After that initial rush, it’s back to normal. Consider how going to expensive restaurants, watching movies on a bigger TVs, or moving into a larger home would make you happy only for a while. People who make a lot of money too soon such as entrepreneurs or lottery winners usually end up increasing their standard of living. Luxury lifestyle and the hedonic adaptation Better to have more food than less food, right? It might also be related to our evolutionary instinct of hoarding food for the rainy days. Money is perhaps the best proxy for this permanence that we desire. They are inherent afraid of their mortality and subconsciously or otherwise, will do anything that assures them of a meaningful, comfortable existence. I feel there is an irrational attraction which humans have for security. And there’s always medical and disability insurance to take care of this scenario. However, I can bet that this life-saving amount would be much lesser than what most people aspire for to “save”. It’s true that having money is a good thing, and that if you happen to afford good (and probably expensive) medical treatment, chances of you surviving a crash might be higher. A bus could run over you tomorrow, and no amount money could save you if you were destined to die. Except that rarely anyone defines “enough” and no body ever is really safe. With enough money in the bank, they will feel safe. When will this future arrive, they don’t know. All this hard work is for the future, though. Isn’t it funny that one first works hard to earn some money, and then worries constantly about not having it anymore? This insecurity keeps even the richest people actively working to make even more money, while they sweat away their only life, working extremely hard while deprioritizing their friends / families (which of course they will regret at their deathbeds). The other aspect is the constant worry of losing it all. Keeping the things you own in a good condition and actively managing and cleaning them is one aspect. I would certainly be not happier if the entire day I worry about my new scratch-less Porsche, my next investment or whether my portfolio is currently showing positive or negative returns.Ī life spent mostly hoarding money and possessions is a wasted life ![]() I firmly believe that material possessions may end up owning my life rather than I owning them. ![]() Now I know what matters and what doesn’t. That attitude has lingered on to the present day. Even though, in my childhood, I always got whatever I wanted, the truth is that I never wanted big, expensive toys. I was taught to value money (which I thoroughly appreciate). I have grown up in a typical middle-class household where one is rightly nurtured into not being extravagant. However, more than the money, what fascinates me is the nature of money, its ubiquity and how our behavior gets unknowingly influenced by it. Though there must be many thousands of people who have enormously more money than me, I consider myself lucky to have more than I need right now. Having quite a bit of it is simply a fact. There’s no shame or pride in admitting that. ![]() As the founder of a profitable software company, I happen to make more money than most office-goers of my age.
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