Chase Money not Meaning
PS: Ignore the fact that he ends up in jail at the end of the movie
Need to bust the myth of people looking for meaningful jobs, most just want the money and there’s nothing wrong with that. This is the corporate version of Maslow’s hierarchy (survival needs have to met first before moving upwards with self actualization/meaning as the final stage).
The reality is that despite all the talk about finding one’s passion/ doing something meaningful, everyone opts for the highest paying job out of college. I am yet to hear of anyone jumping to a new org for lesser money (sure they might say growth, learning, etc and maybe its just a coincidence that there’s always a significant monetary increase associated with it). Every generation also has a “cool” job that everyone chases that also happens to be the highest paying in the market (it was Software Engineer starting mid 90s and then PM, Data Scientist and now #AI). Finally there is the yearly stress cycle, ie appraisals, primarily due to the inordinate stress put on the relatively small yearly increase to meet all our needs. The needs never end, so no increase seems enough.
So if schools, colleges, etc are not addressing it and we are not open about it, here are my 2 cents to counter balance all the follow your passion /Ikigai/ “Begin with Why” gyaan out there. And no, there’s no need to read the Psychology of Money or Rich Dad Poor Dad, you just need to know 3 things:
- The Power of Compounding (why its called the 8th wonder of the world)
- Compounding works primarily on time the money is invested, not the amount of money invested.
- Growth is exponential (ie the same period of time later on gives you a much larger return than early on). The math is not obvious to us to understand.
2. Don’t take loans (no credit cards, EMIs, etc). You are only stealing from your future self.
3. Save and invest first every month before spending. 10% of your salary/pocket money first goes here every month, you only live off the remaining.
The image below tells you how the magic works: <start at age 18 with 500 rupees a month and increase a little every year>
And there’s no need to just talk about it, just start putting your money where your mouth is. If you’re a student start with 500 rupees a month, if starting your job, make it anywhere from 1,000–5,000 Rs based on salary (remember the 10% guideline). You should increase it a little bit every year as your income increases. Expect nothing for the first 5 years, maybe it even drops a bit. Stay patient and committed. The magic should start happening after year 7.
You can thank me with a commission after year 20. If you don’t last till then, just ensure you have the energy to keep jumping and dealing with the stress of worrying about having enough for each month and the future.
But if you are able to set a solid financial engine that keeps working in parallel to your job, you will have the freedom /security to chase the job of your dreams without worrying about compromising on you/your family’s financial health. So maybe I am talking about following your passion and finding a meaningful job afterall, I just took a different route.
