A college degree often symbolizes a means of reaching an income level once unattainable without the $80,000 piece of paper. For some, however, this degree can become a way to deviate from the standard life script of working into one’s 60s and retiring. Members of the FIRE (financial independence, retire early) movement believe in frugal, anti-consumerist living off a high salary to escape the working world.
Highlighted in a recent New York Times article, the FIRE movement is a community of high-earning college graduates set on accumulating enough income to retire far before the standard retirement age of 65. Often workers in either tech or financial sectors, members prioritize frugality as a life tenant to achieve their goals of becoming financially free. While the movement does have a noble message in not getting wrapped up in materialism as a means to set yourself free of economic burdens, it misses on fundamental aspects of the working experience.
The crux of the FIRE movement is to obtain a degree in college that will set one up for a high salary immediately after graduation. The problem with this is that many members of the movement will take these jobs in fields that they have no interest in whatsoever. The article in the Times portrayed a similar narrative of workers being fed up with their high-wage, but equally high-stress jobs. A pharmacist covered by the article given said of his job, “there were days when I had 12- or 14-hour shifts where I didn’t use the restroom, where I didn’t eat, because so much work was piled up on me.”
It’s not at all difficult to see why someone in that position would be dead set on retiring as quickly as possible. Because of the need for high salaries to become financially independent, many people who want the FIRE lifestyle are subjected to this type of worklife. This type of wearing work could, however, be circumvented if instead of choosing a career based on income, FIRE workers picked careers based on their interests.
An article in the Times on happiness found that work can be responsible for the overall happiness of an individual. People who were very happy tended to enjoy what they were doing, and felt successful in their jobs. Of course, jobs like this will not always be as lucrative as jobs in the FIRE movement.
The Exploratory Studies program that NC State offers is a great start for students to find careers that will bring them joy in life. Because the Exploratory Studies program is centered on choosing the right major, it is ultimately up to the student to choose a career that they will be satisfied with.
Exiting the workfield entirely also has adverse consequences on the overall wellbeing of society. As privileged members of the ivory tower, college graduates have some of the most potential to help the world become a better place. The very purpose of NC State is to “[transform] lives and provide leadership for social, economic, and technological development across North Carolina and around the world” as touted in our mission statement. A brief stint in the workforce severely limits the contributions a person can make to society.
By missing on the elements of working that make individuals happy and the positive contributions to society brought by work, the FIRE movement misses on some of the integral parts of the human experience. Instead of looking to get out of workfield as soon as possible, people should ask how to get the most out of their working experience.
