Some food for thought this week….
Rich Man in the Car Paradox (Four Pillar Finance)
When you see someone driving a nice car, you rarely think, “Wow, the guy driving that car is cool.” Instead, you think, “Wow, if I had that car people would think I’m cool.” Subconscious or not, this is how people think.
The paradox of wealth is that people tend to want it to signal to others that they should be liked and admired. But in reality those other people bypass admiring you, not because they don’t think wealth is admirable, but because they use your wealth solely as a benchmark for their own desire to be liked and admired.
Why Would You Want to Retire Early? (The Minimalist Mom)
Early retirement isn’t just for lazy or unambitious people. I think some of us think of intentional early retirees like the Hugh Grant character in the move “About a Boy” – living off an inheritance and filling their days with self-serving activities and feeling bored a lot.
The Minimalist Mom shared five common reasons why people are seeking early retirement. What is yours?
What Makes A Good Life? (Mr. Tako Escapes)
What makes a good life, actually good? Is it more money? A bigger family? A smaller family? A nicer car? A paid-off mortgage? Less house? More dinners out? More vacations to exotic places?
There are many options. We could ‘tweak’ life in countless ways to improve its general satisfaction. But on deeper contemplation, most of us have absolutely no idea what actually makes life good.
So rather than what we perceive of a picture perfect image as good life (from what the advertisers sell us), it is actually the most intrinsic of things that makes us feel happy, and life is good. An excellent read.
The Opportunity Cost Fallacy (Diverse Fi)
A repeated theme in the opportunity cost fallacy is that we lose the opportunity to let our money grow and compound. In my humble opinion, however, it is short-sighted to believe that the trade off is always worthwhile. For instance, certain experiences occur only once in a life time and are well worth spending on.
I do not deny that sometimes I might fall prey to this fallacy myself but then again, who is to judge? If it’s your money, you get to decide how to spend it. At the end of the day, just allocate your resources without regrets. It’s not easy but it’s up to us to find our own balance.
Loneliness – An Unfounded Fear in Early Retirement? (Root of Good)
There is reason in worrying about loneliness in retirement but it’s not a good reason to work forever, especially if you don’t like your job! Getting out of a stressful work situation will make you a nicer, better person and therefore more likable and friendly.
If work is your only source of friends and social interaction, then perhaps it’s time to broaden your social network and look for friendship in other places.
Justin from Root of Good shares some tips in making new friends. Or perhaps you don’t have to look to far – your spouse and kids should be sufficient enough to make life not so boring.
And here’s an interesting twist on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to round it up.
Have a great weekend 😊.