Hello Bethlehem!

Thanks so much for commenting on my post. I can relate to a lot of what you’ve said. I’ve also always had the tendency to prioritize freedom over comfort, sometimes in irrational ways. Over the last few years though, I’ve realized that my resistance to some obligations in the name of “freedom” were actually detrimental to long-term freedom.

Actually, I find that the pursuit of “full freedom” in day-to-day life is … illusory. I’ve been guilty of striving to eliminate all forms of chains, regardless of what they tied me to. In this process, I’ve obviously gained some freedom, but lost other “freedoms”. An easy example: I once resisted the idea of living in a fixed place because I saw it as too restrictive. Yet, by living as a nomad, I also discarded other freedoms. I didn’t consistently have an inspiring place to practice and compose music. I struggled to find supportive environments to meditate, as I was always on the move. I didn’t have the freedom to grow a garden, to invite friends over, etc.

Instead of pursuing freedom directly, I feel like we should focus on prioritizing what’s important to us. For example, you might, like me, prefer free time to possessions, or a low-stress environment to a goal-oriented one. It’s easy to do what’s best for us when we put things in this way instead of trying to chase freedom.

You mention financial obligations dragging you down. That’s a very common theme, even for “normal” people who don’t particularly value being free. In my opinion though, you are never free unless your financial life is healthy. Basically, if you are struggling to make ends meet, or for example getting in debts, you are depending on your environment to survive, and are therefore stuck in your lifestyle.

So many people want “freedom” yet the best lifestyle they come up with is trading 6 months of work for 6 months of travel. In my view, there are more sustainable ways to live free. My view of freedom is intimately related to independence, and a major part of independence in today’s world is financial independence. This simply means having enough material resources to live for X amount of time (preferably for life). The freedom brought about by such a situation is remarkable.

The good news is, since you’re not too concerned with material comforts, it should be fairly easy to accumulate the material resources needed to live for a while. It’s much harder to be financially free when you feel like you “need” tons of stuff. Of course, I wouldn’t advocate working your ass off in a mindless job to accumulate such wealth. However, by being savvy, you can surely find ways to ally these goals to increase your short-term AND long-term freedom. Don’t fall in the trap of living as a means to an end though, since this develops unhealthy mental habits (treating the present as something unimportant, chasing the future, etc.).

As far as resources go, you might enjoy reading The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich or this blog : http://www.mrmoneymustache.com which deals with financial independence

I wish you the best!
Gabriel R.

I really like the topic of this article. I’m planning a long term trip to Asia and one of my goals is to learn how to live with less (I just got rid of my bed, after reading that sleeping on the floor is often healthier for your back). It would be nice if you included in the article some specific ways in which you are living with less comfort, or you have avoided living more comfortably.

Best,
Eric

Thanks for the great quote Sean. I’m a big fan of Thoreau!

Hey Jitendra,
Glad you enjoyed reading the article, thank for sharing!