Welcome to Don’t Be Normal

A few years ago, my wife and I came to a conclusion during one of our daily walks around the neighborhood:  We weren’t normal.  

We noticed that many of our friends and neighbors…

…had newer, nicer cars than us.

…parked their vehicles outside every night because they had so much stuff packed into their garage they couldn’t fit a single vehicle.

…had expensive toys like go-carts, golf-cars with rims and off-road tires, boats, RVs.

…weren’t out exercising (even if that meant just going for a walk around the block)

In our work-lives, we noticed that a lot of people…

…were quick to make excuses instead of accepting blame (I’m pretty good at this, though…)

…thought making someone else look bad made them look better

…reacted like a helpless victim

None of this was particularly shocking.

But it did make all the statistics of what is ‘normal’ feel a lot closer to home.

Look at these debt stats from USA Today:

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that the median household income was $59,039 last year, so it’s easy to see why so many people feel burdened by their debt.

On the health front, the NIH reports that 2 out of 3 adults are overweight or obese.  Being overweight and/or obese is now normal.

And although it isn’t ‘normal’ yet, the increase in clinical Depression (especially among young people) and Antidepressant use is troubling.

These are not positive trends. 

We’ve established that normal is broke and overweight. Now is the time to do something different if we expect better for ourselves.

It’s easy to be defensive; to justify your decisions.  It’s even celebrated. “I’m my own person!”  “I know what’s best for my family.”

But half of American’s can’t come up with $400 in a pinch.  Most (78%) are living paycheck to paycheck.  71% are in debt.

“But it’s not your fault…” people say. “Wages have been stagnant…”

It’s time to take some responsibility.  Stop blaming someone else.

Start living with more money, more freedom, and more energy.

The Simple Solution

For finances:

1. Get on a budget
2. Get out of debt
3. Spend less money than you make
4. Save for emergencies
5. Save for retirement

For health:

1. Maintain an appropriate body weight
2. Maintain strength through exercise

Remember, simple doesn’t mean easy – which is why most people don’t do it.

We don’t exercise as much as we should, and we don’t always eat healthily – but we’re working on it.

We sometimes buy things we don’t need and probably eat-out too much.

But we have had a lot of good advice come our way that we’ve put into practice.   Dave Ramsey, The Minimalists, Tim Ferriss, Mr. Money Mustache, and Mark Sisson are some of the many ‘mentors’ we’ve had.

We’re far from perfect, but that doesn’t mean we’re not trying our best not to be normal.