232 | The Curse of the Raise

There is a curse that comes with every raise.

Because beyond a basic level of income, financial freedom is only a matter of expectations.

And our expectations often change with every passing hour and every dollar spent.

In our finances, our expectations are best defined by our spending - how much do we spend, what do we spend it on, and do we expect it to continue.

If we spent $100,000 last year to live daily life - that’s the best representation of how we “expect” life to be and feel.

With $1 million, we can live that same year 10 more times.

With $500,000, we can repeat it 5 times.

Quickly, you see financial freedom is nothing more than what you expect compared to what you have.

But herein lies the curse…

Spending $20,000 of a $25,000 raise tends to turn a $100,000 lifestyle into $120,000.

And then our $1,005,000, only stretches 8.5 years for our new lifestyle expectation.

And $505,000, gets us just past 4.

And then, very truly, our much anticipated raise actually bites us in the @$$.

Don’t turn down a raise or bonus - just check yourself before you treat yourself.