61–70 of 152 posts
I poor all the money I can into my future self. That actually does make me happy. I don't see lifestyle inflation as a good idea especially for young people.
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"Money doesn't buy happiness" is something said by either the very rich - who don't have to worry about money - or the very poor - to avoid getting even more unhappy about their situation. Having trouble paying the bills will cause stress, stress causes relational issues and whatnot. Money doesn't buy happiness, but it does help with the basics of life. Which is why a minimum wage and by extension liveable income if…
"Money doesn't buy happiness" is largely demonstrably true for most people in their current situations. The available research does not back up any large correlation - causative or not - between happiness and wealth outside of very extreme situations: If you starve, or lack shelter, money unambiguously increases average happiness substantially. Once you are fed and have somewhere to live - even if crappy - peoples ha…
I hate working for other people and my profiyltable business has allowed me to continue to work for myself.
I was happiest 15 years ago working as a raft guide and traveling the world. I had very little money then, but I was very happy. I got to do what I loved every day. I usually made two large purchases per year (the opposite of what this article suggests) - a kayak and a return ticket to my next destination. I now sit in front of a computer. Earn OK money but not enough to retire on anytime soon (I am in Spain just now…
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Getting ripped to shreds by a lion can be a genuine experience, but that doesn't mean I desire it. If you enjoy something you can buy with money, there is likewise no need to taint the experience bleak simply because it was money that enabled you to experience it. I have no doubt that money changes the attributes of a thing sometimes, but so can any other attribute, including the way you collectively simplify a set o…
Experience: A wonderful night dancing with a beautiful woman. Now add and subtract money and it's a very different experience even if everything else stayed the same. Compare walking down to the beach on a Friday afternoon after work and taking a week vacation to fly to that same beach and spending your last Friday evening walking around.
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>More money leads in almost all people to artificial value, short term superficial happiness, degradation of the soul. I could not disagree more. In the vast majority of cases, money leads to less misery. Then you just lead your life without the obsessive material thoughts so many struggle with. I do agree with your last point, though, that once you reach a certain level of stability, you should focus on either reduc…
Eh I definitely would agree with his point, everyone I know who has a net worth > 100 million USD is absolutely miserable. At that point I've noticed what those people want is a real human connection, which is impossible if others are aware of your wealth.
Family first. No matter what, your lasting real human connections are your family. If you have a clear policy for when and how you will help people out, this can go a lot smoother. My grandparents, for example; They will help with education and medical expenses directly -- which is to say you can ask for help if you need it without looking like an idiot. Otherwise, if they are interested in something you are doing or want to help out in some other way, they will offer. If they don't offer you don't ask. Some families have a more liberal policies that seem to work for them but my family is pretty large and everyone knows what everyone else is doing so this works for us.
Second, hang out with other wealthy people. If everyone has enough and are dealing with the same issues, they are less likely to focus on the money and more likely to focus on the person.
Third, there are people who are not wealthy that just don't care that much about money. If you find them and like them, keep them around (this is where things can get tricky).
I've found that most of these 'hangers on' problems are self made. A lot of wealthy people are busy and will pay to keep people they like in their life -- they are used to using money as a proxy for time and it starts bleeding into parts that maybe it shouldn't. That's when people's feelings get hurt, despite best intentions, and those real human connections evaporate, sometimes very painfully. But as long as people don't tiptoe around issues these things can be handled.
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Experience: A wonderful night dancing with a beautiful woman. Now add and subtract money and it's a very different experience even if everything else stayed the same. Compare walking down to the beach on a Friday afternoon after work and taking a week vacation to fly to that same beach and spending your last Friday evening walking around.
Experience: being a woman people have call beautiful; experiencing wondering whether I am persistently being evaluated on a superficial characteristic. We all can draw abstract lines in the sand and overgeneralize to have opinions and make points. It doesn't mean it tells the entire story, nor does it mean it's correct forever.
Taking this back to buying experiences. IMO, there is basic expenses like buying gas or shampoo which don’t cheapen things. But the further extremes you go like plastic surgery or renting out a hotel not just a room you’re inherently worse off.
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The difference is that you have to fish everyday, or you starve and you can't "play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos" any more. Where as in the 15 years later version, you don't need to fish at all.
if he loves to fish that shouldn't be a problem though, thus giving him 15 extra years of peaceful life i know, he could get injured and not be able to fish, but on that note, in 15 years he could find out he has cancer and not be able to enjoy his money
Money is the most tricky thing men will ever face. Not talking about extreme poverty here, the following is what I've learned: More money leads in almost all people to artificial value, short term superficial happiness, degradation of the soul. On the outside it looks great and shiny, but on the inside the soul starves and craves true happiness. Unfortunately, most rich people react unconsciously by spending more and…
Saying it can only lead to a superficial happiness and degradation of the soul is a pompous first-year philosophy student's masturbatory pretension.