Chocolates, Crisps, Sodas and Material Happiness
When I was 11, the thing that warped my young brain was
my parents and adults seem to have infinite money - why don’t they just buy lots of chocolates, chips and sodas.
To my 11yr old self, the utility of money was simple - any $ you gave me, I would trade it for chocolates, crisps and sodas I could buy. That’s what money could buy, that was material happiness.
At 13yr old, I started caring about fancy sneakers, clothes etc. I needed more money now. I would calculate the amount of money needed for the desired number of outfits. I had limited understanding of fashion, so the amount wasn’t very much.
At 15yr old, brands seemed to matter. I wanted to spend more. I wanted more $$ from my parents. Material happiness now helped me gain attention, envy and approval of others.
At 17 it turned into desire for $$ for nightclubs, bars, parties, beers and such. I dreamt of life at 21, when I would have enough $$ to never run out of beer money or bar crawl money. My greedy selfish soul wanted more.
At 21, it turned into what car can I buy and destinations I traveled to. I needed much more $$$ to be at the same level of material happiness. I had reached an age where I could spend millions if someone gave me, I knew what money could buy.
It was only at 22 when I started my first company, my entire life rationale shifted. My self worth was no longer tied to any of these things - only thing that drove my self worth was success of my company. Like many founders, I saw my entire value as a human being tied to the success or failure of my company (which has its own downsides).
But it did give me an excellent perspective on money - I realized that every 2-3 years I upgrade what I think money can buy me and what will drive material happiness.
I could see the pattern clearly - every few years what I want changes -from sodas and chocolates to bigger car, bigger house, nicer vacations, finer clothes etc. but my material happiness remains the same.
Somewhere in my mid 20s I stopped this progress, my income and net-worth has grown more than 10x+ in the last 10years but my expenses have stayed similar. I do spend more money on things that buy me time, I do invest in my friend’s companies and things that brings my community together (friends and family closer), but I spend roughly the same $ amount on material things.
As someone in his mid 30s now, I don’t desire chocolates, sodas or crisps anymore. But every-time I feel like spoiling myself I will indulge in some, and it somehow gives me the same joy now that my 11-year old self got.
Song: A Mindfull Bliss
P.S: I am extremely ambitious and deeply interested in making money but spending it is no longer a source of joy. I just see it as an outcome of doing something well. I also think about it as a tool to enable me to do more for my community and how I could use it to influence the world around me.
