Design Your Ideal Work-Life Balance with Surprising Wealth Principles
How to Build the SlowFI Life of Your Dreams SeriesThe content on Surprising Wealth reflects my own experiences and opinions. It is not intended as financial, legal, or tax advice. Please consult a professional for advice tailored to your situation.
How to Build the SlowFI Life of Your Dreams Series
Value #4: Create Work-Life Balance
Balancing Present and Future:
Design Your Ideal Work-Life Balance with Surprising Wealth Principles.
How do you balance enjoying today with planning for tomorrow?
Finding the right balance between enjoying the present and planning for the future is at the heart of the Surprising Wealth philosophy. It involves making conscious decisions about how to allocate time and resources in a way that supports both current happiness and future security. This balance is an important consideration because it ensures that you can enjoy life now without compromising your long-term financial goals.
For instance, this might mean working fewer hours to have more time for hobbies, friends, and family, while still saving a portion of your income for long-term goals. Many people get caught up in the hustle culture, believing that working more hours and constantly pushing for higher earnings is the only way to achieve financial security. However, this often leads to burnout and a lack of time for the things that truly bring joy and fulfillment.
We have prioritized flexibility in our working life, choosing a slower pace with more free time rather than options that would leave us busy and stressed. This approach allows us to nurture our relationships, pursue our interests and passions, take care of our mental health and well-being, and be more present in our daily life. It’s about finding what works best for you and your family, and making adjustments that enhance your quality of life.
Striking a work-life balance also involves setting boundaries and being intentional about how you spend your time. It means saying no to excessive overtime and unnecessary commitments that drain your energy and time. Instead, you can focus on what truly matters to you, whether that’s spending quality time with loved ones, pursuing personal interests, or simply taking time to rest and recharge.
Creating work-life balance that feels good to me has been an important component of building my Dream SlowFI Life. In my 20’s, work life balance looked like choosing to live close to where I worked so that commute times were low, commuting costs were minimal, and I could even walk to work on nice days (enjoying the pleasures of movement, sunshine, trees, and just being outside). In my 30’s it looked like working remotely with “office hours” where clients knew I was only available for phone or email communication in the afternoons. My mornings were for gently waking up, focusing on what I prioritized most, and opportunities for uninterrupted work. In my 40’s it looks like taking on fewer clients and intentionally working flexible part-time hours.
By embracing this balance of prioritizing lifestyle choices alongside financial and work objectives, we can avoid burnout and ensure that our journey towards financial independence is sustainable and enjoyable. It’s important to remember that financial independence is not just about the destination but also about the journey. Enjoying life along the way makes the pursuit of financial goals more meaningful and rewarding.
#SlowDown #EnjoyLife #BalancedBusiness #NotBusy #TimeFreedom #SlowFI #TimeIsWealth #YourMoneyOrYourLife #SurprisingWealth
How do YOU balance enjoying today with planning for tomorrow?
Let’s get curious….
How would your dream life look if you balanced your work commitments with more time for the activities and experiences that bring you the most joy?
These questions are designed to inspire reflection and action towards aligning your life with your values and goals. By exploring these questions, you can gain deeper insights into your financial journey and identify actionable steps to move closer to your goals. Financial independence is a personal and unique journey for everyone, and we hope these questions inspire you to take meaningful steps towards your own financial freedom.
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About:
How to Build the SlowFI Life of Your Dreams Series
Surprising Wealth Principals:
1. Embrace the SlowFI Journey with Consistent Actions
2. Evaluate If You Are Running The Right Race
3. Value Experiences Over Status and Things
4. Create Work-Life Balance
5. Practice Mindful Spending
6. Prioritize Health and Wellbeing
7. Set Flexible Goals
8. Invest in Relationships
9. Enjoy the Journey
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A Bit About Us
Our journey began with humble beginnings. We’ve navigated through the challenges of creating a life and a living we love, while earing low to median incomes. What started as a modest dream of being able to retire someday has turned into a concrete plan. We’ve been on the SlowFI path, consistently saving and investing for 20+ years. Our income over time has stayed roughly in the 50th percentile, so we are truely everyday Americans. We’ve achieved remarkable results through living below our means and consistently investing the difference. Now in our mid-40s, we are in the top 20% for U.S. household wealth for our age group. This has been possible through conscious spending, consistent saving, strategic investing, and a commitment to lifestyle design where we spend generously on things that bring us value and contentment, while cuting back on things we are ambivalent about. It can be daunting when you hear the stories of tech workers or doctors or other people with large income shovels. We want to share how an everyday couple with median US income has built wealth for the future, while also creating a life we love today.
Why Financial Independence?
Financial Independence means having the freedom to make choices that aren’t dictated only by the need for a paycheck. It’s about gaining control over your time and energy, and being able to pursue what truly matters to you. For us, it’s about creating time for friend & family, travel, and the experiences that bring joy and fulfillment.
Join Us on the Journey
In January 2021, I ran some calculations, projected our investment growth, and analyzed our current spending levels. After adjusting our spending assumptions for future inflation, I realized we could replace our earned income (trading time for money) with investment income (our money making money for us) in approximately 10 years. With 90 months left to go, we’re solidly on that path and we want you to join us. Whether you’re just starting out or well on your way to financial independence, Surprising Wealth is here to support and inspire you. Together, we can make every month count and turn dreams into reality.
Thank you for being a part of our community. Let’s embark on this journey to financial independence together!
Disclaimer: All the tips and stories here are from my own journey toward financial independence. Remember, what worked for me might not work for everyone. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered as financial, legal, or tax advice. Always consult with a professional before making any significant financial decisions.
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