Given the fact that money doesn’t help us feel any better about ourselves ultimately, why do we chase things like money, fame, followers, toxic relationships, instead of searching for peace? We all know that financial freedom does not mean that you are free. I mean it simply does not matter how rich you are when your soul is cheap. I am telling you that nothing materialistic in this world can cure your insecurities when the pain is truly deep.
You know, I think the problem is that it is pretty much impossible to see what is truly there, right in front of you when you are too busy being addicted to more. Always more. More money, more meaningless relationships, more followers, more, more more. How can you appreciate what you have if you are always stuck wanting more? We live in a culture that is obsessed with consuming. We are taught our entire lives that consuming and getting more will make us happy. But the problem with always wanting more as a means to being happy is that it does not really have a destination. If we always want more then we will never really get there to that place that we are supposedly going to be happy at. Our lives are too filled with the desire to move that, even though we do not know it, we would not be satisfied if we got to any destination. We are obsessed with the chase. Now, do not get me wrong here. Chasing what you want and working hard to achieve something can be a really good strategy in your life, but if you cannot be happy with yourself and grateful for what you have right now in the present, then I can bet you that you will not be happy when you get whatever it is that you are looking for.
Happiness and contentment does not just come packaged in with a certain number in your bank account, or a certain relationship, or a certain job, or a certain amount of followers on instagram or friends on facebook. Happiness is something we learn to discover by accepting our surroundings and be grateful for all that we have in our lives. If we cannot learn true gratitude then we will always be stuck wanting more. A good way to fight this is to stop checking your social media twenty two, or honestly more, times a day to see how many likes you have on that one picture. A good way to fight this mentality is to honor your values and your convictions and the people in your life more than you value shortcuts to wealth. If getting more money means compromising on your morals or cutting off someone who has always been there for you then maybe it is not the right thing to do. It certainly is not going to lead you to be happy and grateful once whatever outcome you are shooting for arrives.
It all starts with you.
