Trading Time or Buying Freedom

Thrilling it is to save and invest money, no way it’s not! It is, at most times, as boring as it gets. Many times, it even feels static. At age 9 or 10, my brother and I had enough of vegetables for dinner, so we resorted to fishing, not with fishing rods, but with nets. I’m sure you would forgive a 9-year-old for lacking patience. I could not tolerate waiting on a single rod to catch one fish at a time.

Ever seen a toddler throwing tantrums over jelly bean sweets in a supermarket? If this is your attitude toward investing, you are in for a long, tough ride. In fact, you could even jump off the ride. Long-term financial freedom and investing is a long, boring game. This is actually good news, since you don’t need this cash tomorrow or next year. Boring as it sounds, it’s like waiting for the next Christmas gift in early February. It’s almost inconceivable that, in 10 months, Christmas trees 🎄 might need some setting up and jingle bells once more.

The long game of financial freedom

Financial freedom is decades away; that’s why one can’t pause life in anticipation of the destination. It is the journey, my friend, that counts. Financial freedom is like a five-day Test cricket match. Compared to T20 cricket, exciting, but only 20 overs. That sounds more like day trading. Investing money requires discipline, patience, and more patience. That goes to say most people pull their money out when their patience is tested. Keep this in mind: freedom doesn’t come cheap at all. Working your way to financial independence is like escaping from the norm. No one has ever escaped from their captors without a strategy.

Escaping the salary trap

It’s either you are captured by your job or your salary, whichever way you explain it. Even you, my friend, if you love your job, it’s okay, but if you are living from this month’s salary to the next, the captors have got you. There is nothing wrong with working, by the way, but if you barely have free time, it is now time to escape. Recruiting part of your salary to cut the fence for you to pass through, even if it takes a couple of decades, is long overdue.

Your salary is on your side. Use it to liberate you; otherwise, real freedom is only possible when you are 65. Choose wisely; the clock is ticking. There is no time at all. You should have escaped yesterday. Brace yourself; however, there is another chance. This often-boring road is the only way to your freedom.

Why boring habits are powerful

Most helpful activities in life are boring. Okay, okay, let’s take on meditating just by saying the word I am bored. This act is, however, good for you; it will teach you to be mindful, real breathing, not the shallow gasp we often do. No wonder our brain is foggy. Not enough oxygen to your brain. Next time you want to feel alive, engage in boring things. Since most people avoid the monotonous act of budgeting, it should be your superpower. No need to be superman by the way. Just do the already tried and tested methods again and again.

Wealth is built quietly

The day saving and investing becomes exciting, be careful, there must be a catch. You could end up losing the very money you are trying to grow. Building wealth is just as its sound, building little by little, often with very little progress to talk about. It’s not like the crypto craze, where everyone brags over a braai; it’s the silent debit order debited to buy long-term assets.

When everyone wakes up one day, they will say you are fortunate, forgetting that you were training in winter while they were waiting for summer.

Consistency and discipline win

For me personally, consistency and discipline are my superpowers. I just won’t give up easily. There is nothing special about me, by the way, just excited about the boring stuff. Ask a successful tennis player, and these guys are not special. They just practice day in and day out how to ace their opponent. Even golfers use the same strategy when they hit a bad shot: don’t give up, and head to the clubhouse for drinks unless you are a fanatic who is thrilled by drinks rather than the sport. Pick some more balls and try again until you become a so-called talented player.

This is often just a misinterpretation of hard work, discipline, and consistency. Whatever you contribute each month, keep it on. If your debit order is automated, that even makes life easy. Its these small contributions that add up over time. Compound interest can only work on the bedrock of consistency and discipline. If your financial building strategy is not automated, a big takeaway today is to put your wealth building strategy on autopilot and glide your way to financial independence one boring step at a time. Practical example: a boring R2000 monthly debit order invested in a low-fee Exchange Traded fund (ETF) can grow to a cool million rand after 20 years, not a bad start, thanks to the wealth multiplier of compound interest.

Keep at it, it’s the boring that makes way for the exciting and thrilling life.