Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Building a vision of life without work (2015)

livingafi.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

151–160 of 436 posts

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#151

Post by PicassoCTs »

The most drag on a life without work, is put by having to buy physical products, that are not useful, except for status display or decoration. This is why AR- done right would be such a game-changer.

No more throw-away decoration bought at ikea. No more physical products like books, any stone with a small piece of cloth, could be a book.

No more displays of status by buying advertised products - instead, status is what you create, growing out of your footsteps as you walk down a public street.

If all those products fade to grey, lots of work will become unneeded. And we are almost there.

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#152

Post by temp8964 »

bambax wrote: post #127
dcolkitt wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's interesting is the radical change over the past century, from a life of pure leisure being the mark of the aristocratic upper class to the lumpenproletariat. I love how Downton Abbey conveys this now alien concept to us early on by having the Dowager Countess ask " what is a 'weekend'? ". The perfect modern counter-balance is the classic line from Office Space: " Well, you don't need a million dollars to do no…

Work as purpose is a rather novel idea. Max Weber is really helpful here, and his seminal book, while published in 1905, seems more relevant than ever. It used to be that you worked just as much as you needed to, to sustain yourself. So much so that raising wages would immediately result in people working less, as they could earn the same amount of money with less work. Then at some point work became a "calling" and…

No. "Work as purpose" is an observation, maybe a new observation (not sure about that). It's not like that a scholar invented an idea, then the mass followed the idea and the idea changed everyone's life. No scholar has this kind of magic power.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is called a theory. In its nature, it's a framework of psychological conceptions based on observations. It's not like Maslow tells people what they need and the human beings on this planet start to pursue their needs based on Maslow's demand.

Yes. People want to work less, but people can't just wonder around without purpose for a long time. When you find your purpose, and start to spend your time on it, you are "working" on that purpose. Nobody says work = work for a boss.

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#153

Post by didip »

SavantIdiot wrote: post #39

I'm 52 and have 2.5MM in an IRA (200k cash) and debt of just a $200k mortgage (and this is weaksauce compared to my peers who all became VPs or C*Os). And the idea of trying to live off an IRA that is currently stocks/bonds/ETFs scares the bejeebers out of me. I think it is more about the personality than the money: do you have the risk-tolerance like this guy to say "fuck it, it will all work out," or are you like m…

Same here, this is why my goal is to simply FI not RE.

Once I FI'ed, then I can take whatever job I want based on fun or personal aspiration.

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#154

Post by vlunkr »

mgh2 wrote: post #135
vlunkr wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't the post you're replying to evidence against this? They have financial independence, and now they are finding meaningful work. I agree that we need a sense of purpose for happiness/mental health, but why does that have to be "working for the man?".

Why is "working for the man" so bad when it gives purpose in your life? The article showed how unsatisfied his wife was when she felt as "not going anywhere", I think she was trying to say that she does not feel any sort of progress or growth on any level. As it is torture to keep someone in a room with no stimulation, it is the same with repetition and no change or progress. “Industry, thrift and self-control are no…

> why is "working for the man" so bad

I don't think it is necessarily bad, but that doesn't mean that there aren't other paths to fulfillment. They may not be for you, but they exist.

> it is the same with repetition and no change or progress.

If someone chooses to retire and immediately enter a vegetative state, that's really their fault.

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#156

Post by temp8964 »

chromanoid wrote: post #89
temp8964 wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course people can choose not having spouse or kids. What do you mean there is zero alternative? There are people born rich enough to not have to work, but do they live a happy life by not working all the way?

Choice comes in various flavors. A single woman was very vulnerable some decades ago. While single men had it better there were and are still many stereotypes that affect your life. Just read the parts about feeling disconnected to many old friends. Imagine that a thousand times when you look at the past.

The whole point is that when you have more and more choices , you can't escape your psychological needs as a human being. You can have sex with random strangers with protection from modern technology, but they don't provide the same intimacy you need from your spouse. You can live alone with single wage, but it does not fulfil your psychological needs can only be gained from living with a family.

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#157

Post by david-gpu »

legohead wrote: post #136
zoba wrote: post #67

I was 2nd employee at a unicorn startup and have been on a work-hiatus for almost a year. Now, I live amongst Amish people in the country. My biggest insight has been a mindset change. Previously my underlying approach to life looked like: "I will do X which will enable me to do Y so that I can finally do Z." I now approach my days with "What will make me happy?" This is an experiment I'm performing. A structured lif…

I know exactly what makes me happy -- playing video games, eating good food, living in a nice climate (CA or Hawaii), and traveling the world. Unfortunately my happiness comes with a price tag.

It may be worth keeping an open mind. Perhaps there are many other things which would make you happy if you tried them, and they may not cost a lot.

Lately I'm finding joy in all sorts of pursuits that I had never thought about. A willingness to try new things was necessary.

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#158

Post by bumby »

mgh2 wrote: post #135
vlunkr wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't the post you're replying to evidence against this? They have financial independence, and now they are finding meaningful work. I agree that we need a sense of purpose for happiness/mental health, but why does that have to be "working for the man?".

Why is "working for the man" so bad when it gives purpose in your life? The article showed how unsatisfied his wife was when she felt as "not going anywhere", I think she was trying to say that she does not feel any sort of progress or growth on any level. As it is torture to keep someone in a room with no stimulation, it is the same with repetition and no change or progress. “Industry, thrift and self-control are no…

>she does not feel any sort of progress or growth on any level.

I think the flip side of this is that many people are so focused on progress and looking forward to the next goal line that they become unable to appreciate the moment and, ironically, happiness is always one more goal away. Recently, I’ve been reading books on Buddhism (specifically how it differs from many Western value systems) and it sheds some light on this. The same goes for the inability to be happy sans constant stimulation.

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#159

Post by driverdan »

PragmaticPulp wrote: post #85
driverdan wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It’s not that simple. It is. I took about 18 months off a few years ago. It was great until I ran out of money. My main motivator was a very big project (converting a bus to live in) that took a lot of time but after that was done I still did lots of other projects, played video games, and traveled. In some ways I missed contributing my skills to a team but, other than needing money, I wasn't strongly motivated to…

> It is. I took about 18 months off a few years ago. It was great until I ran out of money. I also took a lot of time off, albeit after crossing the threshold of FIRE. My comment was coming from a position of someone who has achieved FIRE.

How much time did you take off?

I have more projects than I would have time if I FIREd. I think the main thing is you have to be some form of maker, you can't be just a consumer.

I have so many things I want to build (eg my next vehicle conversion) and a lot of software projects. Then there's the list of things I'd like to learn and places I want to visit.

When my dad retired he actually got busier than when he worked full time. He literally has enough projects to last the rest of his life.

Re: Building a vision of life without work (2015)

#160

Post by sombremesa »

legohead wrote: post #136
zoba wrote: post #67

I was 2nd employee at a unicorn startup and have been on a work-hiatus for almost a year. Now, I live amongst Amish people in the country. My biggest insight has been a mindset change. Previously my underlying approach to life looked like: "I will do X which will enable me to do Y so that I can finally do Z." I now approach my days with "What will make me happy?" This is an experiment I'm performing. A structured lif…

I know exactly what makes me happy -- playing video games, eating good food, living in a nice climate (CA or Hawaii), and traveling the world. Unfortunately my happiness comes with a price tag.

Being wealthy is like learning a favorite restaurant recipe. You start making the same food everyday, because you love it, so why not?

It doesn't take very long at all for the honeymoon to be over.

So what exactly was making you happy there, when you could only eat that meal occasionally in that restaurant? Was it really the food?

Post reply on HN