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September   11th

WHAT    WOULD   LESS    LOOK    LIKE?

“Let    us  get used    to  dining  out without the crowds, to  being   a   slave   to  fewer   slaves, to  getting

clothes only    for their   real    purpose,    and to  living  in  more    modest  quarters.”

—SENECA,    ON  TRANQUILITY OF  MIND,   9.3b

he writer Stefan Zweig—known for his Stoic-esque wisdom—was at one point one of the bestselling
authors in the world, only to have his life destroyed by the rise of Hitler. It’s a sad yet timeless
rhythm of history: politicians are run out of office for taking a stand we later recognize as courageous.
Countless hardworking and prosperous couples have their money stolen by financial crooks. Someone is
accused of a crime but not vindicated until years later.
At any moment we may be toppled from our perch and made to do with less—less money, less
recognition, less access, less resources. Even the “less-es” that come with age: less mobility, less energy,
less freedom. But we can prepare for that, in some way, by familiarizing ourselves with what that might
feel like.
One way to protect yourself from the swings of fate—and from the emotional vertigo that can result—
is by living within your means now. So today, we can try to get used to having and surviving on less so
that if we are ever forced to have less, it would not be so bad.