Consumerism

I love the idea of beating the system, but I still want to make a positive mark on society. The real question is how you manage to do both. For me, the goal is simple. I just want total freedom to live life on my own terms. You can only reach that point through financial freedom. Without it, you are stuck in the system, answering to a boss if you are an employee, or to investors and customers if you run a business.

Over the last month, my views on how much we buy and consume have really shifted. I have been dipping in and out of a book called Early Retirement Extreme by Jacob Lund Fisker. I have always been drawn to the FIRE movement (financial independence, retire early), and this is one of the original books that started it all. I have always wondered why, despite all our modern technology, we work so hard and for so long, usually right up until we are 65.

The answer, it seems, is that we are willingly trading our freedom just to buy more things.

The Trap of 'The Best'

I am not anti-technology. It is clear that scientific progress is a good thing for society. We have cured diseases and raised living standards globally. But does anyone actually need a television built into their bathroom mirror, or a toaster connected to the wifi?

As a keen cyclist, I am not immune to wanting nice things. What cyclist does not want the latest ultra-light carbon road bike with electronic gears? I definitely do. But the main lesson here is learning to spot the difference between what is enough and what is just extra. We get used to nice things quickly, and most of us accidentally let our lifestyle costs creep up over time. It takes real mental effort to stop yourself and ask: do I really need this? Can I do this myself? Is what I already have good enough for the job?

Take the latest £1,000 iPhone. Very few people actually need one. That level of tech is for professional creators who need a high-quality, stable 4K camera in their pocket. Most of us do not fit that description, yet millions fall into the trap of thinking they need the absolute best. In reality, good enough usually gets you 80 or 90 per cent of the way there for a fraction of the cost. If we applied this thinking to everything we buy, and made second-hand our default choice, it would change our lives.

Cogs in the Consumption Machine

It feels like modern society is built entirely to profit off our most basic instincts. We are pushed towards junk food, addictive social media, pornography, and alcohol. Most people are simply too busy running in the rat race to realise the game they are trapped in, and it is genuinely sad.

Only a small group of people are working on things that actually move society forward, like medical devices, artificial intelligence, education, or building new infrastructure. Most are just cogs in a massive consumption machine, working meaningless, sometimes soul-destroying jobs just because they get paid for the drudgery.

A Need for Control

Early Retirement Extreme is full of practical advice on how to live a meaningful life without falling for endless consumerism. The title is a bit extreme, but the book really functions as a guide to living well. The outcome is that you become more fulfilled and free, with the added bonus that you do not have to work until you are 65 if you choose not to.

I am so drawn to this movement because I feel an urgent need to take control of my life right now. Since leaving university, my choices have mostly been driven by the promise of making money rather than following my actual curiosity. I have not been disciplined enough to become great at a skill that truly aligns with my values. I want to make the world a better place and contribute to society, but I need to do it entirely on my own terms.

Right now, I do not feel free, and that tension is sitting heavily with me. When I think of retirement, I do not picture going on five holidays a year and relaxing my life away as an unproductive drain on society. Instead, I picture finally having the time to explore my curiosity, to create more than I consume, and to live a life with real purpose.