| So there's food, water, and shelter. You can get by as a vagabond without a stable source of these - but let's assume that particular lifestyle doesn't appeal (I've tried it. Fun for a while.). You can work, for an amount sufficient to subsist - and nothing more. A lifetime of work. You can be independently wealthy. Not much to say there. Let's say we're between 2 and 3. How do you get towards 3, if you're in 2? Realistic options, no lottery wins here. Well, you can save some of your income. Maybe that'll be enough, and maybe you'll eventually have enough to be able to rent until there's no more you. You can try to improve your income. To do that, it helps if you're mentally fit. Having a table at home to eat at; having a computer setup if you're a remote worker; a nice bookshelf; whatever. Things help. It's hard to work for years on years in material discomfort to build a retirement fund. So you own some of these things, and you rent. Every so often, perhaps every year, all of that Stuff gets bundled up. Boxed away; sent in transit. You remove shelves; buff up floors; repaint walls. Then you sit and wait for the bill from the landlord. Bugger, that's a hefty deduction. Next time, you'll be a bit smarter, I suppose. You won't drill that hole in the wall. You won't pester about the broken washing machine. The cycle continues. Maybe you alternate material discomfort. Eventually, though, you're probably going to get tired of it. Because fundamentally, you're doing all of this not because you want to, but because you have to - you can't rely on the landlord to provide you with stability. What next? |