As we celebrate the New Year, together with friends, families and loved ones, it is a good time to step back and think about the role that money has when it comes to our personal happiness, and the well being of our families. In our consumer driven society we have sometimes given money the wrong place in our lives. To prove that we see statistics showing that the primary reason that families do break up or argue is over money.
When is the last time you wanted something really badly and bought it? Could have been a new car, an outfit, a plasma screen TV? Do you remember how excited you were when you got it? How long did that feeling last? Money does not define a person and neither does it make one happy. When we buy material things, it may bring about temporary euphoria but it usually does not last and before long, we will need yet another item to bring about the same feeling. This continuous cycle of feeling good through material possessions then becomes an addiction. Just like a drug addict will go to extreme measures to get their fix, we also go to extreme measures such as getting into unhealthy levels of consumer debt.
I remember how excited I was when I purchased my first car. I thought I would be on “Cloud 9” forever. Soon after there was another car I wanted to have. If I look back at that time at the truly important things, the car was definitely convenient but it did not change my friends, my family and all the things that are I truly value. This is not to say that creating wealth is not a worthy goal and good for our financial stability and prosperity. When we can take control of our finances and not have them control us, we free ourselves to spend our time in more meaningful ways.
With the New Year, I encourage you to evaluate the things in your life that you do value. Place your welfare above societal pressures to keep spending money that you cannot afford. If you have financial challenges that you need to deal with in the New Year, just turn your mindset in the right direction, and do your best. Who you are and what you can do is never going to be dictated by the amount of money in the bank. The goal of getting rich is a moving target and therefore needs to be underpinned by your own values. There are many people who would be referred to as wealthy and never knew where money was going to come from when they were starting out, but had a purpose they were working towards.
When you are using money to live life according to someone else’s terms, surely Money has been put in the wrong context in your life. You are living for it and approval from others. Define your own true values and then set financial goals in accordance to those values. You will then truly start to live abundantly.
Waceke Nduati Omanga| waceke@centonomy.com