Lifestyle Archives - The Yolofied Monkey

YOLO and FOMO

The Yolofied Monkey — Sat, 26 May 2018 14:59:35 +0000

Hello everyone. The weather is nice and gives lot of opportunities to hang out with family or friends. However I sometimes find myself with the problem of expensive experiences with them. For instance, I love cycling, for me it is a way to focus, to gain control, especially when climbing mountains. The majority of my peers have bought a new bike, just to look better and try to stand out, they try to encourage me to buy a new bike. I don’t think I need a new bike to begin with, because I don’t ride that much actually. I always say that I don’t need more racing bikes as I can only ride one at the same time right?
Sometimes I think: is there something wrong with you? It’s evident that I know there is nothing wrong, it’s just I don’t feel the desire to do as they do. I think a lot people have problems with this. There was a time when you could tell at the material possessions how rich or poor someone was. A lot of young people seem to buy stuff while they actually cannot afford it but don’t want to refuse because they would fear missing out on a lifetime opportunity with friends (FOMO).

Doing all what you want, just because you only live once (YOLO), is not smart. This can cost you a lot of money. Today on social media, we stay in touch with our friends and want to have what they have in order to feel part of something. On this blog, we use YOLO on certain areas in life increase the quality.
The Yolofied Monkey thinks that a lot of things are actually free and don’t have to cost a lot of money. He tries to apply the following principles:

1. have a budget: define a limit for social spending and stick to it. I mostly have just 20 euro’s in my pocket, I don’t use creditcards for these things, only to buy stuff online.
2. keep the big picture in mind: don’t think of having a budget as restrictive, it’s just a roadmap to get there, you can always make compromises. You can get there sooner, smoother, just think of the feeling when you’ll get there.
3. Think about your friends as: do they really give me pleasure? In one life, don’t you lose a lot of friends already? Is it worth to be part of a gang, getting in debt just to be with them? You can solve this, just by talking to your friends or becoming a leader: suggesting more frugal alternatives: picknicking, BBQ at home…

YOLO and FOMO can be seen as major threaths to someone’s happiness and finances. To me it’s clear, being with family, friends, having a great time doesn’t have to cost much.

Have you experienced FOMO or YOLO with your friends that was out of your comfort zone or too expensive? Tell me about it in the comments below!

The post YOLO and FOMO appeared first on The Yolofied Monkey.

The golden cage: is retirement a right or a choice?

The Yolofied Monkey — Sun, 01 Apr 2018 18:14:38 +0000

In Belgium, one can retire at the age of 65-67. In my case, I would be able to go 1 year earlier. We are programmed to follow the road our parents have followed. My parents are great, loving people and inspiring to me. They are both retired and do as they please. I know I won’t have the luxury to retire at the age of maximum 60. This doesn’t sound like YOLO, right?

In Europe, this concept has been introduced by O. Von Bismarck in 1889. Life expectancy from a German man was 40 years. They could retire at the age of 70 years, which has been decreased to 65. This age became accepted worldwide, but is nowadays questioned. Clever man that Bismarck, a difference of 25 years. That difference is on the other side now, that’s why the system doesn’t work anymore.

The question is, until what age do I have to work until I can retire? Retiring sounds like a luxury to me, something I might not enjoy. One has to make choices to reach this goal. Social Security is questioned, life expectancy is growing, so retiring is not certain, they might add years, lower the amount you receive…

One can approach this differently:

Just stay in the golden cage, work 9-5 and make ends meet, living life as ‘programmed’
Just stay in the golden cage, work 9-5 and make choices about habits, spending, and leave this cage regularly
We can control retirement and choose toretire early and leave the golden cage permanently

The last approach is somewhat ‘terrifying’, because we don’t follow the planned route and that we are in charge. The second approach is pretty much doable. The first approach is what we always say, plan Z, you know it’s there.

Of course, there are also some other possibilities like becoming sick, losing your job etcetera, we assume that you can always work and try to get some.

Let’s do this together and support each other.

We CAN retire early,any time, any place, doing whatever we want.

We will need extra income to do so, one of these can be real estate, index funds, sidejobs…

What is your approach and how do you do it? Feel free to comment below.

The post The golden cage: is retirement a right or a choice? appeared first on The Yolofied Monkey.

Yolofied, what’s in a name?

The Yolofied Monkey — Sat, 31 Mar 2018 12:27:33 +0000

Welcome!

Life is beautiful and we must enjoy it. A lot of people blog about their experiences and find it’s nice to do so.

Many people are raised with the philosophy to go to school, get a degree and work for a boss. This monkey finds that idea quite depressing and is looking for a way out of his golden cage.

I describe it as a “golden” cage because when I will retire in Belgium, assuming I keep working until I am 67 years old, I will receive a pension from our government so I can enjoy life. We don’t know what will happen then.

With this blog I want to leave that golden cage, if not permanently. I want to connect to you and learn of your experiences.

Yolofied is based on Y.O.L.O. (You Only Live Once). I find that a lot of my friends, family just go to work, complain all day and don’t see the bigger picture. We live in a great world and must be happy about the things we can do. If I can do it, anyone will do it. And I think monkeys always seem happy. It’s not about being frugal or saving like hell, just like monkeys like eating bananas.

Yolofying your life means improving various areas. We will focus on these areas:

(Financial) freedom: freedom to do what you want
Happiness: speaks for itself but know what makes you happy and be loyal to yourself!
Be Healthy
Be succesful
Love each other: family and friends are very important
Living conciously: subjects like minimalism, less is more…

This is for people with a mindset: I can and I will improve!

Want to tag along with me?

Yolo!

The post Yolofied, what’s in a name? appeared first on The Yolofied Monkey.