Money and a good life

“Money makes the world go round”. We all know from the elementary geography classes, that that is not true. The world goes round and it has always been going round before the discovery of money, and will continue going round even if all the world currencies were to catch flu and die. Well, this may sound pretty obvious to some people, but you will be shocked if you were to look at the number of people who live their lives as if the world literally goes round because of the dough they have in their wallets. Money by itself is obviously not a bad thing. I need money too. But just like fire, it is an excellent servant but a wicked master. If you are a slave to money, your life sucks – no matter how many times we see you on TV talking about wealth and stuff. So how should we relate with money if we are to enjoy its benefits while at the same time keeping clear of its dangerous side?

1. Don’t Work for money, work for what it can buy

As we get used to the working world, we start think of the good things about money. Sometime, all we think about is all the great things that money can do for us. When we reach a point where we think that everybody should bow to us because we have so much money, then we loose the concept of a good life. This is why: money by itself has totally no value. Its value is only derived from the value that other people have on it. If you are left alone in an island, with direct access to your bank account, you are not any better than the pauper that you are with. You can’t eat it, you cannot wear it and it has totally no value of its own. We must therefore look for the things that we need. Sometimes, these things can be found through having money and sometimes not. We should always learn to tell

2. Don’t let money spoil your relationships

Life is pretty funny. No matter how much money you have, there comes a time when you feel that it is not as important as what you thought. If you have ever lacked food because you lacked money, you know the kind of appetite that you have as a result. It is usually too strong for you. You pass food shops and you just want to be rich immediately. When you get the money, you lose the appetite and all you can take is an orange: what am I saying is this: do not sacrifice your relationships just for money. There will come a time when money won’t have any value to you.

I have come to know that these two things are some of the reasons why some people with so much wealth are some of the most miserable on earth. Don’t bow down to money, let it obey you.