3 Societal Pressures You Should Not Give A F*ck About

Breaking free from these is guaranteed to improve your life

Our society can act on us like a prison.

We oftentimes feel trapped in what others expect of us. But do we really want to let them determine our lives?

Even though going against societal norms might take courage, it is worth it. Only those who can gather this courage are truly free.

1. The Societal Pressure To Go The Traditional Route

By the traditional route, I mean the career path that most people take and that is drilled into us from a young age:

Go to school, work hard, and get good grades. Go to university and get your bachelor’s degree, and preferably your master’s as well. Now you can work in your 9–5 job until you are old.

I have nothing against this path. There are certainly very good, fulfilling professions that you can achieve with this path.

But if you look at the people who are truly rich, financially free, and can enjoy their life to the fullest, you will notice that they are mostly entrepreneurs. Nowadays, it is easier than ever to go down this path, as the Internet offers us endless opportunities to build our own business without any major barriers to entry.

Even if you become a doctor or lawyer, some of the best jobs you can get by following the traditional route, it will take a long time until you will become truly wealthy. You usually have to study for quite some time and start your working life with student debt.

I don’t want to recommend or talk anyone out of one of these paths.

I just want to encourage people not to let societal pressures, for example, stop them from chasing their dream of becoming an entrepreneur or not to let these pressures make them study simply because it is expected of them.

2. The Pressure To Look Cool And Rich All The Time

Especially as a teenager, the pressure to always have the latest and most expensive clothes or other stuff is enormous. I know it from my own experience. Anyone who didn’t have the latest iPhone at school was considered to be a loser.

Later this often results in half a month’s salary being spent on the leasing rate for an expensive car.

If you don’t have rich parents or earn a lot yourself, this pressure will fuck you up financially.

Constantly wanting to appear rich keeps you from actually becoming rich. If you saved more money every month instead of always buying the latest designer clothes, you could invest the money and accumulate a decent fortune in a few years.

One of my favorite quotes from the book “The Psychology Of Money” fits this:

Wealth is what you don’t see

3. The Pressure To Drink And Party Every Weekend

I’m not saying you shouldn’t have fun.

I just don’t want you to party and drink just because of pressure from your friends.

I know it from myself. If you say that you don’t want to drink the other people are usually not enthusiastic and try to persuade you.

Ask yourself: Is it worth it to party and drink only because you don’t want to disappoint your friends? After all, you are burdening your health and your wallet against your will.

Thanks for reading!

Wait a second. You should get my articles in your inbox. Subscribe here. Maybe you also want to start writing on Medium yourself and make money. I made $2300 in my second month! You only need a membership for $5 a month. If you sign up with my link, you support me with a part of your fee without additional costs.

I think you will also like these articles: