He looks into the wallet of a management consultant: “I spend almost 80,000 francs a year.”

I come:

For my 90 percent workload, my net salary is just under 9,000 francs 13 times a year. In addition, the income from shares and investments is around 4,300 francs. This results in an income of approximately 14,000 francs. Yes, my financial situation is very good. Due to my sick leave, I do not currently receive any wages, instead I receive daily sickness benefit. As usual, this is 80 percent of the salary, that is, for me, around 7,200 francs.

My expenses:

Residence: I have been living with a common partner in a 4.5-room flat in a suburb of Zurich for twelve years. 1,500 francs for my share of the rent, including parking space and all additional expenses; together we pay just under 3,000 francs. I think this is cheap. The apartment is beautiful with a large roof terrace and river views. We are the new and first buyers.

Subscriptions and streaming: 95 francs for mobile phones, internet and Netflix.

Insurance: The usual: household items, liability, legal protection, car. The monthly total is around 200 francs, the largest part of which consists of car insurance.

Health: I have general insurance, lowest deductible, no additional insurance. This means a health insurance premium of 360 francs per month. Last year, 2,700 francs were added to exemptions and exemptions. I have been healthy my whole life, I exercise, eat a balanced diet and enjoy being in nature. But everything has changed since last summer. I don’t know where chronic fatigue syndrome comes from. Maybe it is a result of Covid disease. I’m constantly exhausted, even everyday things like taking a shower often feel like too much.

House: Good food is dear to me, I love to cook and buy almost exclusively organic products. It’s still not too expensive for me since I’ve been vegan for three years. I sometimes spent 300 francs on my weekly purchases, but today I spend less than half that. Although my financial situation is very good, I feel that my lifestyle is not exorbitant. I spend about 1000 francs a month on household expenses, including eating out, clothes and shoes.

For example, my TV is 15 years old and I will wear my socks until they wear out. Yes, I have custom shirts, but they last for years. I think it’s important to use something for a long time. My family in Germany comes from the post-war generation, my grandmother emigrated with my mother from East Prussia to West Germany with nothing. This gets you into the mindset that maybe you need to take care of things and take care of your money, even if you don’t have to.

Celebration: I don’t fly anymore because of climate policy. Most of the time he goes to Italy, France or Germany to visit relatives and friends. Expensive hotels don’t mean much to me. I know him from business trips, but privately I prefer his down-to-earth approach. I prefer to go hiking and stay in good mid-range hotels. My expenses for holidays and weekend trips amount to about 3,600 francs a year, excluding car travel costs. The money left over for leisure expenses, about 2,400 francs a year or 200 francs a month, is rarely spent on visits to restaurants or the occasional cinema.

Mobility: My car is the biggest luxury I can afford. About two years ago I bought a Tesla Model 3, which cost 55,000 francs. If you take into account the depreciation, the maintenance, repairs and electricity of the car amount to a good figure of 1,000 francs per month. That’s too much. GA would be much cheaper. But I love the freedom the car gives me. But I also take buses and trains and, like every Swiss, I have a half-fare card.

Direction: Last year I paid 18,000 francs in taxes. This year it will be even less as income decreases due to illness.

Private pension service: Every year I pay the maximum amount to the third column, currently 7,000 francs which is a good figure.

Save: I can put a lot on the page. If I add the income from my stocks and investments to my income and subtract expenses, I have almost 6,700 francs a month. I’m reinvesting this money into stocks and real estate. I have saved almost a million francs, including the pension fund and the third column. I save for financial freedom. I love my job, I have a great boss and great colleagues. But if that’s not true anymore, I want to be able to say at any moment: “Guys, that’s it, now I’m going to do something different.” In the future, I want to work part-time as a hiking guide and reduce my workload to 60 percent. But first I need to get healthy.

My biggest bad investment: In my mid-thirties I tried self-employment. In financial terms, this was “a drain down the toilet.” Taking into account the loss of earnings, it cost me around 150,000 francs. I didn’t sleep well and I thought a lot. But I also learned a lot. About me, about freedom. That’s why I don’t regret taking this step. I failed successfully, I say.

Here’s how I feel: I am extremely privileged. I have everything I want financially. You can’t buy health. Money doesn’t make you happy, I’m convinced of that. But no money will make you unhappy, I know that. Sometimes I ask myself: Why do I make so much money doing a few PowerPoint presentations, while others who do much more important things don’t have enough money to get by? Inequality in society worries me. It puts democracy in danger. You can see where this could lead in Germany with the emergence of the AfD. The situation is better in Switzerland, but we also need to ensure that society stays together and everyone is included.

* Name changed

by Raphael Brunner