Practicality isn’t always a bad thing, but I was raised in a strictly practical home. Most life decisions were made based on their practical implications. How much return on investment does something have? How much money do we save by doing X instead of Y? Desires and wants were never considered. Through my experience, I’ve learned to always second guess a practical decision, and here’s why.

1. You Will Eventually Die – Do you think about that when you’re making a decision. Let’s say you save a dollar now; how does that matter in the grand scheme of things? Are you developing a habit that will save you $1 million dollars? If not, then maybe you should spend your time worrying about something other than that dollar since you only have a short time on this planet.

2. Practicality Prioritizes Things for You – In any practical outlook, priorities are implicit. Certain things are already deemed important, and by definition then, certain other things are deemed not as important. You should be the one making your priorities for yourself. Family, emotional well being, health, your relationship, and other things may get left by the wayside if you’re focusing strictly on the practical thing to do.

3. The Cool Factor – It matters much more than it used to. How many impractical things do people purchase because they’re cool? If you’re an entrepreneur, practicality isn’t a huge concern for the product you’re creating. Of course, it can’t make life more difficult, but the cool factor is what makes people by the iPhone 6 plus, when really, why would you otherwise?

4. Practicality Isn’t Innovative – Even if it’s an urban legend, flying a kite into a lightning storm isn’t practical. Practicality assumes things are the way they are and tries to work within that. It doesn’t seek to change the paradigm or reinvent things. Maybe the U.S. did invent a space pen when we could’ve used a pencil, but now we have a fucking space pen! Refer back to point 3.