Assimilation - Being Socially Acceptable

Just as organizations have PR divisions dedicated to making sure the organization presents a socially acceptable image to the public, so too I am starting to believe that an individual needs to do the same.

For example, I do not make it a secret on this blog that I would love to one day save enough money so that I can live off my savings. I have found that if I tell people this, I come off as lazy. Maybe I am lazy. I certainly don't enjoy working. I believe that deep down everyone values laziness and idleness but for some reason there is a social expectation that you must be busy and you must work (read In Praise of Idleness). Certainly if everyone were to stop work, society would not function. Who would grow the food we buy to eat to survive? In terms of ensuring society continues to function, people need to work, but it's a question of degrees. That is, do most of us work too much? Is social expectation excessive? All you need is a small house in the country to put a roof over your head and a bit of savings to ensure you can afford to buy food for the rest of your life. But why is it that people think they need more than food and raiment? Why is it that people think you need to get married, have children, get a mortgage to buy a mansion, get a luxury car, and go on an overseas holiday every year? Instead of enslaving yourself for four to five years, you're enslaving yourself for forty to fifty years.

I have found that telling others that I want to retire early not only makes me seem lazy but it also opens me up to ridicule. People also think that because I am saving up like crazy to retire early, I must have a lot of money saved up and therefore I have people asking to borrow money. The risk of outright theft, blackmail, and torture are also very real. It just makes no sense to tell anyone anything.

That is why I am keeping things secret. Instead of telling people I have savings, I tell them I am in debt. What do I do when I have enough savings to retire? I will not actually retire but will have a socially acceptable story, e.g. I will go back to university to study, but what I will actually do is study part-time and online, studying subjects I am interested in. Because I intend to study part-time and online, I should have a lot of free time to spend on leisure, as I will be retired.