Investigating Rigorous Frugality With Mr. Money Mustache

Mr. Money Mustache is a one of kind guy who runs a blog specializing in “financial freedom–through badassity.” His extreme devotion to practical frugality, the DIY aesthetic, and a re-using ethic has inspired many people to live a more care-free lifestyle, unburdened by much of the materialism we find around us. But as this poignant New Yorker article points out, there’s a whole lot more to it…    I want to say briefly that I think it’s very easy to fall into an echo chamber of millennial men talking about how they’re “not materialistic, [they] just want a few quality things — a good minimalist lifestyle.” Now, personally, I subscribe quite hard to that belief and I’ve lived in accordance with that idea to varying degrees of rigidity at different times in my life. However I see how it can become a near fetish and people can become manic in their pursuit for the transcendent minimalist lifestyle. Which I normally wouldn’t even bring up since I think mainstream cultures could use a little bit of a push in this direction, except that this is a place where a lot of us are attracted to quality things coupled with a minimalist aesthetic. 

This article in the New Yorker struck me as a thoughtful meditation on the realities of adhering to a minimalist lifestyle in the modern era and how one man chooses to navigate those difficult decisions for himself and his family. I was inspired by his ideas and his fortitude, while it also made me re-evaluate the imporantance of “minimalism” and frugality. I’d love to hear some thoughts from those of you that check out the article or from those of you who are more familiar with the Mr. Money Mustache website.

Here is the link to the New Yorker article.