THE JOURNEY OF FRUGALITY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP – PART II

This post is a continuation of the previous blog post where we had calculated the monthly survival rate which one needs to pursue his or her dreams. However, what we did not mention in the previous blog was that the monthly survival rate was based on the amount that is based on perceived needs, which can be reduced with effort.

In Part I of the blog, the cash flow requirement (known as the monthly survival rate) was explained as being the numerical total of the following expenses:

-          Rent

-          Groceries

-          Medical Expenses

-          Transportation

-          Clothing

-          Utilities (gas, electricity, internet, phone)

-          Social Expenses (dinners etc.).

Now we will analyze that how much of these expenses are actually needed and how much are the expenses that are based on the social strata to which he/she belongs. The results may surprise you and you will realize that following one's dream is easier than one might think!

Let us briefly analyze each and every expense in detail and see where they can be reduced. The following is the expense wise analysis:

Rent

What is the amount you spend on rental for your home whether it is in the form of mortgage for a home or a tenancy agreement? Do you really need the space according to your family's needs or are there areas where you can reduce the rent for e.g. fewer rooms, moving to a cheaper area etc. If you can make way with the lower rent, then make that move ASAP to reduce the fixed expense load of a rental.

Groceries

What is the amount you spend on groceries? Does your grocery contain various processed or branded foods or a higher meat intake? You can reduce the expense by buying raw fruits and vegetables more and substituting meat with vegetables, which will also improve health and ultimately save health costs later.

Medical Expenses

This is an unavoidable cost and which one should ensure that the best health treatment is obtained. However, to minimize your health costs one should adopt a healthy lifestyle of a good diet and exercise regimen.

Transportation

Analyze your monthly expense in transportation expenses. What is your current mode of transport? It can be any of the following:

-          Walking,

-          Buses,

-          Taxi,

-          Rickshaw,

-          Personal Motorcycle or

-          Personal car

Try replacing your current transport modes with cheaper alternatives for e.g. if your house is near your work place try walking to work or try to use public buses (the cheapest alternative) in favor of Taxi, Rickshaws or personal automobiles. Carpooling with colleagues is also a favorable option to bring down transport costs.

Clothing

This is an area where one can save a ton! Usually we spend a lot on clothing and fashion items which we rarely use in the long term. Thus, buying clothes from Zainab Market (a great place to shop in Karachi) instead of branded outlets can save a ton of money!

Utilities (gas, electricity and telephone)

This is another area where one can save money. Analyze your family's utility requirements for e.g. are you using air conditioners a lot or are you using land-line to dial your mobile phones which can cause higher phone bills? Small changes to the lifestyle can save up on utilities for e.g. reducing air conditioning usage.

Social Expenses (dinners etc.)

This is a huge area where Pakistani society wastes most of its money.  The primary reason for this expenditure usually is to fit in and be accepted in the social circle. Analyze your expenses and see how much of it is wasted and consciously stop these expenses.

THE SOLUTION

Using the revised numbers now calculate the amount that you actually need in order to pursue other meaningful passions and not to mindlessly keep on working for the sake of lifestyle maintenance. The following table will be a good aid to see how much you can save up by changing your spending habits:

Expense type	PKR per month Currently spent	PKR per month needed for suvival	Difference (which can be saved)
Rent	XXX	XXX	XXX
Groceries	XXX	XXX	XXX
Medical Expenses	XXX	XXX	XXX
Transportation	XXX	XXX	XXX
Clothing	XXX	XXX	XXX
Utilities (gas, electricity, internet, phone)	XXX	XXX	XXX
Social Expenses (dinners etc.)	XXX	XXX	XXX
Total (monthly survival rate)	XXXX	XXXX	XXXX

Now this saved amount must be invested to ensure that a stream of cash flows is available for one to pursue his / her dream with a free mind (for a two year period as mentioned in the previous part of the blog). The following are examples of investment options to name a few:

-          Gold,

-          Silver,

-          Mutual funds,

-          Saving certificates,

-          Stocks etc.

Investments will help lock in your savings so that your long term goals can be achieved.

THE JOURNEY OF FRUGALITY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP – PART I

Once upon a time in the capitalist materialistic society of middle class Karachi was a young, innocent boy. Then that young boy grew up into a young man with dreams to follow his heart; however as time passed his dreams started being shattered like broken glass. The young man could not figure out what was wrong till he figured out the answer: he was not frugal enough and was living beyond his means.

The above anecdote is true to many people and all of us feel stuck to a humdrum routine or day job just because we do not have another mode of survival. What if I told you that there is another way out of this and that there is a way of existence that does not need a mentality of living salary to salary and that is simple living and increased savings.

The first step towards winning any war is to calculate your minimum survival rate; the following template is a good start to act as a starting guide:

Expense type	PKR per month
Rent	XXX
Groceries	XXX
Medical Expenses	XXX
Transportation	XXX
Clothing	XXX
Utilities (gas, electricity, internet, phone)	XXX
Social Expenses (dinners etc.)	XXX
Total (monthly survival rate)	XXXX

The sum of these numbers will give you your monthly survival rate. Multiply it by 24 to give you a two year buffer you need to save before pursuing your dream. The two year benchmark acts as the reasonable time period within which one work with a free mind to attain his/her dreams.

Note: The next part will analyze the aspect of needs vs. wants in calculating the numbers for the monthly survival rate.

And then there was the word

And then there was the word. There are times when we communicate through our gestures in the hope that we do not need to speak. However, one thing is for certain that words are they key to the expression of truth.

I am a prisoner of silence. I have stood by it and believed in the power of silence and I still do. I still believe that actions speak louder than words. But if my words are totally absent, the baseline comparison for my actions is minimal. Even a small action on my part will look big to me!

This is the dilemma of speaking out or to stay silent. Because at times I feel that if I speak out and fail to act on it the world will start criticizing me that even though I had made tall claims, yet I was unable to act on what I said.

Thus all of this argument leads to the true evil lurking in the back alleys of my subconscious, and that is called fear. It is only fear that prevents me from speaking out the truth. I fear the consequences such as social stigma and alienation from the society as a whole if I speak the truth out openly. However, now it is very clear that I must speak and continue to speak against any injustice I see. It is only when I can describe the injustice in detail that I can effectively take steps to counter it.

I am an ordinary man who was raised in a middle class household with the ideals that if you work hard enough you will get all your dreams. As I grew up, I came to realize how erroneous my innocent parents’ notion was. Growing up in Pakistani society I realized that unless and until you do not belong to a select clique of people, it is very difficult to succeed. Even though hard work does pay off in the end, but the route is very difficult in a corrupt nation like Pakistan.

A majority of the population is hampered in getting good education. When we enter our work lives we have to worry about bills to pay, whereas a handful of people on the other end of the economic spectrum firmly assert their hegemony over us, by securing their children's' futures through setting up big businesses for them or introducing them in their political circles.

Now, I have decided that enough is enough and that I will use the only medium of communication available to everyone: words. The word of truth will spread all over and envelop every Pakistani’s conscience to wake up.

Pakistan Zindabad!

From Data Patterns To Discovering The Path Of Love

I have always been inspired by data patterns in my life. My obsession with numbers has given me a parallel career in consulting and as a photographer in Pi Studio. To me everything looks like a set of data through which I develop patterns for my own comprehension of the world.

This has been the way I perceive things and I was comfortable with the way I operated till a few days ago. I had a mental “checklist” which I always had open through which I would judge a person. This inevitable led to me being biased as my opinions were formulated based upon my perception and data patterns.

When I was expressing my biased opinion about someone, my wife got considerably angry as she noticed that I was viewing humans as inanimate objects and this view was diminishing my humanity. When she pointed this out to me, it shook me like a thunderbolt that although I proclaimed to be a sensitive artist and even though it sounded cool to the ears, deep down inside that my dirty soul knew it was a lie.

It is then that I realized that even though we humans have predictable patterns of existence most of the time, but it is the uncertainty which surrounds us which is the beauty of humans. What makes the soul move can never by explained or predicted by any behavioral pattern. The great humanitarian Mother Teresa has beautifully summed up my predicament in this quote:

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”

 I have now realized that I also judge people on their background, race, religion and physical appearance. In my illusion of seeing the soul of someone else, I see the hidden reflection of my own soul. I hope that my habit of judging people ends and my heart becomes pure. However, the way to mastering the heart is a very tough, long arduous journey.

Getting back the inspiration to shoot!

There comes a time when any work one does feels repetitive and uninspiring. It was precisely this need and hunger for inspiration that led me to pursue photography in the first place. Over the years I have done a wide array of photo shoots and in the last few months I had been stuck in a creative rut.

Recently, taking photographs felt like routine work and I was not “feeling” my camera like I did in the past. Even though my gear has grown substantially and our studio members have increased, but I felt an unexplainable emptiness inside me. I had grown technically, but I felt that I had morphed spiritually inside.

On one such dark day I got a call from a client to shoot a family portrait. So I booked the shoot for a Saturday and set off to their house with Shumail, our Pi Studio member. I only took one continuous light, one external flash, one camera body and a couple of lenses. This was a very trimmed down version of gear we usually use for our routine shoots such as weddings which usually involve a lot of equipment and manpower.

The shoot was planned to be shot in the afternoon inside my client’s house and in its outer courtyard. The house was beautifully constructed by the Pakistani architect Mr. Ali Alam. When I reached there and started searching for frames, I felt the inspiration return back to me. The patterns of light and the beautiful architecture gave me ideas to photograph the family. The father of the children shared a great idea, thus we ended up photographing the family on the roof as well.

The family kitten "Buffon"  playing with the son's shoelaces

As I started shooting, my heart started to melt at the love and affection the family had for each other. The way their children were playfully laughing and the love the parents had for them was profoundly heartwarming. The love and laughter shared by the family melted my heart and brought back the photographer in me.

I got reminded that what photography was really about and why I had started shooting in the first place. The love which we share with other human beings as a photographer is what shooting is really about for me. Moreover, the joy of capturing the most intimate moments of humans and preserving them for future generations is the ultimate joy in shooting.