[warning: this email may not land well with some…]
On Wall Street, “f—k you money” was the ultimate prize. You fought to make enough money to say F-U to the overlords – to never feel beholden again.
While the term is crude, the underlying concept is surprisingly noble: real freedom. The ability to have dominion over your time, words and whereabouts.
At least that’s what I thought.
Today, many of my peers have made f—-k you money.. complete financial independence.
But, they don’t say f—k you.
They feel constrained by the weight of social expectations, childhood programming or just what others might think. Often, they’re doing the same thing as 10 years ago, but enjoy it less.
- What if they spoke freely about politics and culture?
- What if they skipped the Hamptons and the galas this year?
- What if they stopped playing the game of achieving and climbing?
What would their friends say? What would they say to themselves?
Probably nothing nice. So most choose the easy path and fall in line. With each micro choice, they subjugate their personal path to the will of the crowd. Their life looks identical (+ or -) to their social circle.
They are comfortable and accepted, but not free.
Predictably, they feel trapped or unfulfilled – like something’s missing. Often, they rely on real estate projects, pricy vacations and fancy wine to feel excited. I know…I’ve been guilty, too.
So, what’s missing? The freedom to walk their own path in a culture that demands compliance for acceptance.
But freedom has a price. The question is: are you willing to pay it?
We’ll tackle that in Part II.
warmly,
Navin
P.S. As many of you know, I also love epic vacations and aged Brunello’s.