The Money Trap

The seduction of money is a cruel mistress

Money knows exactly where to poke your insecurities. It will expose your fears, what you envy, what you value and what you avoid. I once heard someone say, “Money isn’t everything, but it’s up there with oxygen.” Now that’s wisdom. It’s a suffocating truth when you’re broke. And insulting when someone with plenty tells you money doesn’t matter.

We all reach outside ourselves when something inside us hurts. Money just happens to be one of the fastest ways to make that reach feel so intoxicating.

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Every paycheck can carry the memory of not having enough. So we try to earn more. We get the bigger house, the newer car, fancier vacations etc. All of a sudden, the life you once dreamed about, starts feeling like it’s “not enough.” That’s the cruelest thing about money: you can finally afford everything you once wanted and still feel like the person who went without.

We think earning more will change the feeling. Sure, more money can change your circumstances, but it can’t convince you that you’re enough. No amount of money can correct what you refuse to confront about yourself. Let me repeat that: No amount of money can correct what you refuse to confront about yourself.

Spending gives you something immediate. Building wealth asks you to exchange that pleasure for peace of mind. You abandon the process because you expect what’s built over years to reward you in a month. But you don’t need one decision that changes everything. You just need enough small ones that eventually do.

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Know this:

You can spend your whole life raising your income while your sense of worth stays exactly where you left it. You can be so devoted to building a good life that you forget to actually live one. Yes, money can give you more choices, more comfort, even more freedom. But it will never decide when you finally feel like you’re enough. That’s your part.

Peace Over Money