A lecture: The virtues of Indian “frugal innovation”
Fine strategists
The typical frugalist corresponds to a person between 35 and 50 years old from the middle class. “He obtained his maturity, but did not necessarily carry out major studies,” notes Fanny Parise, anthropologist at the Lémanique Institute of Practical Theology. He has a practical and strategic mind.” This could be, for example, a small entrepreneur who has sold his company or a liberal nurse.
Aren't these just 21st century rentiers? “For a long time, individuals have reached a certain standard of living and done without work, thanks to family annuities or real estate investments,” notes the researcher. What has changed today is the positive perception we have of them: they are seen as models of sobriety.”
Although they declare that they want to free themselves from wage employment, most frugalists continue to receive an income, from the stock market for example. “Little politicized, they do not speak out against the consumer society as the waning movement would do. They use it to achieve a different way of life.” Frugalism remains “a sport of the rich,” underlines Fanny Parise. “A whole part of the population, whose entire salary is used for subsistence and not for savings or investments, cannot afford it.”
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Brief income
How is this frugal existence illustrated in concrete terms? Olivier Toublan's lifestyle has declined sharply. “We no longer have an apartment or a car. We no longer buy any electronic gadgets or designer clothes. Going out to great restaurants is also a thing of the past.” He and his wife live off their savings, which represent 10 to 15% of their former salaries saved over twenty years. They estimate that they will be able to last for around eight years.
Others, whose savings are insufficient, keep a job, but remotely and at reduced rates. Denis Rouzaud, surveying engineer and EPFL graduate, left a management position to settle in the Dominican Republic. The one who defines himself as “a digital nomad” lives there for two years with his wife, Sylvie, and his two children aged 2 and 3 and a half. He works 80% remotely and should soon increase to 40% for a semester of family travel on the Pan-American Highway. “Our income has fallen and we live with only a few suitcases, but we feel freer,” he explains.
The mid-life crisis
Lisbeth von Benedek, author of The mid-life crisis (Eyrolles 2013), recalls that the Greek origin of the word crisis means judgment, decision, change. “Among 35-50 year olds, this is a period when people realize that they are not eternal and that they must change their outlook and adjust their priorities,” explains the doctor of psychology and psychoanalysis. They take stock and ask themselves what they have accomplished in their lives and what remains to be accomplished. What is important at that moment is no longer external accomplishments, but getting to know true personal values to lead a meaningful life.” The mid-life crisis is thus a moment of change and growth.
Denis' partner, Sylvie, aged 36, resigned from her job at the Grand Conseil Vaudois. A decision which was born from awareness. “I had it all: successful graduate studies in public administration, obtaining a good position in my field, marriage, buying the house, the birth of the first baby. When my second child arrived, I told myself that we were always chasing the next step. I felt the need to focus on what I considered essential at this stage of my life, which was my young children.”
Taking the plunge in 2017 was not easy: “It took me a while to get over this decision. Success through work remains important in our society. In addition, my mother always worked and she was proud that I had a higher education.” The young woman now feels calm. “We have opened a new chapter in our lives. We want to live it to the fullest by taking advantage of our children’s first years, giving them an openness to the world and more creativity.” The couple emphasizes that this break in their career is largely compensated by the accumulated life experience.
The project company
For researcher Fanny Parise, the performance cult of the 1980s and 1990s is fading. “Since the 2000s, personal development has appeared and social success is not only linked to money or a professional career. You also succeed by having time for your family or by carrying out other projects.”
Even if frugalism and radical lifestyle changes remain epiphenomena in Western countries, the anthropologist sees it as a more general signal. That of a shift from a society of production and consumption to a society of projects. She cites the example of six French and North American frugalists based in Laos whom she follows for her research. “They have certainly left their jobs and receive a regular income, but they are not on vacation. They carry out various projects such as water purification or the restoration of a temple in Cambodia.”
Olivier Toublan did not remain idle either. Among his dreams were writing books, traveling and learning a new language. These projects have been successful so far for someone who has already written five books, traveled to around twenty countries and now masters Spanish.
Retirement at 40
Marc Pittet, 32, ideally plans to retire in eight years. An objective that involves clever calculation and a frugal daily life in which consumption is an object of reflection
“Life is a game, it’s up to you to define the rules.” This is Marc Pittet’s motto. No doubt, this thirty-year-old from French-speaking Switzerland who works in IT is convinced by the lifestyle he has adopted since 2013. “It was a period of intense work, I had a lot of clients and I wanted to to be freer, to enjoy my children, to be able to go running in the forest if I wanted to.”
Then he came up with this idea: take early retirement… very early. “I did some math and realized that by adopting a frugal lifestyle and changing the way we consume, my family and I could achieve financial independence. So, at the age of forty, or forty-five, he specifies, “to be more realistic,” Marc Pittet and his wife will probably stop working.
A Power Point to convince your wife
Because Marc Pittet convinced his wife, an executive assistant, to embark on this adventure. At first, she was a little doubtful. “I made a Power Point to explain the principle to him,” laughs the thirty-year-old. We started by doing a test, because she was afraid of the restrictions that it could imply. But she ultimately changed her mind: “She realized that this calculation allowed a certain peace of mind. Her colleagues were worried about being able to pay for their Christmas presents, she knew it wouldn't be a problem because we had planned for them in our budget.
The couple has two children under ten years old who are not aware of the parental plans, “to preserve them, because it is still a little complicated for them”. As for whether they will leave them a legacy, that remains to be seen. “What is certain is that they will be old enough to be independent when we stop, and we will have helped them to become independent.”
To achieve his goal, Marc made this calculation: Save each month 50% of the 11,000 francs that he and his wife earn and invest all these savings in ETFs, very diversified and therefore low-risk mutual funds. The goal: to save 1.2 to 1.5 million francs to then be able to live without working.
“We think about what really makes us happy”
As for savings, they are made precisely thanks to a frugal lifestyle: “We started by selling one of our two cars. We changed our TV subscription and ended up canceling it, because we never watched it. Outings are thought of differently: “You don’t go to a restaurant without thinking about it, it has to be an exceptional moment that really has value.” Marc also took up DIY to design certain pieces of furniture, and the couple saves four hundred francs per month by eating a prepared meal at lunchtime rather than purchased ones. “We think better about what we consume and what really makes us happy.”
Thanks to this lifestyle, the couple have already saved 350,000 francs and bought an apartment, an objective of their program. When we ask him if this planning is not too restrictive, he smiles: “No! the “research” aspect that this project involves fascinates me. And we ask ourselves fewer questions from day to day, when we receive an invoice we don't worry, because it was planned. I want to deconstruct the idea that this lifestyle is too complex and that people realize, especially those who are unhappy in their work, that they are not necessarily stuck until the age of sixty-five. There is another option.”
Hence the creation of a blog, Mustachian Post, available in English and French, which Marc Pittet regularly updates. On the menu: story of your project, techniques for saving as much as possible, reflections on frugalism and a forum. He thus has contacts with other Swiss people, around thirty, who have the same type of project.
The “Fuck You Day”
The plan can hardly fail, explains Marc Pittet: “Mathematically I know that at some point the objective will be achieved. For me, the failure would be not having stopped before fifty years.” And once “retired”, he has no fear of being bored. He will enjoy his family and devote himself to his passion for writing, with his blog and possibly writing a book about his experience. “I also have entrepreneurial ideas and I would like to travel, live maybe half the year in Canada, go on a world tour with my wife. She also wants to do humanitarian work, which would not necessarily be viable today.”
And on the day you stop working, or “Fuck You Day”, as it is sometimes called in the small world of future young retirees, will it be a party? Marc Pittet nuance. “I feel less and less the pressure of this date and today and I would rather see myself reducing my hours than stopping overnight, I love my job. In any case, my plans for the future will have to be clear. Stopping everything and then seeing what happens seems to me to be the best way to screw up. And after “Fuck You Day” will remain controlled: “We won't be able to spend as much money as we want from that day on, we've gotten used to a rhythm of life, it will stay the same. Always in a frugal state of mind.
(Julie Eigenmann)
