What's the Thing That Will Make You Quit Your 9-5?

Or at least consider a career change?

Author

Matt Viera
November 28, 2023

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Would you quit your job if you had $1 million in cold-hard cash?

I don't even need to think about it; I definitely would.

I wouldn't even need $1 million to quit my job.

All I would need is enough liquid assets that earned a sufficient rate of return to cover my essential expenses with a bit of leftover money for spending.

That's it.

I would no longer trade my time for money. Hard stop.

With few exceptions, we all dream of having enough money to no longer have to work a 9-5 career.

Think about it:

Who would rather spend all day in an office or cubicle than have the freedom and flexibility to pursue their passions, whatever they may be?

Who would rather spend every day in an office than spend time with and watch their children grow up?

Think of how empowering it is to wake up one day and say, "I always wanted to spend a few months in [insert dream destination]. I think I'll start making plans."

Or wake up without an alarm clock and say to yourself, "I'm going to do whatever I want to do today.”

It's not about the money.

It's about the precious commodity money represents, the thing that is time.

And that's precisely the reason why I quit practicing law: time.

And I loved practicing law. Loved it.

I loved (and still love) being an attorney. I loved litigating in New York City courtrooms. I'm fascinated by all aspects of the legal profession.

I didn't love trading my time for money for only 1 week of vacation per year.

A week of paid time off plus weekends and holidays.

It wasn't enough for me.

And the thing is, I accrued ~$220,000 in student loan debt for a law degree I don't even use.

While I don't regret walking away from the profession, I occasionally wonder where I'd be as an attorney if I didn't walk away.

I wonder if I'd be earning significantly more money than I make now.

But as fast as those thoughts enter my mind, they exit because if I had to make the choice again, 9 times out of 10, I'd make the same decision.

Over the weekend, I started to read a book (I have in my library but never made the time to read) called The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel.

If you haven't read it, much less heard of it, please pick up a copy and read it, as it needs to be at the top of everyone's reading list.

As I was reading it (late into the night), a short passage had me sit up and say to myself, "I'm not the only one."

In the book, Housel states that money's "intrinsic value…is its ability to give you control over your time."

He continues, "[m]ore [money] still means the ability to take a job with lower pay but flexible hours."

I was ~$250,000 in debt when I quit practicing law full-time.

I didn't have any financial safety net.

But in my bones, what I knew I wanted, in fact, what I needed, was more control over my time.

As I continued reading, Housel hit the nail on the head with a short story that really resonated with me:

Throughout college I wanted to be an investment banker. There was only one reason why: they made a lot of money. That was the only drive, and one I was 100% positive would make me happier once I got it.

On my first day I realized why investment bankers make a lot of money: They work longer and more controlled hours than I know humans could handle.

I lasted a month.

The hardest thing about this was that I loved the work. And I wanted to work. But doing something you love on a schedule you can't control can feel the same as doing something you hate.

Morgan Housel, The Psychology of Money

Despite my passion for law, practicing law did not allow me the control over my time I knew I needed.

Fast forward to today, the career I've been working for the past 12+ years provides ample time off, job security, and a semblance of freedom to explore life (and my passions).

There's no way I'd be able to spend a month (or more) in Europe during the summers if I was still practicing law.

While I do not have complete control over my professional schedule, I do have the time (and money) to spend my summers in Europe.

That is until I have just enough money to no longer trade my time for money.

Take a moment to reflect:

Are you trading more time than you want for the life you envision?

If so, consider what changes you could make (financially or otherwise) to gain more control over your time and, consequently, your life.

And always keep in mind:

To me, [it] has always been kind of a sad thing that we are so accustomed and attuned to just wanting to use our money … to go out and buy more stuff when we could be using it for freedom and autonomy.

To the extent that we can use money to gain independence and autonomy, that is, I think, as close as it comes to a universal want and thing that we can use money for.

Morgan Housel

Interesting reads:

You can find the collection of my favorite financial tools & resources by clicking here.

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