// HYPOTHESIS_LOADED

Parkinson's Law states: "Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion."
The Financial Corollary: "Expenses expand to match income."

If you make $3k a month, you spend $3k. If you get a raise to $5k, you suddenly "need" a better car and nicer organic grapes.

The Experiment: Create artificial scarcity. On payday, I configured an automated transfer to send exactly 50% of my paycheck to a separate bank account I do not have the debit card for. I have to survive on the remaining half.

ACCESS_DENIED

> THE PANIC (WEEK 1)

Rent took up 60% of my new budget. That left me with... almost nothing for food, bills, and life.

[BUDGET_REFACTORING]
- Netflix ($15): CANCELLED
- Gym ($40): CANCELLED (Running outside is free)
- Spotify ($10): CANCELLED (Hello, Ads)
- Eating Out: IMPOSSIBLE
- Groceries: Pasta & Rice Only

I felt poor. I felt restricted. I panicked about how I would pay my electric bill.

> THE CLARITY (WEEK 2-3)

Hunger is a great innovator.

Observation 1: The "Little Treats" add up.
I used to grab a $4 coffee and a $12 salad daily. That's $16/day -> $480/month.
I started meal prepping burrito bowls. Cost per meal: $1.80.

Observation 2: Entertainment.
I couldn't go to the movies. So I went to the library (Free). I learned to play chess (Free). I went hiking (Free).

> THE ARTIFICIAL SCARCITY EFFECT

By Week 4, something strange happened. I wasn't suffering. I had adjusted.

I had optimized my life to fit the smaller container. And guess what? The container was big enough.

The 50% I "hid" from myself was piling up.
Month 1 Savings: $2,100.

It felt like a glitch. I had been spending that money on nothing before. Where did it go? It evaporated into "better brands" of toilet paper and "one more drink" at the bar.

> DATA_ANALYSIS

PREVIOUS SAVINGS RATE 5%
EXPERIMENT SAVINGS RATE 50%
QUALITY OF LIFE SCORE 7/10 (Missed Sushi)
STRESS LEVEL Low (Because of the safety net)

> FINAL_VERDICT

You don't need as much money as you think you do. You are just lazy with your optimization.

The moment you remove the option to spend, your brain solves the problem.

CONCLUSION: I couldn't keep doing 50% forever (one car repair would ruin me), but I settled on 30%. And I'm never going back to "mindless spending."