Work Less to Live Your Dreams

A few years ago I was working a regular 9-5 office job. It wasn’t terrible, though I wasn’t overly excited about it either. Even though I was working more than I was living, my entire pay check was disappearing month after month. I had no idea what I was spending money on, or why my bank account was always empty just before pay day.

After thinking about what I wanted to do in my life, and how sitting at this job was not getting me closer to my dreams, I made a few small changes to my lifestyle, and my savings account slowly started growing. The more I saved the more I was motivated to save, and my savings continued to grow.

Less than two years later I had a modest savings account. Enough, if I was careful, to take a year off work and live one of my biggest dreams. I bought a used Jeep for $6,000 cash, with big plans in store. It just so happened in that same week my friend at work bought a new car. James and I had often talked about how our job was not the greatest and how we both longed for something more. James’ new car had every available option, and it came with six years of payments, while I had just paid for my Jeep in cash.

I quit that job and spent two years driving my Jeep from Alaska to Argentina having all kinds of life-changing adventures along the way. The trip turned out to be bigger than I could have ever imagined.

Upon my return I visited my old workplace and was shocked to see the same people, sitting in the same chairs, doing the same things. James was still there, still talking of doing something he dreamed about, and still paying off his car. He had four years of payments remaining, but he was already talking about getting a newer one – it had more speakers in the sound system or something. James was wondering why he was going to work every day of his life, but he was no closer to living his dreams. It struck me like a ton of bricks that James had been sitting at that desk for two years while I adventured through Central and South America, and he had not saved a single cent. He had been going to work every day for two years, and I had been living one of my biggest dreams, my time entirely my own.

It’s become clear to me we can all choose which person we want to be. You can choose to be James, go to work for your entire life, and wonder why you don’t get to live your dreams.

Or, with a few small changes to your lifestyle, you can work less, and live your dreams!

This is the Introduction to my new book “Work Less to Live Your Dreams – A practical guide to saving money and living your dreams”, where I teach readers exactly how I am able to save money, work less and live my dreams. The book describes how I have been able to afford to quit work and drive from Alaska to Argentina for two years, and now again to quit work to drive around Africa for two years.

Chapters of the book include:

Change how you value money

Change your relationship with money

Understand the true cost of money

Save money

The mindset of spending less

Work less

With real-world examples, step-by-step instructions and thinking points, Work Less to Live Your Dreams will teach you how to free yourself from endless full time work, and start living your dreams.

Work Less to Live Your Dreams is available now on the following eBook stores for USD $2.99:

Amazon: Work Less to Live Your Dreams

Apple iBooks: Work Less to Live Your Dreams

Kobo Bookstore: Work Less to Live Your Dreams

-Dan