This post is part of a 13 money resolutions for 2013 series. You can check the first post for an updated list of the following ones.
This little house is all I need
We live in a world where we never have enough. We absolutely NEED to get a new phone every 18 months, to live in a 2500 sqft house, to change cars every two years. Spoiler alert, you don’t need all that. And the day you realize that, you will be pretty happy.
I have a $20 dumbphone, a 600sqft house, and no car. Yet, I live a very rich, happy, simple life. Why? Because I am content with what I have. If I want more, it is not because the Joneses have more. It is because my house had a leaking roof and I wanted to fix it. We had no electricity or water two months ago, and I wanted to open the tap instead of washing dishes in the lake.
Once those minor inconveniences were solved, I didn’t want more. I was happy with my little house, my patch of land, hens and vegetable garden.
I am not sure I would move if I won $1M. I would probably travel more, attend friends’ weddings or family reunions on a whim, but otherwise my lifestyle would not change much.
By being happy with what you have, you avoid many problems. Jealousy, debt, stress to pay for all those things, clutter… are a few on top of my head. Re-evaluate your life. Are you still facing a huge list of things you are unhappy about? If so, read that post on Fearless Men.
Feeling grateful and satisfied now? If you have a roof over your head and food on your plate, you should be.
Your life is all yours to live and you should be living it on your own terms. What makes you happy? 12 hours shifts to pay for lots of things or a part time job and a simple life? There are lots of shades in between and only you know the balance you want to aim for.
Some people are happy with a day job, the security of a paycheck and benefits. Other hate routine and want to start every day with uncertainty and adrenalin. It is not one size fits all. But if you are unhappy with what you have, only you can change that, and you have no excuses for not doing so.
It is not too complicated, too hard, you are perfectly able to achieve anything you SERIOUSLY put your mind to. Yes, it will take time, dedication, effort, you may fail a few times before you succeed, but you will eventually get there.
Out of that list of goals, you should eliminate whatever does not bring you true happiness. I love cooking and having a deep freezer and a blender makes me happy. I know people who own those items yet use them once a year. They bought them because ”one has to have a blender”, or ”we may use it” or ”I always wanted to try margaritas”. Well that was one expensive round of margaritas.
Be happy with what you have, only buy what bring your additional value. More value than the effort you put into earning that money.
Would $1,000 make you happy? Enter this HUGE giveaway!!
Your house looks fabulous ^_^ Compared to our ancestors all of us are living very well today. The average serf in the old feudal system couldn’t even afford to buy an ounce of silver. Even just a few generations ago our grandparents were extremely lucky to have the same quality of indoor heating, lighting, and plumbing most people have today. I’m lucky to be surrounded by so many luxuries, and what makes me happy is that I have the freedom to choose how I want to earn and spend my own money, my own way :0) I use my blender pretty regularly to make smoothies.
We are a lucky lot indeed. But marketers seem to think we need more!
I don’t think money makes me happy, I think it is more the whole having enough money to not have to go to work that makes me happy. Being able to live comfortably and to do the things I want to do.
Same here, it is the freedom money can buy.
I agree that “things” do not make us happy. Actually in my case theymake me unhappy. I fully support your simple fulfilling lifestyle and am currently moving in that direction myself!
Great journey you have ahead of you! Things take too much emotional space, living light is really great.
I enjoy having freedom to buy things when I want. It’s not that I care too much about keeping up with the Joneses, but despite being content with most things we have, there are newer things we like to buy every once in awhile.
Money buys that freedom of choice, it is a luxury to have it.
When it comes to money and happiness, I think a good starting point for me is having all our student loans paid off, having our house paid off, and having enough money in savings to cover emergencies. That would be a good starting point, since it would take a lot of stress and anxiety off the table.
That should make you feel wonderfully light!
Good post Pauline! I think a lot of it comes down to being content with what you have. Sure, new “things” might be fun for a while, but what the advertisers ( I know I am one 😉 ) won’t tell you is that the luster wears off quickly and you find yourself in a rat race to accumulate more “stuff”. That’s not a place I want to be in. I like the freedom that money gives us and usually use that freedom to save as opposed to just buy more junk.
The emotion also wears off when you are still paying for something you’re not even using anymore a few months down the road.
I love your house Pauline!
I’m completely happy living a simple life…I’d just like to do it in a warmer climate lol. Money will enable us to do that – not a lot of money as our needs are very simple.
Thank you Laura! With simple goals you should reach them in no time.
Great post! What makes me happiest when it comes to money? Security. I like the feeling of building the ability to be flexible. I never see myself stopping working…I work because I love it. But if I could quit doing the stuff I hate and only focus on the parts I like? Awesome.
Hiring out the tedious work to focus on being awesome at what you do best could be worth it since you’d be making more and able to spend more time on your core skills.
I am right there with you. I like the sense of security more than anything. Being able to do things like travel and eat good food is more important than showing off fancy things.
It is a great feeling to be able to spend on what makes you happy.
I think you should always strive for more but based on what makes you happy and what your priorities are, not what society dictates. For some people that is a huge house and for some it is to travel more and\or relax more.
Having a goal is great, but like you say, it has to be your goal, not what other people think would make you happy.
Thanks for the mention! I like your attitude on living simple and being content. Too often many chase the Joneses. When does it stop? When the problem is within the chaser it will never end until they realzie that the Joneses will always be out of reach.
No problem, your post was a great reminder that we take too much for granted.
I agree with what you’ve said, so much so that I’m currently doing a bit of a life inventory in order to figure out what would/will truly make me happy. This includes looking at the job situation and de-cluttering things, people and responsibilities that aren’t essential and don’t bring joy to my life.
Great goal! I often wonder how much of my life is really crafted by me and how much has been ”sold” to me by marketers, family, friends.. getting down to your own values is the best path.
The only time I’ve replaced a car after two years is when I’ve wrecked it. I had my Camry for 8 years and would still be driving it if it weren’t for the accident.
More power to you that you are happy in a 600 sq foot house, but I couldn’t do it. My kitchen and living room are more than that and feel cramped sometimes. (Although that is more a matter of design, than space, because there is plenty of wasted space since the rooms also act as hallways to other parts of the house).
My house is pretty optimized but we lack a living space. The kitchen table isn’t that comfortable and there are no sofas to lounge. This will be a nice addition with the roof terrace of the new room we are building but if it were a permanent home I would convert the guest room into a living room. For now, it is doing the job just fine. I have seen fantastic little houses that are so focused on every tiny detail you feel like the space is much bigger. It all comes down to finding the minimum space that will work for you.
When I was in debt, I was unhappy because the money was weighing on my shoulders. Once I got out of debt, I began to enjoy life and not worry about the money anymore. My wife is a very simple person and I love that about her. I am trying to be more like her and not worry about the material possessions.
Sounds like a great plan! Glad you embraced your wife’s philosophy. I still have to work on my BF sometimes.
Money in itself never makes me happy or happier. It may provide more security or it is a reward for success, but it won’t make me happy. Lack of it though will make me very unhappy or stressed. It is easier to feel this way since I already accumulated a lot, but I always looked at money more as a score card on how well I am doing.
I feel the same, money is a nice safety cushion and not much more.
“To be content is to be the richest man on earth.” – SavvyScot 15/01/13 😀
I am with you on this one Pauline… You are certainly richer than almost everyone I know. 🙂
thanks for the kind words SS!
Amen sister!!! I have so much to say about that very thing which pertains to me right at this very moment!
inspiration for a post? 🙂
Good post. I’m happy with the life and things I have. More money doesn’t equal more happiness to me, but the time and freedom that can be had from being financially independent would make me happier than any physical possessions.
Freedom is priceless!
I have to say, I was not at all prepared for where this post was going. As you might remember, I have a slight problem with people telling me to just “be happy”, emotionally, because for a lot of us, it’s not that easy. However, I love that you reference being happy with what you have instead of focusing on the things you don’t have. It’s such an important thing to remember.
I’m right there with you on only bringing things into my life that enrich it rather than take away from it. As cruel as it sounds, that includes people.
I am not all rainbows and unicorns either, and think you can be happy without jumping everywhere and hugging everyone crossing your path. Maybe content is a better choice of words. Getting rid of toxic people certainly helps keeping your own little world safe and the way you like it. I am thankful for international moves that make it much easier!
Taking trips with my family, either far or close by, is what really makes me happy. I also love our little corner of the world and our dysfunctional dogs. You are right that it isn’t about what you have but how you enjoy it.
Yes, it is just a state of mind. I think it snowballs too and you can improve or ruin things big time.
It’s funny how it can seem so hard to be happy when often, the things that make us happy are the smallest ones. One of my strangest happy moments during the day: Walking from the bus stop up into work. My workplace is on a bit of a hill, surrounded by trees and a beautiful view. On a clear, bright day, it’s refreshing and quite peaceful.
Oh, I thought you were happy to go to work ;). I am not a super happy kind of person but do find happiness in savoring small pleasures.
I think you have it absolutely right. For me money brings independence and freedom. Not material satisfaction. But you don’t need a lot of money to achieve that. Just enough to cover essential living expenses. Thats the only target im focussed on for my passive income
Great goal, that you should reach in no time instead of working for 40 years to pay for more than you need.
learning to be happy with what we have is the single biggest change that michelle and i have undergone this year.. and it has made all of the difference.. taking away the constant desire to “upgrade”, just takes a lot of frivilous spending out of your life.
That is a great progress Jefferson. Dreaming big is fine as long as you need big but most of the time, having enough is just fine.
Things money buys doesn’t make me happy, but i do appreciate the security that money can bring when you have some saved up. Great post!
Thanks Mandy! Same here, I appreciate the peace it brings me to know there will be food on the table and bills will be paid.
So, so lovely. The key to happiness, I’d say! Though I feel like I need to get defensive about my blender.
sorry!
“buy what brings value” yes, yes, yes! So simple and so well said. Why are most people running around like chickens with their heads cut off trying to keep up with society’s expectations? The less you have the more you appreciate the things you do have.
That is true, having less makes you value every item more.
The funniest thing, before I read this post I was just telling Mrs.CBB when we were out for a walk today about you and your simplistic life and what you both had. Mrs.CBB asked me questions about your life in Guatamala and what it is you do. It was exciting to tell her what I know but she told me that “people don’t NEED what they think they do” to be happy. Money doesn’t define us, it just helps us sleep better at night. Love your little house mate, my UK house was 600 sq ft and did me fine for many years..
Looks like Mrs CBB and I would get along great! I guess it is a luxury to have to choice to voluntarily reduce life possessions and simplify life altogether but I would recommend it to anyone. Having too much is only adding trouble on top. You have to pay, care for, worry about and maintain all those things and your life isn’t necessarily better.
Hello Pauline,
I had a dream like yours, I had no dreams with money but a simple house, a pool in front of that house, pump tress around my house ~~~ leading a normal , happy life in my village. But now a days, these dreams remain in dreams. Now every where needs money.
It is difficult to find out someone who is happy with what they have. People want more and more…….
I love your life style and also your house as it was similar to my dream.
Thank you Lorillia, good luck with achieving your dream!