Contentment - The First Financial Advice

We live in interesting times. This is the period of the greatest wealth ever created, greatest freedoms ever expressed and best standards of living ever achieved, yet we for the most part remain unsatisfied.

As our finances grow so do our needs and certain standard we have set for ourselves. Our environment also plays a role in making us feel more or less secure with the general cost of living, economic health and social structures on ground. An economy that has us providing everything for ourselves would definitely leave us wanting more, so would one that is unstable.

Be that as it may, for the most part a lot of us are able to plan our futures in the economies we find ourselves. Future plans are largely consumed with finance taking a large portion of our thoughts, and rightly so. From education to retirement plans, we become almost apprehensive about setting our finance in order.

In all of this, it is important not to lose sight of one important philosophy of money. Money remains a means to an end, and never an end in itself.

I know of nothing more despicable than the pathetic man who devotes all his work hours making money for money's sake - John Rockefeller

Becoming consumed with simply multiplying the numbers we have can seriously impede the quality of our lives. For one, we may forget to actually live it. As we all strive towards what I call 'satiation point' where we feel the money we've accumulated is somewhat sufficient for a good life, it may come at the realization that we missed out on life itself. That is if we ever get there to begin with.