The Biggest Lie Society Tells You

Don’t fall for it. Thinking like the 99% won’t get you 1% results

I was an athlete all my life. My goal was to make a living with my sport and to participate in the Olympic Games. Unfortunately, a serious injury ended my career prematurely.

What didn’t end, however, was my dream to do what I want to do. Freedom so to speak. If I had earned my money with my sport, it would not have felt like work to me. This is still my goal. People might call it financial freedom.

Also, through my athletic career, I have learned that by believing in yourself and working your ass off, you can achieve pretty much anything.

I never saw myself sitting in an office all day and today is no different. I don’t want to be one of the 85% of people who hate their job.

What the hell? 85%. Yes, studies show that 85% of people are unhappy in their jobs. This article provides more information:

The Traditional Route

When I had to end my sports career, I heard one thing over and over again:

Now you can finally do something reasonable. Something safe.

This sentence pissed me off because what they meant by that was to focus more on my studies to get a job where I could trade my time for money for the next 45 years and make my boss rich.

That seems to be most people’s definition of a reasonable life choice. Even if that means giving up one’s dreams.

When I met a former teacher of mine who told me the same thing, I got a little angry.

I asked her how much she made a year and if she liked her job. She said she made around $60k a year, her job was tolerable and she would recommend a similar route to me. Because it brought security unlike my sport or entrepreneurial paths.

I said that was true. She will certainly make $60k a year. But certainly not more. She has a “tolerable” job as she says. But certainly not a dream job either.

“If you don’t make sacrifices for your dreams, your dreams will become the sacrifice”

The Paradox Of Security

Job security works both ways, if you work a job you don’t really like simply because it pays decently. The “security” does not only protect you to the downside but also limits you to the upside. Both on your bank account and on the happiness scale.

Whether accepting this is reasonable or not should be decided by each individual. What surprises me, however, is the social consensus that it is reasonable and everything else is a huge risk.

But perhaps the greatest risk is not to take any risks. To always play it safe.

That, too, is something everyone has to know for themselves.

When we look at what dying people most often regret at the end of their lives, we find a further reason to question the traditional way.

I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.

I wish that I had let myself be happier.

These three regrets are among the most common. The following two, however, are not.

I wish I had played it more safely.

I wish I had settled for a job that did not make me happy but paid the bills.

What I Want Out Of Life

As already mentioned, I would like to be financially free. I mean, who wouldn’t?

I want to have control over my time and work on things that fulfill me. And as quickly as possible.

After all, I won’t live forever and I want to be able to enjoy my freedom in good health for as long as possible. Being the richest person in the retirement home is not my goal.

Who To Listen To

Only take advice from people you would change places with

I would like to become financially free relatively young. So why should I listen to the advice of my 60-year-old teacher?

In my opinion, that is like asking a fat person for fitness advice. How is she supposed to tell me how to reach a goal that she herself has never reached?

That’s why I studied young millionaires. One thing stood out to me. Very few of them got their Bachelor’s and then their Master’s degrees before they started working for a company with student debts in their baggage. It seems that the traditional way will not get me to my goal. It might make me wealthy, but probably not at a relatively young age. This is why the author MJ DeMarco calls this path “The Slowlane”.

The people who are financially free at a young age and are neither artists nor athletes are entrepreneurs most of the time. Most of them run their business mainly on the internet.

It seems that this is the most promising path for me.

Concluding Thoughts

I do not want to encourage people to make certain choices in life. Just like my teacher didn’t know what my goals were and therefore couldn’t give me the appropriate advice, I don’t know what yours are.

I just want to advocate a little first principle thinking. Thinking about what your goals are and how to achieve them, without letting the conventional, socially expected path take these considerations away from you.

For some, the best way may be a degree and a 9–5 job, for others to start a business or perhaps pursue a career as a musician.

Thanks for reading!

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