My philosophy of money

A common thread in all of the personal finance books I've ever read (a list which admittedly includes all of about 3 books) seems to be "All you have to do to be financially independent is _______ and _______ and ________ etc." They make it seem like you can make a to-do list, start checking items off the top and by the time you reach the bottom your net worth will have met or exceeded a million dollars. Can it really be that simple? Isn't a million dollars a lot of money? More than any normal person out to be able to get his hands on?

Think about that point of view though. Do we tell ourselves that we won't ever have much money in our lives because we feel like we don't deserve it or that fate probably won't pick us to be wealthy? Well where's the sense in that? By finding the right investment and putting a mere dollar or two a day into it anybody can retire on a million bucks at 60 or 70. The fact is in our day and age, being a millionaire is easy.

The ease at which a million dollars can be amassed is both exciting and terrifying. In a class system which inevitability forms in a free-market system, the lower ends of the classes seem to look up at the upper ends and, in a form of enmity, tell themselves one of two lies: either that the ones with the money can't be happy for the simple reason that they have money, or "if I only had money I could be happy." To suggest that one's happiness is either conversely or directly related to one's net worth is outrageous. Happiness is absolutely not about money.

What, then, is money about? That depends on the person and his motives. For me it means security and freedom. It's a fact of life that, living in our world, the overwhelming majority of things that sustain life come through the exchange of money (unless you want to completely isolate yourself from the rest of society and farm a few acres of land to keep yourself and your family alive). With that fact in mind, money in the bank to cover your costs is security. During the last 3 weeks or so I got Bell's Palsy, a condition which paralyzes half of the victim's face for at least 2 weeks and Ashley got a throat infection and fever which refused to subside without medical intervention. We did not feel secure knowing that we had no insurance and may not be able to afford a trip to the doctor nor the treatment that might be prescribed. Fortunately, my face came back to life of its own accord and IHC has a financial assistance program which will hopefully cover most of Ashley's treatment.

Also there is the question of freedom: our world is covered from corner to corner, pole to pole with opportunities for growth and education. We all believe that the purpose of life is to learn and progress, so why not seek out these opportunities? Financial resources can provide that freedom. I think of the psychology concept of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs (apologies to the theory's author if I've misspelled his name) which says we seek to satisfy our most basic and important needs which all animals have before seeking to satisfy some of the higher needs which define our humanity. Our Pioneer ancestors had to spend most of their time fulfilling the needs of food and shelter, so they didn't have the opportunity to travel the world (not sightseeing anyway), but they did make every effort to refine their humanity when they could by having dances and building opera houses, establishing bands and symphonies, and so on. Think of the sacrifice it would have been for one of them to own a trumpet. Certain of them actually sacrificed the unthinkable amount of weight and space in their wagons to take a piano to the Salt Lake Valley. I think that they would have embraced the opportunities available to us to learn from any avenues possible -- opportunities which we have because of their legacies.

Security and freedom are things I want. A lot. If money is the means by which they come, then I'm going to need some of that, and as long as I'm going to use it to extend freedom and security to people around me, what's wrong with having a lot?

I've finally decided that I'm not afraid of money, that I'm ready to be in control of my life, my security, and my freedom. I'm ready to invest my talents and work to grow them. This week I'm going to be starting a blog at benjaminhowe.com which will serve as my journal on my road to a bountiful life. I'm inviting you all to be part of a "dream team." I believe there is nothing wrong with money and I hope that we can work together to build freedom for us and many others.

Who's game?