If you ask your friends and colleagues, you'll probably notice that many among them plan to start their own business someday. Why didn't they make the leap yet? Because they cannot afford it: they are stuck.

Most people, when they get a stable job and develop their career, they upgrade their material life to match their revenues: mortgaged house, financed car, various services, and so on. When they get their salary, most of it is already spent, and they can save only a small portion of it.

Starting a business requires time and money. Consider what would happen if they left their job to start their dream business. Most of their expenses cannot be easily downsized. Daily expenses will eat into their savings right away, and every month without revenues will obliterate several months of savings. Moreover, it is very difficult to change years of spending habit toward a less costly lifestyle. Additionally, it's not just about time and money, it's also about the emotional cost of "downgrading" material life, and how it may be (wrongly) perceived by family and friends.

The cost of entrepreneurial freedom is to live a life where you can afford spending time and money to try an idea without drowning into debt or flushing your life savings. It is easier said than done, of course. Even when making serious money, entrepreneurs have to refrain from upgrading their material life. Don't get me wrong, entrepreneurs can live quite comfortably, but it requires constant cost-consciousness.

Entrepreneurial freedom is invaluable for me. I'd rather have the opportunity to test a business idea for 3 or 6 months without the risk of sinking my ship than to have the last big BMW on a 1200$ monthly lease. Of course, having both wouldn't hurt.

Oh, and taking some distance with first-degree consumerism is a good idea, too. It allows focusing on things that make us genuinely happy.