Recognize that while happiness is a fleeting emotion, contentment is a more durable state; therefore, aim for contentment in your financial and life goals rather than solely chasing temporary happiness.
To achieve contentment, manage your expectations with as much emphasis as you place on growing your net worth or income, as failing to do so will prevent you from ever feeling like you have enough.
Shift your focus from using money to gain attention or social climbing to using it primarily for independence, allowing you the flexibility to make choices about your job, location, and life without external pressures.
View saving money as “buying independence” or “independence tokens,” creating a financial cushion that provides flexibility and oxygen to deal with inevitable life challenges like job loss, illness, or major changes.
Focus on developing “eulogy virtues” like kindness, helpfulness, and positive contributions to your community, rather than “resume virtues” like salary or net worth, as these are what truly matter and will be remembered.
Cultivate a well-calibrated sense of future regret by considering how today’s decisions will be viewed 10, 20, or 30 years from now, and avoid actions that front-load pleasure at the expense of your future self.
When making purchases, prioritize utility and genuine benefit to your life and family over items bought solely for perceived status or to impress others, as the latter often leads to dissatisfaction.
Combat envy by internalizing your goals and aspirations, confining them to your own life and family rather than outsourcing your definition of success to what others have, which is an unwinnable game.
Keep your social circle small and be choosy about who you socialize with, especially maintaining friends and spouses from before significant financial changes, as this helps keep expectations in check and fosters contentment.
Embrace scarcity by introducing luxuries in small doses, as constant exposure to luxury makes it the norm and diminishes appreciation, whereas rarity makes experiences feel amazing.
Become a deeper student of history to understand how much life has improved, fostering gratitude for modern conveniences and advancements that even the richest people of the past lacked.
Recognize that financial decisions are not purely rational spreadsheet endeavors but also deeply emotional and tied to life milestones; aim to be reasonable, balancing logical calculations with your heart’s desires and psychological needs.
Do not let financial roles like “I am a saver” become a fixed identity, as this can prevent rational decision-making later in life, such as spending saved money responsibly in retirement.
Develop a personalized spending approach where you spend significantly more on things you genuinely value and less on things you don’t, rather than conforming to societal norms or average spending patterns.
Adopt the philosophy that “all behavior makes sense with enough information” to avoid judging others’ spending or financial choices, recognizing that there’s often a deeper story or psychological scar behind their actions.
Realize that people overestimate the attention and social status gained from material possessions, as others are generally thinking about themselves and not paying as much attention to your belongings as you imagine.
When people admire your possessions, understand that they are usually imagining themselves with that item, not conferring glory upon you, reinforcing that seeking status through material goods is often futile.
Focus on creating authentic positive memories, understanding that the best memories often come from experiences not tied to high financial cost or performative reasons, but from genuine joy and connection, like carefree high school years or early parenthood.
If you are already an unhappy or depressed person, recognize that simply earning more money is unlikely to solve your underlying issues and may even lead to despair if hope for financial solutions is exhausted.
For improved financial outcomes, especially for young people, check your bank account daily for 10 seconds to increase awareness of inflows and outflows, as lack of awareness is a major cause of poor financial decisions.
Teach children about money by leading through example and being mindful that they are always observing your financial behaviors and comments, rather than through explicit lectures, which teenagers may rebel against.
Educate young people not just on financial management, but also on what money cannot buy, such as love, job skills, humor, or wisdom, to prevent them from seeing money as the sole solution to gaining admiration or self-worth.
Recognize that talent and worth are not synonymous with net worth or income; the more financially fortunate you are, the nicer and more open-minded you should be to people from all walks of life, understanding that everyone has value to add.
Utilize individual or couples therapy to help determine what you want in your romantic life, identify what feels heavy, and learn how to take pressure off yourself, especially during times like February which emphasize relationships.
Don’t assume heart health is fine just because cholesterol looks normal; specifically ask for critical markers like lipoprotein A to get tested, as they are often overlooked.
Utilize services like Function Health to access 160+ lab tests annually, including advanced markers for heart health, inflammation, stress, hormones, and toxins, to make health decisions based on real insights rather than guessing.
Interact with money as a neutral tool to boost and bolster your happiness, rather than letting it sap your well-being or using it solely as a status yardstick.