So you told your close friend/mother/distant relative/cat that you want to Get Rich yet they shot you down. They gave you the age-old “money can’t buy happiness” spiel, right?
Would you like a quick fix? Here goes:
Irrational skeptic: “Money cannot buy happiness!”
Me: “Neither can poverty.”
Boom! That ends it right there.
People who have never acquired wealth often try to glorify the lack of riches on moral grounds or by giving you some anecdote of a rich person who was sad versus a poor person who was happy, as if individual cases were going to inform your future.
Here’s another line I like to use when people get into the whole “rich is evil” line of reasoning:
Irrational skeptic: “Money isn’t everything. I am perfectly happy and I’m no millionaire!”
Me: “Do you ever buy a lottery ticket?”
*Awkward Silence*
In my experience, the people who demonize wealth are often the same people who spend the most on lottery tickets because they believe that to Get Rich involves some stroke of luck. For someone who never achieved riches, it is easier for them to believe it wasn’t their fault because they never got lucky. Those who have gotten rich understand that it’s about doing things in life in a certain way. It’s about working hard, capitalizing on opportunities, investing regularly, finding your why and other ideas we will share with you on this website.
The reality is that on the road to wealth, you will face far more nonbelievers than supporters. Anyone who hasn’t achieved something will have something to say about how hard it is to do. They try to make their shortcomings reflect on your potential. Remember this: If someone has never achieved wealth, why would you take their opinion or advice on what it entails?
Getting Rich isn’t an accident and it does not involve forsaking happiness.
The reality is that things in this world cost money. I’ve been to the movie theatre hundreds of times in my life. It’s something I really enjoy despite the inflated cost at the canteen, though I confess to smuggling a bottle of water in every now and then to save a few dollars (I’m not sure if that’s cheap or frugal). Anyhow, to date they’ve never let me in for free*. So, for me to do this particular activity that I truly love, it takes money to get the ball rolling.
In other words, for me it’s not about Getting Rich just for the hell of it or as an end in itself. The real reason to Get Rich is to give yourself the means to have control over your time and life in such a way that you can decide to spend your time the way you would like to without money restricting you.
Nine times out of ten, problems in life get exacerbated by lack of adequate funding. Paying for education, buying and living in a home, owning a vehicle… these all require money. Walking around with the notion that money is a bad thing or will cost your happiness is a poor line of thinking. In this materialistic world, you absolutely need to deal with money regardless of whether you like it or not. You might as well become master of your money since you have no choice but to use it, right?
If you believe extra cash in the bank would complicate your life, then you don’t have a money problem at all; you have a priorities problem. Money doesn’t make a good person bad anymore than it can make a bad person good, though it can certainly magnify character traits – make sure yours are positive ones.
You can be rich and happy every bit as much as you can be poor and unhappy, including any combination in between. Your satisfaction in life begins with your values and how you relate to the world. I get satisfaction from helping others realize their goals and take control of their lives. Accumulating wealth gives me greater autonomy which further allows me to spend time with the people I care about and do the things I love. Choose to be happy and rich. There is no conflict.
Thank you for reading.
– Ryan
What do you think? Has anyone ever told you that money can’t buy happiness? How did you respond?
* Except when I redeem points to get in at no cost. That said, the point system is already baked into the price in some measure so at the end of the day I am actually paying for the points that I use to get a free movie ticket (roundabout but true). There’s no free lunch**.
** Unless you’re in Vegas at select buffets and qualify.***
*** Please don’t go to Vegas. If you absolutely have to, be sure to see everything you want and get the hell out. It’s a loser’s paradise.
Pictures courtesy of pixabay.com
Should someone put aside small forms of happiness to fast track their way to wealth? If someone likes collecting baseball cards, dolls, stamps or anything can they save and also build a collection?
If someone has a real passion for collectibles and puts in the time to understand that market, it’s possible for them to actually monetize that hobby.
In terms of putting aside small forms of happiness, we believe it is important for people to ask themselves what is most important: needs or wants. Then, after determining what really matters, they can decide whether what they wanted was really making them happy.