I think most people on this forum have a common goal – to achieve financial freedom. But why ? I will start first. I work in one of the largest companies for over fifteen years, during this time I have not met many managers that I have true respect for. Most of them are yes men or women. I loath all the sucking up in the office. To be financial independent will enable me to enjoy freedom that I currently do not have while I am shackled by money.(or the lack of it !)
One more thing, money is not my objective to invest in property,but the freedom to do whatever I like is.
I want to be able to choose what I do, when I do it and who I do it with. I don’t want money (or rather the lack of it) to be the deciding factor in these decisions.
Cheers
SonjaOriginally posted by setmefree:I work in one of the largest companies for over fifteen years, during this time I have not met many managers that I have true respect for. Most of them are yes men or women. I loath all the sucking up in the office.
Hi setmefree,
You sound like a very disgruntled employee, and one who desparately needs a change of (job) scenery!!!
Hate to burst your bubble, but even in a “new” job, once the initial “honeymoon” period is over, the office “politics” will slowly but surely creep back in; it is the nature of the beast, in this case familiarity (it breeds comtempt)!!
There are 3 options you can look at that may help but it depends on your individual circumstances:
One is self employment – working for yourself frees you from the politics, but it doesn’t necessarily equate to more time, in fact, you may find yourself having to put in more hours than if you were working for someone else!!
A second option is “temping” or “contract” work opting for short term/casual assignments within different organisations. However, the downside of this, is security, if you need the money on a regular basis, this is not for you.
And finally the last option, may be just to move to another (full time) job and stick it out for as long as possible, and when things get “ugly” repeat the process.
In the meantime, save your pennies, look at investment opportunities (that are to your liking) ie. property, shares, cash etc and take it from there.
Now finally to answer your question: why do I want financial freedom???
The anwer is in your question……freedom!!!
The freedom of choice – whereby I can choose when to work, where to work, and what to do……and all of this without the dreaded “politics”. Guess, I’m lucky, I have all that, and am financially in a position to not be concerned about security!!
All the best, and please do remember, the most important part of the whole thing, is your happiness [sunny] for without it, the rest of this advice is useless!!!
Jo
Me – I love my job, respect many of my peers, and am gaining enormous pleasure from learning about these investment challenges.
I expect that I will generate a very comfy lifestyle which will provide me with more options (be they financial, material or intangiable whims) than I have now.
If I die tomorrow .. I’ll know I have done all I want to do .. (and more!)
Live and be happy
Cheers,
A” plays well with others
… but sometimes runs with scissors”Because without Financial Freedom you will stuck here doing things you don’t want to do.
If I am financially free now I won’t be here learning, but rather relaxing on the beach of my choose, doing what I like, when I want, with whom I love.
Financial Freedom = Freedom
Kind regards
Jet Dollars
[Retire Young, Retire Riches] [strum]Hi Monopoly & folks,
Thanks for the advice. It just my little whinge. Change of job, yes. I guess if I want to change the world I need to change the way I see the world first, especially the corporate world.
cheers,
setmefree.As everyone has said – Freedom to chose what I want to do, work less hours, different jobs, travel a bit more.
I don’t care about the money itself, just the ability to do the things I want before we both get to old or frail to enjoy them.
It has been my experience that people who want financial freedom, are generally those who hate their job. I see that my job leads to financial freedom, plus utilises my skills and abilities, and all that I’ve studied has come to fruition with my current employment.
I think life is about many things, and I see the ability to work in stable employment as a privilege. If I was, for whatever reason, unable to work, I would see that as being in an incredibly trapped position.
setmefree, not everyone on this board has the same goal. As for me, I will work until I am 65- and perhaps beyond, as I see work as having huge benefits in my life- financial, social, skill-use, etc etc. Plus it allows me to keep purchaing IP’s- the kind of IP’s that I wish to buy. That, to me, is freedom.
kay henry
That’s fair enough too Kay,
but just one question, and it is by no means to try and make light of your job satisfaction, which after all is a commendable achievement/position (to be) in itself; however, if you had the choice say, to either go out and share a lovely sunny afternoon with friends/family on a picnic or whatever, would you not choose that over going into work??? I guess what I am getting at, wouldn’t it be nicer to be in such a financially secure position (set of circumstances) whereby YOU call the shots???Jo
setmefree – i hear ya…
the biggest cause of stress in the workplace is ones relationship with peers/bosses etc. if you dont fit in a square hole, if your not a team player, if your slightly eccentric, or from a minority group, the workplace can be a scary place. the best organisations are designed to be supportive but unfortunatley very few actually are!!!
if you dont believe me read figures with regards to depression at the workplace, absenteeism, bullying, harassment….
so dont feel bad that you hate your work and you wanna get out – its normal!!!
if however you are lucky enuf to get a job and be in an environment that is bearable then as kay said having a secure job can be a great thing. there was a quote in the desiderata that said something about the virtues of stable work!!
i would like financial freedom in order avoid being controlled by people or a system that can at times be soul destroying.
good luck on yr quest!
if you wanna see companies that do it right read about the bodyshop, flightcenter, virgin etc
I hear ya Aussie,
I did a 6 month stint once as a “temp” when I was getting through uni for a large transport company, one of their smaller branches though with about 50 employees. When I first started, I couldn’t figure out what drugs these men and women were on, walking around smiling, singing, whistling all day long…I thought “have I come to the nuthouse my mistake???” Well, it wasn’t until lunchtime that I found out why…..one of the managers (no less) came up to me armed with pen and paper in hand, and asked for my “lunch order” compliments of corporate management. Yep, EVERY DAY this small division of a huge corporation paid for EACH and EVERY EMPLOYEE’S LUNCH regardless of cost!!!
Man I was stoked!!!
If I was not working, I would consider myself unemployed, no matter how much money I had. I agree with aussierogue about the stresses work can cause, and I am sure no workplace is perfect.
Some of the richest people in Australia work- eg Lowy brothers, the Packers, etc etc etc. I know Steve McKnight works too- and he works hard- he just does something he enjoys- and that’s the trick- do something you love, and you’ll be happy.
The article below (from the Medical Journal of Australia) is about poor health associated with unemployment. I am 37, and I have no wish to “retire” (ie be unemployed) at this age. It would seem like wasting half my life. Leisure can be enjoyed on weekends, and after work, and on holidays, or long-service leave. I know some people think working is wasting your life, but I come from an opposite perspective. Work can be entirely good for one- it just depends on one’s perspective. Perhaps those people who are unhappy in their work, might also be unhappy in retirement- who knows? Perhaps the grass is always greener on the other side.
“Differences in the presenting health problems of unemployed and employed people are not subtle. In a GP waiting room survey in outer Sydney, unemployed people were significantly more likely than employed people to report poorer health, depression, anxiety, insomnia and limitations to their social activities due to physical and mental health problems, after adjusting for age, sex and English-speaking or non-English-speaking background. There is also evidence that people who are unemployed have, or develop, chronic health problems that act as barriers to a return to work.”
http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/mar16/harris/harris.html
kay henry
WOW sorry I asked!!! [blush2]
you know in the history of the world – work as we know it is a relatively new phenomina. it wasnt until we learnt how to be farmers that we actually started to work in jobs for other people…..
It’s always about FREEDOM, but freedom to do what? Not many would want to spend their life on the beach. I think setmefree has posed a good question: WHY do you want to be financially free? This is important because if your reason isn’t strong enough and isn’t enough to drive you past all the obstacles then you won’t reach your goal. In my case it’s about freedom to control my contribution to the world. In becoming financially free I see an opportunity to create “my life’s work” in ways that go beyond what I could do with a traditional job. When I was at uni I was always working hard with a passion, but I was never able to find that same passion in the workplace. My goal is to find that passion again.
Kay,
I agree with you that people need to work and make a meaningful contribution. But if you say that everyone has to have a job and be an employee, then I respectfully differ. No one calls a child “unemployed” – it’s all about expectations. Probably most people who are financially free work, but not necessarily as employees. I remember reading about how such people still work, but they tend to enoy their work much more than those in jobs.I think the label “unemployed” is not helpful. Why define someone by what they don’t do or have? That “unemployed” person might be the full time mother of 3 kids, who is also financially free via real estate investing who might also be involved in many different pursuits which are meaningful and involve work but not employment.
Paul Spencer
http://www.geocities.com/etude316/default.htmlPaul,
I agree with the comments you’ve made, particularly about the mums- the ones I know work their heads off.
When we talk about happiness, though, I wonder if we can say that the richer self-retired person is happier than the medium-income worker. I know unemployment has its own problems associated with it… but the worker in general… I am not sure I would want to give that up- for some elusive- what? I guess I have the idea that life is all about being comfortable and happy where you are NOW, rather than striving for something else that may (or may not) occur. If I don’t have tro be in paid employment in 20 years, I guess I’ll review mythoughts on this, but for now, work is all I’ve known, and I enjoy it. I think I could only play golf, tennis, or sleep in, for so long. Then I’d be itching to do something with myself, and I may as well be paid to do it.
kay henry
Henry,
Why not have a choice? I think people are happiest when they are doing something that is meaningful and significant and has an element of challenge. Many people don’t find the work that gets them money to be meaningful or significant. One solution is to work at finding a job that is more satisfying. I think a better approach is to have the choice to work in paid or unpaid work. If work that is meaningful for you comes in an employment package, then go for it. But for others, it might mean volunteer work, or making a hobby into a full time occupation, or designing and creating their own work.
Why do the rich keep working? Because they love what they do! This is what I’m seeking – the joy of meaningful work, and the freedom to design my own work environment.
Paul Spencer
http://www.geocities.com/etude316/default.htmlPaul,
Yep- work that is meaningful, enjoyable, challenging- that has to be right up there. In the thread about what jobs people do, some people described their jobs and said what pleasure they had from them. Last week, I did a Conference paper on performance-based funding, the govt’s science and innovation policy, and the federal budget… not everyone’s cup of tea, but it is mine.
Perhaps the society we are in doesn’t provide enough opportunity for each person to do something that excites them- and pays them too. But I am not going to wait until I have enough property to do something I like- I want to do it now. I’m too imatient to wait that 2, or 5, or 10 years to “retire” or escape. I’d rather keep myself being challenged and do what I love right here and now. I don’t want X amount of years dissatisfaction until the final bliss- that would seem like torture- like waiting in limbo until one gets to Heaven.
kay henry
Originally posted by kay henry:It has been my experience that people who want financial freedom, are generally those who hate their job. I see that my job leads to financial freedom, plus utilises my skills and abilities, and all that I’ve studied has come to fruition with my current employment.
I think life is about many things, and I see the ability to work in stable employment as a privilege. If I was, for whatever reason, unable to work, I would see that as being in an incredibly trapped position.
setmefree, not everyone on this board has the same goal. As for me, I will work until I am 65- and perhaps beyond, as I see work as having huge benefits in my life- financial, social, skill-use, etc etc. Plus it allows me to keep purchaing IP’s- the kind of IP’s that I wish to buy. That, to me, is freedom.
kay henry
Kay,
I hope what you wrote will hold true until you are 65 years old. I will call you when you are 64 years old whether you’re still working! That if I am still alive.
Kind regards
Jet Dollars
[Retire Young, Retire Riches] [strum]
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