To be happy, should a person wait till he becomes rich and wealthy?

Happy is a state of being, and like every state, it’s largely something we have control over, due to our habits and attitudes. For some people, happiness is a feeling that comes from wealth. But that’s not all it has to be. To some, happiness comes after they spend time with family, or work on something that is important to them, such as a hobby or art project. None of these things are exclusive or innate to certain people. They can all be learned, copied over, just like apps on a phone.

In short, there is no common definition of happiness. That means it’s up to every person to decide what makes them happy. Most people, particularly in the western world, have decided that their happiness is primarily driven by material gains and losses. More money than last week = happy, less than last week = unhappy. But that is entirely their choice, and when it comes to choices, I will always push people into making better, more sustainable ones, which leave them better off in the long run. That includes basing their emotional states on something other than one’s wealth and monetary status.

Put simply, not caring too much about money is actually a prerequisite to being happy in general, and ultimately getting more out of life, including more money. Let’s discuss why.

There’s no denying that having more money feels good. With money, one can buy materialistic comforts and can be happy with them. Even the sight of a greater number in your bank account, without actually having anything new to buy, gives a feeling of security and that perhaps more good opportunities are on the way.

But that happiness is not permanent. In fact, it lasts far less than we typically expect it to. Soon enough, we’re back to fussing over money, protectively worrying that this new amount might lower back to what it was earlier.

In my view, happiness comes from enjoying the most minute things in life, and as much of them as possible. Nothing annoys me more than people who can’t enjoy the basics, who pick apart everything and have to keep up with the Joneses. . We all constantly compare things to other things, especially ourselves to other people, and all for no good reason.

It’s everyone’s desire to be rich, including mine. But putting off happiness while waiting for any kind of life goal is a bad idea, both for your general well-being and forever reaching that thing you predicate your happiness upon.

Getting rich is pretty hard, that’s the truth. Leaving aside exceptions, making more money always requires compromises and personal development. Then, to retain that wealth requires great self-control. It’s a fact when someone gets rich, he/she almost immediately declares that their new normal, and then desires to be richer. Well, that’s the power of money. It’s intoxicating.

I don’t know about you, but if I’m going to deal with something intoxicating, I want to be in a positive state of mind, at the very least to protect myself from making wasteful or rash decisions that I may regret later. It’s been shown that the richest people in the world have a lot of self-control and are the most forward-thinking and generally optimistic.

So what do you do while working to improve your monetary status? Try to find happiness in every moment of life, including the stuff your current standard of living affords you. Along the way, keep working, keep learning, and keep improving. Waiting to be rich to get happy is just like waiting to conquer social anxiety before you start talking to people. The opposite path is how you fix the problem.

Again, I do not mean one shouldn’t get rich or desire to be. There is nothing wrong with money. But, one should not postpone happiness till being rich, or until any other goal is met. I have closely observed the lives of many rich people. It might seem strange to you, but, I have seen that being a millionaire means nothing. It’s all about the other factors in their lives. My post: The Homeless Millionaire: How Making Money Is Only Half the Battle, gives more points to this answer.

In conclusion, in order to become happy, a person shouldn’t wait until he becomes rich and wealthy.

Please feel free to reply with any questions.

Thanks,

Cleo