This truly resonated with me Matt! It's almost like being on the journey alongside you with it feels magical. Sparked a lot of introspection on my end, especially around ideas I haven't put into words. Top three I like: 1) “Now, I’ve stopped viewing work and non-work as a binary and embraced working with multiple modalities.” 2) “Impact is something that’s felt, not measured.” 3) “Rather than trying to bury the PM in me, I am now trying to give him a seat at the table.”
Btw, I’m curious how did you do IFS therapy? Any resources you would recommend?
Matt that is a wonderful read - beautifully written and I can relate to many points you mention. So many, in fact, that I don’t bother highlighting them here 😄.
Brings me back to our meeting in Bali last year and it’s nice to understand the context around it through your article.
Loved this (and glad you didn't break it up into many posts.) It seems like it takes time to detox the desire to "achieve" even when removed from traditional work. And maybe successful people are most generous with their time because they have become able to measure success beyond immediate output and feel this pressure to a lesser degree?
Once I was actually living off of savings, I had my Copernicus moment and realized that money is just one of the many factors orbiting in my life.
This financial detox has reset my money microbiome. In the past, gluttonous splurging temporarily made me feel better. Now, I employ money for nourishment. Even though its relative importance has decreased, I appreciate money more now. I still want financial wealth and the safety and security that comes with it, but now I view it as an inevitable byproduct of following my curiosity and helping people.
You need less than you think
Leading up to quitting, I conservatively estimated that I would spend $5,000 a month. I based this off of my pre-sabbatical lifestyle which was the best approximation to anchor to at the time. In reality, this year, I’ve spent around $3,000 per month. I spent $500 during my least expensive month and $5,000 during my most expensive month with no noticeable correlation to overall happiness. This unexpected frugality happened without forcing my lifestyle through the constraints of a budget. I simply reduced spending on things that I no longer value and kept spending on things that I do value. As a result, my perceived quality of spending improved without any noticeable decrease in quality of life.
This truly resonated with me Matt! It's almost like being on the journey alongside you with it feels magical. Sparked a lot of introspection on my end, especially around ideas I haven't put into words. Top three I like: 1) “Now, I’ve stopped viewing work and non-work as a binary and embraced working with multiple modalities.” 2) “Impact is something that’s felt, not measured.” 3) “Rather than trying to bury the PM in me, I am now trying to give him a seat at the table.”
Btw, I’m curious how did you do IFS therapy? Any resources you would recommend?
Matt that is a wonderful read - beautifully written and I can relate to many points you mention. So many, in fact, that I don’t bother highlighting them here 😄.
Brings me back to our meeting in Bali last year and it’s nice to understand the context around it through your article.
This piece is beautiful Matt. So excited to see what 2024 brings! Grateful to learn from you 🙏🏽
We met at the SF commons writing Sunday months ago. This is a great piece, glad you wrote it. Good to see you still writing.
Very insightful!
I love this 🙌 can’t wait to see what you create in 2024
My experience of "sabbatical" eerily matches yours. We even started at essentially the same time. keep going my friend.
Loved this (and glad you didn't break it up into many posts.) It seems like it takes time to detox the desire to "achieve" even when removed from traditional work. And maybe successful people are most generous with their time because they have become able to measure success beyond immediate output and feel this pressure to a lesser degree?
Great article. I especially liked this part:
🡻🡻🡻🡻🡻🡻🡻🡻🡻🡻🡻
Once I was actually living off of savings, I had my Copernicus moment and realized that money is just one of the many factors orbiting in my life.
This financial detox has reset my money microbiome. In the past, gluttonous splurging temporarily made me feel better. Now, I employ money for nourishment. Even though its relative importance has decreased, I appreciate money more now. I still want financial wealth and the safety and security that comes with it, but now I view it as an inevitable byproduct of following my curiosity and helping people.
You need less than you think
Leading up to quitting, I conservatively estimated that I would spend $5,000 a month. I based this off of my pre-sabbatical lifestyle which was the best approximation to anchor to at the time. In reality, this year, I’ve spent around $3,000 per month. I spent $500 during my least expensive month and $5,000 during my most expensive month with no noticeable correlation to overall happiness. This unexpected frugality happened without forcing my lifestyle through the constraints of a budget. I simply reduced spending on things that I no longer value and kept spending on things that I do value. As a result, my perceived quality of spending improved without any noticeable decrease in quality of life.