Attitude Towards Money

Having just read an inspiring story of the interview with one of Prudential’s most successful manager in the Sunday Times today, a particular quote grew quite an impression on me. And that was his comment about his attitude towards money.

The common saying is that “Money is the root of all evil”. However, money is just a medium of exchange for goods and services. Providing a service as an employee or business person, money is the exchange for compensation and it is in turn used by the recipient to exchange for other goods and services for themselves. It is meant to facilitate convenience compared to constantly seeking a direct barter trade. So, is this medium evil?

Perhaps the more accurate meaning is “The GREED for money is the root of all evil”. And greed is an attitude towards money. There is a fine line between the positive seeking of wealth for what it can do and the obsession of lusting after material riches.

Focusing on the attitude of positive pursuit of money, the interviewee’s comment of “You live for what you love. If I love Prada bags and big houses and I work for it, it’s okay. And if I’m happy with the simple life, that’s ok too. But what’s not okay is if I want to live in a bungalow but not want to work for it.”

It reflects the mentality of putting into action this desire for wealth. I once wrote another article about the secret of being successful is simple. It is to stop dreaming and start taking action to achieve your goals. It is simple, in the way that it is not difficult to understand, but it is not easy. Taking this first step is the major hurdle, making it difficult to carry out.

Well, for myself, my character is very down to Earth and I recognize my shortcomings. I am satisfied with the expectations of a reasonably, simple life and I work towards achieving success within my means. Others can be more ambitious and achieve success by working extra hard for it; I am in fact happy and not jealous of them. The sour grapes will be in the last category mentioned in the quote, wishfully wanting the great life but not willingly to do anything about it.

Even from young, many already have that attitude. “I want the good grades but I am not willingly to work hard and study for it”. Then when results are poor because of a lack of effort, they start blaming the teachers, the textbooks, the notes, the parents, the weather being to hot to study, etc, except themselves.

So similarly, “I want to be rich, but I do not want to work hard for it”. They start blaming their parents, the job environment, the government, their bosses, their family, etc, and get frustrated, trapped in their disappointment to meet their expectations. Nothing improves and they remain where they are.

What is your attitude towards money?

This serves as a good reminder to me not to fall prey to my innate human laziness and would like to wish all success in your own pursuits! Cheers!