this is my current plan, and I think the step 2 has a variety of methods to it that people fail to use.

1. acknowledging the treamill that causes you to increase your spending, but hacking it via staying 1-2 raises behind in your living standards.
2. not moving into higher income areas just because you can, where you will be a small fish in a big pond and exacerbate 1.
3. focusing on relative (zero-sum) signals of success instead of on having good experiences.
4. erroneously assuming you will always be able to make at least as much money as you currently do.
5. not taking direct/real satisfaction in having a large cushion. This can be accomplished by thinking about how many years you can get by without needing to work on your current cushion. This is easier for entrepreneurial types as it is also "how much time I can spend working on my own projects if I find a business opportunity/co-founder".
6. not setting up systems of investment where you don't even see portions of your income and/or not taking advantage of tax advantaged or employer contribution programs (roth IRA, 401k, etc)
7. not contributing to SENS :p (many years of mental alertness > few years of mental alertness)

If anyone has anything to add to this list please comment.