You are stuck! No, you are not. You have a choice and some control.
Agency is your magic Matrix pill. Once you swallow it, you will see your life like never before.
Building wealth is hard. There is no doubt about it. But it starts with recognising the agency you already possess.
It’s unfortunate, though, that most of our world system is built around dependency and powerlessness. This is the reason transitioning from labour to building capital in the form of assets is not talked about often.
Let alone talking about time freedom feels abnormal in a world that normalises labour over ownership.
What Is Human Agency and Why Does It Matter?
The discussion about your own locus of control is the start.
Do you see your world through an internal locus of control, or do you always, I use the word always precisely blame external forces?
I get it. There are political decisions, economic conditions and social problems that affect our lives.
But spending all your energy on things you have little influence over can become an excuse for inaction.
What Can You Actually Control in Your Life?
What do I actually control if I have little say over who sits in the Union Buildings, my employer, interest rates, inflation and the labour market?
This article is a progression of the Honey Badger mindset from my previous post. Read that one first, and human agency develops from there.
Here is the idea behind these two articles:
Honey Badger → Agency → Labour → Capital → Freedom → Time
Honey.
The Honey Badger mindset is about developing the attitude to act despite the things you cannot control.
Human agency takes that one step further.
It asks: What can I actually do with what I have?
From Labour Income to Building Wealth
Your salary is income, not wealth. A salary can help you build wealth, but only when some of that income is used to buy assets.
Our ultimate goal is not simply to earn more but to use some of today’s labour income to buy assets.
Your labour, sweat and tears from working produce income: your salary.
Your labour produces income. If you keep some of that income and invest it, you can convert today’s labour into assets.
This is your sweet spot.
Skills to earn more money are also capital, but there is a catch: only if you can keep some of that money.
Remember lifestyle creep.
Your Health Is Part of Your Human Capital
Health and fitness is the bigger piece of this puzzle.
Your health and ability to work and earn are part of your human capital.
Your fate is not determined by a tasty processed hamburger. You have a choice, even when the juicy beef patty sandwiched between a fluffy bread bun is calling your name.
Eating healthy food is not punishment, but eating unhealthy food is.
Your overall health, physical, mental, social and spiritual, can only be invested intentionally.
Small repeated actions compound over time.
Yes, saving and investing can be applied to exercise, sleep, healthy eating and praying.
This is holistic intentional living driven by choice. Not choosing is also a choice either way. There is no middle ground.
Intentional Living: Using Your Agency to Build the Life You Want
Intentional therefore becomes the main idea.
The question is no longer only about costs and affordability, but the bigger question is:
Is this action helping me build the life I actually want?
It’s not about choosing raw almonds over pretzels, but about what is more beneficial to your desired life.
That is agency.
You are making a decision based on the life you want rather than simply responding to whatever is in front of you.
Human Agency, Financial Independence and Time Freedom
Human agency is power over one’s self.
Human agency isn’t complete control over your circumstances. It’s the ability to make choices and take action within the circumstances you have.
Yes, bad circumstances do exist, but choosing to take action is still necessary.
We all start as labour, but I dare you to dream beyond the 25th of every month.
The idea is to see money beyond just consumption.
Your salary is not the destination.
Labour can produce income. Income can buy assets. Assets can produce capital. Capital can buy back your time.
And ultimately, that is what I’m interested in.
Freedom.
Not simply having more money.
Having more control over your time and the ability to live the life you actually want.
I’m writing this while trying to practise the same principle in my own life. I’m currently working in retail while trying to transition into corporate ESG.
That transition requires learning, investing in myself and taking deliberate action before I know exactly how it will turn out.
That’s agency too.
As you read this, I challenge you to use your agency with your money, your life and ultimately your time.
Agency isn’t the illusion that we control everything.
It is realising what we can influence and acting deliberately within those limits.
Written from Hillcrest, KwaZulu-Natal – 19 September 2026
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