about this. Very few people like me, and you prefer broccoli and cauliflower.
Everyone knows physical exercise is key to a long life, yet only a few people are excited about spinning or yoga classes. Come on, book the classes; it’s good for you, perhaps no one told you before.
You know why? Often, we view exercise as punishment or deprivation. It’s not like that, friends; it’s actually smarter than grabbing a Big Mac at “Mac D,” as my son calls it.
Change your mindset re-prioritise with joy
If we view saving and investing as realignment and re-prioritising, we will do it without complaining but with joy.
Come on, it’s a pleasure to enjoy a giant wild rocket salad with avocados for lunch; it will probably increase your time on Earth more than munching on Doritos. Actually, you will save money by eating well, too.
Unfortunately, by nature, as humans, we often exhibit counterproductive behaviour since we view discipline and good habits as deprivation, and we often become our worst enemies. Change your mindset, and a 5km run will actually be fun. Perhaps the dreaded burpees can help you build that six-pack you desire.
Such is putting your cash aside; it’s not deprivation but buying something more important than the latest iPhone.
Enjoy the savings journey; it is one step closer to your freedom.
Admit it, time freedom is important to you, though very few people ever think about it. That’s your time, my friend. There is no need to live all your life with someone else in control of your time.
Yes, re-prioritise use a big portion of your salary to purchase your freedom. It’s way sweeter than the malva pudding your auntie serves on Heritage Day.
The power of consistency and freedom
You see, most people accept the norm of living for the now; there is another way. Actually, your monthly salary can afford this alternative.
Even if it means starting by putting aside only 10% of your net income into investments, don’t end there; aim higher. You will purchase a portion of your valuable time sooner rather than later. In the investment world, the bigger the savings rate, the better unlike a bigger house that costs you more than required, like an extra bathroom you never use.
If you invest just R2,000 per month in an ETF or index fund for 20 years at an average annual return of 7%, you’ll end up with roughly R1,040,000 over a million rand, thanks to the magic of compound interest. Not bad at all. And honestly, I think you can invest more than R2,000 per month if you truly prioritise financial freedom. Imagine if you pushed it to R3,000 or R4,000; your future self would thank you with a smile and maybe a beach chair at Brenton Beach in Knysna. Not a bad spot for relaxing.
Remember, if it were easy, everyone would do it. It’s an uphill battle against the norm that priorities today’s pleasures over tomorrow’s security.
In hindsight, earning R50k a month won’t help you if your expenses are R60k; if this is you, you’re stuck, my friend you need to change ASAP. In fact, you should have changed yesterday. If you live with this inflated lifestyle inflation, freedom is nowhere near your house. You can’t have both huge lifestyle costs and time freedom; choose wisely.
No need to gamble your cash on sports betting either; put that percentage in a passive fund like an ETF, and slowly but surely, you will secure flexibility. Better than banking on Liverpool, you might just end up walking alone.
Don’t let the government be your saviour with old-age grants, what can you buy with R2,300? Rather, put your own fate in your hands by investing in your future well-being.
Your salary is the seed. Plant those seeds, and the fruit of freedom will be sweeter than Western Cape grapes. And if the grapes are sour, you might get away with it by maturing them into a refreshing Sauvignon Blanc not bad for a hot summer’s day with some Springbok boerewors biltong.
That’s the idea actually enjoying everyday life moments once you learn that money is not the end goal but a means to the end.
Come on, put that amount aside each month in the name of freedom, and don’t be surprised when your day job is no longer a requirement to fund your lifestyle. Instead, the fruits of your investments can now let you tour South Africa like the Voetspore team. You see, no need to go to Bali; we have cool places in our backyard. Take a shot left local is lekker!
No need to be fluent in Afrikaans either; Xhosa is just fine. You can still enjoy life way before the prescribed 65.
Talking of retirement, according to the 10X Investments Retirement Reality Report 2023/2024, only 6% of South Africans can retire comfortably. Let’s defy the odds and add to this number by being intentional early before 65, which seems like forever if you postpone your freedom until traditional retirement.
No need to wait until 65 to take a three weeks sabbatical to Kruger. You don’t need millions to enjoy the Big Five; in fact, you can camp and cook your food if you don’t need to budget for restaurant tips.
This is what money is for to be enjoyed, but on your terms; otherwise, this will be just a dream.
If this excites you, automate your savings and investments today; don’t wait for tomorrow. In fact, tomorrow starts today if you are intentional. Hurry! Hurry! Time is not on your side.
And when you achieve your dream, send me a call back. I’ll phone you, and we can arrange a road trip through the Garden Route to Gqeberha.
Trading Time or Buying Freedom 
Leave a comment