Okay, so I think about money a lot.
I think it’s pretty natural to think about money every day as humans. We use money all the time. Some of us learn how to control it, and some of us let it control us.
I’m going to assume most of you reading this would agree with me. There’s a lot going on in the world right now, and I’m very grateful to still be employed with enough cash built up in case something happens. I count my blessings every day and pray for those who have lost their jobs to COVID. But, I’ve realized how much time I spend thinking about money especially in the past two months.
Everyday…
Sometimes all day….
Is there something wrong with me? Not entirely sure….I ask myself this multiple times per day. Is this harming me? It’s not that I’m worried about money, but just thinking about it and wanting to know how much I have.
I check my investment accounts multiples times per day to see how the market has been performing. I look at my checking account multiple times per day to see what money came out due to bills and making sure my direct deposits go through with my job. I check my retirement accounts a few times a week to see how my money has been performing, etc.
Yet, I still don’t know why I do this being that I have no control over my money that’s invested in the market.
I think it comes down to just knowing the money is there in my account, and watching it grow. I’ve talked to many people about this and they all have relayed to me that they do the same thing. Checking their investment accounts multiple times per day, and always thinking about the money they have.
But, why do we do this as humans?
I’ve realized that that from a young age it’s been drilled into my head to save, save, and save, and then save some more. Open a retirement account, open a brokerage account. etc. Now, don’t get me wrong here, all of those things I listed above are all great things and I encourage you to do them. I do them and have been doing them for years.
But, you see as humans we’re constantly thinking about the past and trying to predict our future. The past is the past, it’s something we can’t change. All we can do is learn from our mistakes and grow. But, the future we can create. We all have the ability to create our future in all aspects of life, especially when it comes to our financial wellness. The hardest thing for humans to do is live in the present, and be content with where we are at in life.
How does this all relate to money?
Back to my point, we’re all told to save for retirement, which is definitely a great thing like I said. We’re always thinking about the future. Stressing out that we didn’t contribute enough to our retirement plan this past year. Stressing that we don’t have enough in emergency savings, etc.
But, when do we get to enjoy life?
I once met someone who told me they’re trying to work as much as possible and save, save, and save and invest, invest and invest. They hated their job and were only thinking about retiring early. I’ve seen people do this and it’s definitely possible, but did they get to enjoy life during all this? I don’t know…..
Seriously. I have a quick story for you. My grandfather passed away when I was born. He was young, only 63 years old. Lived a great life. Enjoyed the things he loved, and spent it with the people he loved. But, he didn’t get to enjoy his retirement savings. He had money saved up that was well invested. But, he didn’t get to enjoy it. We never know when we’re going to die. This whole pandemic has made me think about life and enjoying every moment I have, even if it’s with myself. I’m not telling you to stop saving for retirement. You’ll be thankful when you get to that age and you have all this money to enjoy.
But, don’t forget to enjoy your life with the money you have now, because this current moment in life is never coming back.
Contribute to your accounts, put money towards an emergency fund, invest for retirement, etc. The forget about it. But, remember to pay yourself first and figure out what you need to spend money on to make yourself happy.
So, I think about money often, do you?