New issue of Cruising World just arrived and there is a great piece at the end of the issue titled - "How Much is Enough?" It had some nice tidbits about the value of accumulating more and maintaining lifestyle vs. quitting work and living your dreams as soon as possible. A few excerpts:
"Many people who dream of cruising hope to save enough money first so they can return home afterward and resume living as they did before, without working again - a tall order. But depending on how you're living now waiting until you have enough saved so you can continue current spending levels may mean you can't go until after retirement, if ever."
Also:
"'The earlier, the better,' said one of our friends... 'You get more years afterward to enjoy your new passions, new language skills perhaps, a new perspective on the rest of your life.'"
The essay was geared more towards people looking to take a break from work rather than quit altogether, but the philosophy was definitely applicable towards those looking to ER.
The main thing I took away from it is this - once you've quit work and started doing something satisfying (in this case - cruising), you have a much different perspective on the need to have "more." Once you have free time, you start to wonder why you ever thought you needed the big house, the fancy car, and take-out dinners in the first place. As the author says:
"...cruising has changed our tastes and altered our priorites... going out to a halfway-decent restaurant once in a blue moon is more fun now than it ever was in our working days, when doing so was a relief from dervishly whirling weeks."
Anyway, thought it was interesting.
"Many people who dream of cruising hope to save enough money first so they can return home afterward and resume living as they did before, without working again - a tall order. But depending on how you're living now waiting until you have enough saved so you can continue current spending levels may mean you can't go until after retirement, if ever."
Also:
"'The earlier, the better,' said one of our friends... 'You get more years afterward to enjoy your new passions, new language skills perhaps, a new perspective on the rest of your life.'"
The essay was geared more towards people looking to take a break from work rather than quit altogether, but the philosophy was definitely applicable towards those looking to ER.
The main thing I took away from it is this - once you've quit work and started doing something satisfying (in this case - cruising), you have a much different perspective on the need to have "more." Once you have free time, you start to wonder why you ever thought you needed the big house, the fancy car, and take-out dinners in the first place. As the author says:
"...cruising has changed our tastes and altered our priorites... going out to a halfway-decent restaurant once in a blue moon is more fun now than it ever was in our working days, when doing so was a relief from dervishly whirling weeks."
Anyway, thought it was interesting.