If Money Weren't An Object
A few weeks ago when having a conversation with my dad trying to figure out my life he asked me “What would you do if you won the lottery?” My immediate response was “I would walk slower and read more.” Although this is a bit of a joke the nature behind it is very accurate. I would stop stressing about the useless things that cause stress and take the time to appreciate the things around me and take time to learn. In another conversation with a coworker I said that I would work so much harder if I won the lottery because I would be able to work on things that I am passionate for. Things that I would do without the thought of money. Things that get me excited.
My friend Iain recently sent me this video which affirmed my thought process in this question. Alan Watts says that it is “stupid for us to spend our time doing stuff we don’t like”. I fully agree with this statement but how do we balance this with the reality that life does cost money and a lot of it?
This time period for me and many of my peers is one where the question of “What do I want to do with my life?” is asked. Often this is a question of where do I want to work? I have become a big believer that this is the wrong question to be asking. Whenever someone asks me the question I immediately ask them to think of 10 years from now. What does a day of life look like? Are you waking up beside a wife? kids? Are you putting on a suit to get to work? Are you driving in? Taking the train? Biking? How many people do you work with? What type of work would you be excited to do? Lifestyle is the more important thing to consider when looking at the future. Once we have an ideal lifestyle narrowed down there are now hundreds if not thousands of jobs that can make that lifestyle possible. The idea of people doing the same job from 22 until retirement is absurd, so why do we focus and wrestle with the place we punch in and out so much. I would much rather strive to create an ideal life from the moment i punch out until the next morning. The work I do is irrelevant as long as it fits into my personal vision statement, and facilitates the lifestyle I desire.
My dream job as of the moment would be to have a small office where I work with friends in a think tank/ agency type environment working with clients helping them form and develop ideas and dreams they have into something executable and eventually into something tangible. I have considered in the immediate to start a branding agency or to perhaps do some marketing/ strategic consulting. I get really excited about both of these things for free. Now if you want to hire me for either of these unfortunately I can’t do them for free yet. I would like to someday soon.
Wherever I end up, I want to be creating with friends. Creating with purpose. Using our resources to do good. What would you do if money weren’t an object?