3 ms·

"Wherever you go, there you are" -- While I do think you can move to a lower cost of living area, you can't outrun your relationship to money. If you have a ten

by SCUSKU 3y ago

"Wherever you go, there you are" -- While I do think you can move to a lower cost of living area, you can't outrun your relationship to money. If you have a tendency to spend on things you don't need, then you will be forced to think about money all of the time. Accepting less, living below your means, and finding happiness in non-material things could be one way to escape this. Of course, there is also the option of moving to developing countries and leveraging your financial privilege as an American, e.g. South America/South East Asia.

themodelplumber 3y ago
For real. Deepen your relationship with money so that it's more comfortable, nuanced, and stable. Like a relationship with an old friend. Even if you lose touch for a while, they're still there for you. Otherwise there will still be a tendency to view money in "have it / don't have it" terms, or similar lines of thought that will require not only thinking about money all the time, but doing so in a way that takes far too much personal attention and energy. A lot of people have the false belief that thinking about money too much is a sin, or an unwise mistake. But you can also look at this tendency as beginner-level money-ing. Education and deep experience / analysis of the topic really help. IMO you can also still retain happiness in material things if you develop your relation to/with them, too. For example, understanding them as symbolic totems or touchstones, or pointers toward a higher quality of life in terms of any perspectives they may symbolically suggest independent of your own established perspectives. (Once you start to do this you'll start to eat away at merchants' profit margins since your concept of worth & value will deepen, and a sort of optimization skill will set in. :-))

3 ms·

"Wherever you go, there you are" -- While I do think you can move to a lower cost of living area, you can't outrun your relationship to money. If you have a ten

by SCUSKU 3y ago

themodelplumber 3y ago
For real. Deepen your relationship with money so that it's more comfortable, nuanced, and stable. Like a relationship with an old friend. Even if you lose touch for a while, they're still there for you. Otherwise there will still be a tendency to view money in "have it / don't have it" terms, or similar lines of thought that will require not only thinking about money all the time, but doing so in a way that takes far too much personal attention and energy. A lot of people have the false belief that thinking about money too much is a sin, or an unwise mistake. But you can also look at this tendency as beginner-level money-ing. Education and deep experience / analysis of the topic really help. IMO you can also still retain happiness in material things if you develop your relation to/with them, too. For example, understanding them as symbolic totems or touchstones, or pointers toward a higher quality of life in terms of any perspectives they may symbolically suggest independent of your own established perspectives. (Once you start to do this you'll start to eat away at merchants' profit margins since your concept of worth & value will deepen, and a sort of optimization skill will set in. :-))