The 9-to-5 Illusion: What We're Really Trading Away

Key Takeaways

It's 6:00 a.m. Another alarm. Another day of the same boring routine over and over again, slowly killing your dreams. And if you're watching this video, you probably know exactly what I'm talking about. And I'm not here to sugarcoat about how good working a 9-to-f5 job is and living the dream. Cuz let's face it, it's just not, is it? Stay with me. This might be the wakeup call that you've been waiting for. So today, we're going to dive deep into the harsh reality that 99% of people have to deal with and face every single day. And more importantly, what you can actually do about it. So before we get started, guys, please hit the like button. Please hit the subscribe button. Really helps me out. Shows me that I'm actually doing something right here. Okay? I want to ask you something and I want you to be honest with yourself here. Okay? How do you feel on Sunday evening? Because I bet if you're like me, it's not excitement for Monday morning, is it? Let's face it. Funnily enough, studies show that 81% of people have anxiety on Sunday evening. Now, that is absolutely huge. That's actually scary. They actually call it scary Sundays. I want you to think about that for a second. We've actually normalized being scared of our own lives 52 times a year. Now, that is absolutely crazy. But here's what's really messed up. We've actually conditioned ourselves to think that this is normal. We just sort of brush it off as, "Oh, this is just life. This is how it is." But what if I told you this dread that you feel isn't just about Mondays. It's your soul, your inner soul screaming, telling you that you're living the wrong life. Now, I'm quite lucky because I currently actually don't mind my 925 job. Even though my plan is still to eventually escape the 9 till5, I do know a lot of people that literally feel sick to their stomach on a Sunday evening. And they actually convince themselves that they are grateful to have a job in this current economy because it's an absolute shitow because it brings them stability. Now, to me, it sounds more like a a [ __ ] prison. Pardon my French. Now, let's talk about what's really being stolen from you, okay? And it's not just your money, it's your time. The one thing that you can never get back. Time, like I've preached this in all my videos, time is something that you can never get back. The average person spends 90,000 hours at work. That equates to 10 years of your life. 10 years. I mean, that is absolutely shocking when you think about it. And that's not even factoring in commuting, getting ready for work, you know, and the the mental toll that the stress from from work has on you on a daily basis. So, you're actually probably looking at 15 to 20 years. I mean, I don't know about you, but that's [ __ ] [ __ ] I mean, think about it. You sleep 8 hours, you work 8 hours, you probably commute, if you're anything like me, 2 hours a day. You get home, you eat your dinner, you handle your basic maintenance, life maintenance, whatever that may be. Then you've probably got two hours, three hours max in the evenings for your own personal time. So what are you really trading working your 9 to5? Well, you're trading the best years of your life, your prime, the time that you have the most energy, the most potential, and the most creativity, all for a paycheck that barely covers your lifestyle monthto month. And you'll also notice that it's got slightly lighter outside. That's because I had to cut the video short yesterday. So, it's literally like being on a hamster wheel. You know, a hamster wheel that's basically on fire and a cage that you're paying rent for. But here's where it gets really insidious. The system is designed to keep you trapped by something called golden handcuffs. You're 22. You're fresh out of college. You've got bags of energy and loads of dreams. You work for a corporate company. They offer you private health care, 401k, and four weeks paytime, holiday time a year. I mean, it sounds absolutely amazing, doesn't it? Now, fast forward 10 years. You've got a mortgage. You've got a car on finance. You've got debt. You can't afford a holiday anymore. You may may have a family. And you're [ __ ] miserable. You've got no time. You've got no energy. You can't leave your job because you've got your mortgage, you've got your bills, your car finance. You can't do anything. You're stuck. is stuck in this position. There's no way out. And if I haven't depressed you enough, here's the kicker. As your salary increases, your expenses increase. This is called lifestyle inflation. You upgrade your apartment because you need more room. So then you upgrade your car. You upgrade everything you own because you then you got to keep up with the Joneses next door. So even though you're making more money, you're not actually any freer. In fact, you're actually more trapped than you've ever been. And the worst part is the company actually knows this. And in fact, they're actually counting on it. They give you enough just to feel comfortable, but not enough to feel free and turn around and say, "You know what? [ __ ] you. I'm leaving." And so every year that passes, it becomes harder and harder to leave. Not because there's no opportunities out there. I mean, there's tons of opportunities. Your comfort zone then becomes your comfort prison. And that happens to a [ __ ] ton of people. So, let's now talk about what might actually be the most tragic part of all this. Yes, sorry. It's still being quite depressing at the moment when you're working a 9 to5 job, something that you're that just doesn't fulfill you. What happens to your creativity? You know, your potential, your reason to be a human being, the reason you're alive. Well, I'll tell you what happens to it. It's dying. Okay? And it's not a quick death. It's a very slow decay over years and years and years. Because when you're doing the same thing over and over again, something that isn't fulfilling you, all of that passion, all of that creativity, the what makes us human slowly dies within. Now, I'm sorry if this is coming across as really depressing, but I feel that it needs to be shared. You know, it needs to be you need to be able to admit this before change can happen. And I think the saddest part is most people have, you know, lost their creativity. They've lost their productivity over time. You know, when they when they were in their early 20s, they had big dreams. They had, you know, big aspirations. And now, you know, when they're in their 40s or 50s, maybe they're just they're a shell of a person. They're not the same person. So, I know so far this video has been pretty dark, okay? I apologize for that, but it needed to be said. And you're probably thinking, "God, this guy is depressing. He's totally ruined my afternoon." That's fine. I'm sorry if you if you feel like that. That's not the aim here. The aim is for you to know exactly how I feel, what I'm the message I'm trying to get across to you because that's extremely important because awareness is the first step to change. Okay? You won't solve a problem if you're not aware of it in the first place. And the truth is, you have more options and opportunities than you actually think you do. the the internet has democratized opportunities in a way that never existed 20 years ago. You can start a business, you can learn a new skill, you can do an online course, content creation, or even freelancing. And the best part is you can do it all from your laptop or even this. But here's what most people don't want to hear because it requires sacrifice. not sacrifice of your dreams, but sacrifice of your comfort. Okay? You're going to have to take risks. And people, a lot of people don't like taking risks. It's going to require a lot of effort. So, what I'll say to those people is start with this. If money wasn't an issue, what would you do? Write it down. Then ask yourself this. What's the smallest step I can take to getting towards that today? Not tomorrow. Not next week, not in 20 years, but today. Build the skills in your spare time. Create something. Create anything. It doesn't matter. You know, whether it's a blog, whether it's a SAS or digital products, you know, and if if time is an issue, I've done I've done a whole video on time management. You can watch it here or there, whichever way it appears. And most importantly, stop asking for permission of people who gave up on their dreams. Look, I'm not saying you need to quit your job tomorrow because I know for 99% of you that's not an option. But what I am saying is you you need to stop pretending that you don't have a choice. Just stop accepting a life that's making you miserable just because it's familiar. Okay. So, I think that's about it for this video now. I don't want to depress you guys any longer. So, if any of this any of the content that I've given you in this video hits home and you feel like you got some value from it, please hit the like button, hit the subscribe button. Means the world to me, you know. Drop drop a comment. Let us know your current situation and what you're doing to get out of it. I've actually really enjoyed making this video because it sort of a lot of it resonates with my current journey in life. You know, I'm still doing the 9 till5 grind, but I feel, you know, I feel like I found my calling. I've I've, you know, I started this YouTube channel. You know, I'm I'm desperate to get out of it and I want you guys to get out of it as well. I want us all to live a more fulfilling life, you know, because we only get one shot in life and it's extremely important that we live it to the max. Your dreams are waiting for you. The question is, how much longer are you going to keep them waiting? I'll see you in the next video.