Too expensive
This topic really divides people. We've all had a discussion at some point about something being too expensive. When that happens, I always ask myself:
Too expensive compared to what?
Let's be honest. Usually it means something is too expensive relative to my income, and there are some things I simply can't afford yet.
It's not that the product is too expensive. It's that my money's purchasing power is too weak, and consciously or not, I convert the price into the time it takes to earn that money.
For example, if a sweater cost 25% of my monthly income, it really would turn out to be a damn expensive sweater, and I'd have to work a whole week for it.
But if I made that money in 5 minutes, I wouldn't even pay much attention to the price, and I'd only check the label to see what it's made of. Exactly like I don't pay attention to the price of mustard at the store.
Of course, there's a group of products where value doesn't go hand in hand with price at all, e.g. fashion, designer stuff, and often art. A more expensive sweater doesn't have to be better quality than a cheaper one, because the price may come down to the brand alone.
Some products fill a niche and can't be compared directly because they have no competition. Others may offer high added value in the form of top-notch customer service, an extra warranty, better software, etc.
You have to be careful about what you're comparing it with, what exactly you're comparing and what your point of reference is. Because it may turn out that a Toyota is 10 times cheaper, more reliable and will rack up more miles than a Ferrari. And yet you'd probably still rather drive the Ferrari.
There are no good or bad choices here, and it's nobody's business if you feel like buying something from the top shelf.
More time
I remember a TED talk about the real price we pay for the things we buy and surround ourselves with. That car, that phone and that TV cost us not only money but, above all, time, the time we spent earning them.
Money is a renewable resource, because we'll soon earn it again. Time, unfortunately, doesn't work that way, and whatever your bank balance, you can't buy any more of it.
What you can do, if you're permanently short of it, is use money to free some of it up and spend it on what really matters to you.
How do you do that? All the chores you do yourself that eat up precious time, or that you don't particularly enjoy, are worth delegating, as long as the price of the service is lower than your hourly rate.
For example, if an hour of cleaning your apartment is much cheaper than an hour of your work, there's not much point in you spending that hour cleaning. Get rid of the idea that it's some kind of luxury or extravagance. You'll let someone earn some money, and meanwhile you can learn something, do what you enjoy or just rest.
If you're short on ideas, you can order:
- grocery delivery
- boxed meal delivery
- catering for parties
- shoe cleaning
- washing and ironing shirts
If you look hard enough, you might find an older lady next door who'll cook something good for you, and in return she'll have something to do, feel needed and top up her pension.
You can also travel faster and more comfortably, skip the lines at airports by paying for faster access (Fast Track), hire a driver to take you to all the sights on vacation, etc.
Wherever there's a need, there's bound to be a solution you just have to pay for.
Of course, don't get paranoid and delegate everything. Vacuuming your apartment can be relaxing and even therapeutic, and it's a good dose of exercise on top of that.
The road to financial freedom
The road to financial freedom means making your income independent of place and time:
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Independence from place is a nice bonus, because it gives you the freedom to work anywhere in the world on your own terms.
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The easiest way to check whether your income is independent of time is to ask yourself: do I make money while I sleep?