Budget Boy

My most expensive vice is coffee, attributing to about 2% of my yearly cost of living. From buying the almond milk to make delicious mochas, to going out and sharing a drink with friends, it adds up. Coffee is a part of my morning ritual and I love it. And I absolutely refuse to change it.

This is a fine article about living with less. A Montrealer called Jamie recorded his expenses for a year and learned he could live well on $11,000 (£6,000).

Having such data can buy you a lot of freedom and personal confidence. It could be the nudge an indentured employee needs to switch to part-time or to lower-paid, more spiritually-rewarding work.

Jamie’s budget also demonstrates the liberty that would come with Citizen’s Income. With CI, you wouldn’t need a crap job to get by. Some people think the £70 per week offered by the Green Party’s CI plan for instance wouldn’t be enough to live on. I say (and Jamie shows) it can be. If you find it’s not enough, you can still go out to earn more money but at least it would be a choice.

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