Create Your Own Culture
If at any point in the past few years you asked me what my idea of a dream lifestyle would look like, I would have told you that for me it would be something like this…
It would involve living in several different countries each year, working in cafes from a laptop, meeting inspiring people on a regular basis, and building useful things that people appreciate. I love eating at restaurants and trying new food, so I'd like to make that something I do at least 3 or 4 times a week in my ideal lifestyle. No billion pound saving accounts, no mansions, just a simple but interesting lifestyle that keeps me learning and surrounded by great people.
Sitting at lunch today, I realised I'm living my dream lifestyle
To create your perfect lifestyle you must create your own culture
My 'dream lifestyle' is not exactly the norm in Western culture – and if abided by the cultural norms, I probably couldn't have my dream lifestyle. Let me explain.
We're brought up to think that we should work for an employer and earn a big salary. We're taught that living in a mansion and owning a Ferrari is a great luxury. We're taught to be 'realistic' by people who don't understand the psychology behind how 'realistic' works.
We accept these things as truth and forget to question them. The thing is, we all have an idea of what our perfect lifestyle looks like, but we're living in the norms of a culture that doesn't support our perfect lifestyle. To live a dream lifestyle, you must abide by the little things our culture teaches us like being healthy and safe, but forget the big things and make your own set of norms that work for you.
In short, our culture teaches people to want the wrong things, which means that many of us end up walking around doing things we don't understand why we're doing. Let me clear up a few of those things for you.
A high salary will not make you happy
Research has proven that any salary above £40,000 doesn't make you any happier, so why do so many people aspire to have a high paying job?
Money is an enabler and will allow you to live more freely to do the things you want, but you don't need much of it. My advice is to work out how much you need each day for your dream to be reality (it's probably much less than you think) and then find a way to attain that amount each day doing something you enjoy doing.
Owning things is over-rated.
Our culture tells us that we should own things, but when you take out a mortgage on a house or buy a car, it ties you down to that location and limits your freedom to move around and live a flexible lifestyle.
All of my possessions fit into a carry-on luggage suitcase and small backpack (see picture), which means I can pack things up in ten minutes and get on a plane to another country with ease. Most of my possessions are also inexpensive and non-designer, which means I don't have to worry too much if it gets lost, broken, or stolen. Fewer possessions = less stress = more happiness.
Working for the man is over-rated.
This is perhaps the hardest thing our culture teaches us to 'unlearn'. I'm not saying you shouldn't work for an employer – I'm just saying that there are plenty of opportunities to earn an income doing what you enjoying doing that it makes absolutely no sense to do anything 'just for the money'. There are literally thousands of ways to earn an income – if you're stuck or want advice, drop me an email.
The culture I've created for myself is far from what you may consider normal – I have no bills, and few possessions. I don't know about the lives of celebrities or politicians, I don't have a full-time job, I don't even own a degree or a car. The amazing thing is that despite all of this, I have everything I need to make each and every day an amazing one.
You can't change your culture overnight
This post will be useful in different ways to different people. I realise that creating your own culture and believing that you can have your dream lifestyle is not something you can get to grips with overnight – it takes months, if not years to slowly adapt to – and that's a good thing, because it means you get to change one little thing at a time to see whether you like the change or not. One big change would be too uncomfortable.
Regardless of what stage you're at, think about what your utopian dream world looks like. Ask the questions for why it's not already like that and what you need to make it happen, and then start making some little changes. In a few years or less you may be just as surprised as I was this afternoon to realise that it's become your reality.
