I’ll bet if you asked one million people “what is a freedom lifestyle”, you would get one million different answers. The RV is my symbol of freedom. The ability to wake up and go wherever and whenever I want. Being in nature and surrounding myself with beauty and simplicity. Perfection!
No more having to “be” somewhere at 8:00 am every morning. Then, sitting there “doing” things that didn’t seem to make any sense or have much purpose. Living for the weekend that always went by too fast.
I was basically trading my time for a paycheck.
I eventually woke up to the realization that I could spend that exact amount of time (the most precious thing we all have) doing things that I love doing and making money at the same time. I didn’t have to trade my time for a paycheck.
Not to get too heavy here but losing people close to me at a young age helped me realize this quickly. My mother, younger brother and the love of my life all died at a young age. It gave me a certain sense of urgency to spend my time doing things I love and not what was expected of me by someone else.
Define Your Freedom Lifestyle
What does a freedom lifestyle look like to you?
Is it financial freedom? Freedom to travel and work from anywhere? Freedom to build your own business and have multiple streams of income?
Or, is it having the freedom to walk outside and refill the hummingbird feeder? I just did that so that’s why it’s on my mind. 🙂
Where would you live if you could live anywhere? And, why aren’t you living there right now? Other people are living there so it’s possible for people to live there. What’s holding you back?
What would your perfect daily routine look like? I start mine drinking coffee by the water…wherever I am…I find water. Then, I go on a hike or do some exercising. Eat breakfast. Then, start writing or blogging or creating a new website. Or, I do work on one of my client’s websites.
I don’t have to be somewhere just to be somewhere. I’m running the show. I have the freedom to spend my time the way I want to and I’m doing it with intent.
Do Things With Intent
Since embarking on my freedom lifestyle, everything (well, almost everything) that I do every day is with intent and purpose.
Since I am working on my own online business and other income streams, my days are filled with lots of activities. But, they are activities that are going to get me to my next goal and they are things I love doing.
Most of us are all very busy. Stop and think about how you spend your time each day. Commuting to work? Sitting in meetings where decisions get moved to another meeting? Scrolling through social media? Watching Netflix or some other program? Going to a job you hate and doing just enough to not get fired?
These are all things that keep us busy but don’t move us closer to a freedom lifestyle or a lifestyle where you can create multiple streams of income.
If you can break free of some of these “time addictions”, you can focus you energy and activities on creating the lifestyle you want. Do everything with intent.
Financing Your Freedom Lifestyle
Keep in mind that you will be building a business that will allow you to have the freedom to do what you want to do and what you love. It may be an online business built around a hobby or a passion. Or, maybe you’ll do consulting or freelance work based on a particular skill set you have.
There are many reputable programs out there that will help guide you in the direction you want to go. Setting up a consulting business or doing freelance work in your area of expertise is probably the quickest way to get up and running.
I work with a group called Wealthy Affiliate that provided all the training and resources I needed to learn how to build a website and an online business that makes money. I also use my website building skills to design and build websites for small businesses in my town.
This freedom lifestyle thing sounds really good but how do you finance it? I remember how scary that was for me when I thought about leaving my good paying corporate career and work for myself. The answer to this question is going to be unique to your financial situation. There is no one-size-fits-all here.
Most experts recommend if you are going to start any kind of new business, you should have money set aside for at least 6 months worth of expenses. That would include rent/mortgage, car, gas, food, utilities, and everything else you spend money on each month.
This, of course, is if you’re planning on quitting your job and working on your new freedom lifestyle full-time.
If you don’t have that kind of money stashed away right now, you may want to consider starting out building your freedom business part-time and let your employer pay the expenses until your business starts earning some money.
It’s a Paradigm Shift
If you want to claim your freedom and live life on your terms, you must acquire the ability to control your time. There is no better way to create the ability to manage your time than to be self-employed.
If you have always worked for others, then being self-employed could be a scary proposition, but it doesn’t have to be.
It is going to take a paradigm shift. You need to change how you look at the “contract” between you and your employer. In the employee/employer relationship, you are providing your services to your employer. You are the business and the employer is the client.
But, what if your employer decides to “end” the relationship? If you lose the only client you have (your employer) you’re in trouble. That is the reason most people let the company dictate to them what they can or cannot do.
So, now you’ll be taking your skills (or acquiring new ones) and will have many clients and many streams of income. You’ll be doing work you love and will be doing it for you. And, you’ll be building wealth while you’re at it.
If you have time, check out this video below on changing your paradigm. I love this.
The Time is Now
I’ve talked a lot about “time” in this post. Reclaiming your time. Spending time on what you love doing. Time is the most precious thing we have. It’s even more precious than money.
So, what are you waiting for? It’s time to take control of your time. Start putting together a plan on how you’re going to quit your job and create your freedom lifestyle.
I would be more than happy to support you in your freedom lifestyle journey. Please leave a message in the comment section below and I’ll get right back to you.
I think we all dream of the freedom to do what we want, when we want to do it and like yourself, I’ve always thought of having an RV and travelling wherever the wind took me. Now many years later I have enjoyed that freedom of travelling around Australia for three years stopping where I wanted and enjoying people of all ages. It’s truly worth the effort and change in mindset from working for others. Wishing you a great journey.
That sounds wonderful, Lily. Is sounds like you’re living the freedom lifestyle for sure. I’ve never been to Australia but it’s on my bucket list. Thanks for sharing your journey.