I love studies. No, not studying for a test. Iâm horrible at those. I mean surveys, asking people for their unique opinions and gathering all the results! They always fascinate me.
So as an abnormal curious college student bored on Zoom University for the 3rd semester in a row, I did just that.
I went out, onto various outlets, not physically without a mask, and asked 60 people if they know why taking care of your health is a must when you are younger.
These are the multiple choice options I gave them:
A: So you feel better when you are older
B: Donât have to deal with cancer, lung disease, addiciton, medical conseuqences, etc.
C: Donât have to deal with medical costs such as life insurance and higher costs of living
D: Donât die early
96.8% of the participants said B and 4.2% said D. Okay, that makes sense but once again, no reasoning about finances into the picture.
Even thought this study was just with a few NYU students, this resembles America. Americaâs problem with financial literacy.
Out of Control
I wonât obsess over how bad we are at teaching ourselves necessary skills in life, I will just ruminate over the fact that illnesses lead to higher costs and higher costs lead to a higher chance of debt and that inevitably leads to higher chance of stress, familial breakups and eventuallydeath.
Finances spiral into one big snowball that is hard to get out of.
We donât realize it because we think everything is separate. It isnât.
When you get a bad grade at school, if you donât re-learn what you missed, you will fail again the next time the teacher poses the question in different words. That will lead you to fall behind in school and never able to catch up forever!
Money is the center of your life whether you like it or not. We shouldnât obsess obsess over it because there is nothing we can do without it. But most of us do because we donât have a financial background to keep us grounded and at peace at night.
Iâm not talking about a degree in accounting or how to create an LBO model, Iâm saying how to invest, create a budget and not over spend. Basic things like that that most of us disregard as important until something bad happens such as a flood and we donât have home insurance so we must pay out of pocket for our expenses, which charge heftier higher fees, which inevitably leads most Americans into bankruptcy.
I donât know whatâs more shocking that 60% of Americans cannot cover a $400 unexpected out of pocket expense or that these gullible folks assume nothing bad is forbidden?
Being too optimistic is bad in any circumstance, especially finance. Itâs important to be hopeful in life that you will keep your job and be prosperous forever, but assuming you will have your job forever is like pretending you can keep banana bread cooking for forever long you want and after 2, 4 or 6 hours it will be perfectly done the same way.
As you can tell, everything stems from an understanding of knowledge. Without it, there is no way to grow, take advantage of things such as lower payments and fees and get your way in life because although life isnât fair, it sometimes can work in your favor when you have a bit more knowledge than most Americans.
That leads me to my first point.
Taking care of yourself.
#1: Health =Â Wealth
70%+ Americans are obese or overweight and over this padenmic as booze sales and comfort foods have skyrocketed, so have the scales.
I donât understand why itâs so difficult for people to stay lean. I mean, this is your chance! Youâre at home, you have extra time from commuting and are able to cook not order take out every night, whatâs the excuse?
Although your weight can be due to genetics and your environment, which in most cases it is, everything is in your control so I believe we should blame ourselves.
No harshness = no change.
But telling someone to eat and stress less, exercise and sleep more isnât going to cut it.
Well, then your health and finances will suffer.
See my family as Polacks have followed the Mediterranean, Blue-zone diet for centuries and thankfully adopted it when they came to the states as well. Itâs a diet that isnât strict, we donât even call it is a diet, itâs more of a lifestyle because anyone, any where can adopt it. No pills or restriction involved. I know, fellow Americans are upset about that part.
But seriously the easiest ways to stay lean include:
-Eat whole foods, anything that is from the ground
-Remove all processed junk and sugar including the keto processed 40 calorie bars, you know they arenât healthy
-Drink water consistently throughout the day for your skin and to remain satiated
-Sleep>Exercise, when youâre tired, you will eat more, sleep is better as it wil control your hunger cues and cortisol which are stress hormones
-Eat in a 8:16 window, 8 hours eat, 16 hours fast, not that hard if you sleep 7â9 hours per night
-Pack protein, lower on carbs but donât restrict any carbs or desserts
-MODERATION is key
-Instead of focusing on calories, focus on portion control with the size of your palm
-Make exercise a part of yoru daily routine, not a time slot to sweat
-Eat with others and slow down, you donât need tat much food to be full and live
-Just because youâre bored or tired, doesnât mean youâre hungry, follow the cues
-Get your daily dose of Vitamin D and C from the outdoors to boost mood, energy, work ethic and a multitude of other benefits
There are a lot of reasons the rest of the world is healthier than Americans. These are the most common reasons why and they all stem from the blue zone part of the world, Greece where the average life expectancy is 100 years old. The key to tech, food, love, work is moderation. If you follow that as a pillar, it will save your longevity and medical bills.
A common myth is that if you live longer, you pay more. Not necessarily. Yes, you are on earth for longer, but if you are the healthiest you can be, then your rates will be 90% lower than a teen who smokes.
Wealthy Food
Another reason Americans are the fattest and getting even bigger these days is due to workaholism, burnout and competition. Although the US can be credited for being the most innovative country in the world with incredible monopolistic companies driving and expanding our world, most of these people, guys that fill these seats that represent America are obese and fat as well.
The reason the rich have a higher chance of being fatter than the poor is not because they donât have enough money to buy organic and fresh sushi every night, they have everyone picking up, preparing, doing all their chores, errands for them so there isnât any daily activity!
The higher up the corporate latter and older you get, the more you sit, eat and sleep less. Everything doctors and our future selves want us to avoid! Going to the gym once a day and sitting for the rest of 10 hours is sabotaging your 30 minute cycling class at 5am in the first place.
Yet, the rich truly have no excuse. They have enough money to supply their whole corporation out of capital from the company standing desks, swimming pools and healthy cafeteria menus instead. People who have more money, are in fact healthier according to several studies but these people are usually not CEOs or top executives at business firms in particular. I assume this is because of the grueling hours and harsh lifestyle that one must endure. The rich use their money to their advantage and actually go to the gym, shop at Whole Foods or take the time to cook their own meals ditching the extra sodium packed drinks and appetizers at restaurants and prioritize their health before their companies so they can serve everyone better.
Your main mission in life is to take care of yourself. Working until midnight and procrastinating is the opposite of cool or efficient for your bills and team.
Wealth =Â Health?
So why does health actually mean wealth if organic food, small portions served at fancy restaurants and exercise classes arenât financially feasible for most Americans?
Most Americans arenât fat because they donât have any money. If all Americans made 100k per year, they wouldnât be eating all 3 meals at McDonalds or would they?
They still have other options too.
InStead, they could eat a cut up veggies such as carrots and a Subway sandwich which only cost a few dollars more than a double cheeseburger with fries and a shake. Plus, when you are poor why sabotage another part of your life, your mind, energy and capabilities to prosper in the future?
Food has a direct correlation to how we feel. It is fuel and nutrition. If you donât feed the car the right gasoline, it will go slower.
Yes, buying a sub might cost you a few extra bucks per month, but down the road, delaying instant gratification and projecting your life towards the future, will always certify better results as you are guaranteed to be healthier.
Medical debt is the highest source of debt for Americans.
And what does that mean in financial terms?
Well since time = money, a longer life not only provides abundance of wealth in terms of fulfillment and gratitude, it allows you to enjoy the opportunities and experiences that you spent your whole life staying healthy for and growing your wealth to see.
Why die young when you can live longer, pay less in taxes and have nothing to worry about as a 100 yr old?
The sicker you get, the more you must pay in premiums, life insurance, medicare, bigger seats, more food, hospital and home care so on and so forth.
The best investment you can take is to maximize your years on earth so you can pay less, live more and feel great!
#2: Yourself
We hear this all the time. Invest in yourself! Thereâs no better investment! I can just picture that on a billboard on the highway! But instead, the new Spiderman movie is advertised. Once again, this is what America prioritizes.
But what does that actually mean, invest in you?
Investing in yourself is as basic as taking full advantage of your noggin.
As you age, your gray matter, ironically the memory processing storage part of your brain gets smaller and smaller. You loose your precious memories of when you were a child, you canât pick up tings as fast anymore and you get slower with typing from cutting oranges! Overall, you just get more sluggish. Thatâs what old age is about.
But what if you could reverse it?
No, Iâm not talking about Botox. Instead, education!
As mentioned earlier, education is the best investment because:
-It always appreciates
-No one can take it away from you
-It will take you pales youâve never been
-It will provide you endless opportunities that you cannot buy
-It will provide you the most fufillment for having the hpes of starting a company to becoming a teacher, anything is possible with education
Donât go crazy, just start! This can take effect in reading more to going back to school to get your degree.
But hold on, before you spend $540k on a 4-year NYU degree, make sure you are putting in the right energy and studying what is necessary.
Itâs all jolly and cool to study the arts and Chinese literature, but if you want to make a living, especially in the big apple, you have to think about money unless you want to live on the street.
After all, it all comes down to financial literacy.
Having a basis of financial literacy from reading Boiled Not Fried to catching up on the news on CNBC will give you a great solid framework on how to stay financial afloat and achieve your goals because without money, like it or not, you cannot achieve what you want.
While weâre talking about degrees, here are the top five grossing fields that donât require a degree where the skyâs the limit:
-YouTuber
-Blogger
-Programmer
-Life Coach
-Online Foreign Language Teacher
-Athleit
-Cook
-Librarian
-Doorman
The number one stressor in life is financial stress. You have a choice to acknowledge that you must prioritize it or let it sit on the back burner until itâs too late. The internet can seem overwhelming but its intention is to be there for you.
Starting with prioritizing you, your health, mindset and education is your sole priority. In order to be the best version of yourself, you must be there for yourself.
Happy eating and learning, (the right way)