Editor’s Note: This is the second post in the 5 signs of a great life series. Click on the introductory post for links to all 5 signs at the end of the series.
Do you want what you already have? Or do you keep wishing for something else?
People with a great life have something in common: appreciation.
When you concentrate on your good fortune you will be less inclined to search for happiness in new possessions. (Trust me, happiness doesn’t live inside a new flat-screen TV.) And when you stop trying to buy your happiness, you’ll have a lot less debt.
Less debt = less worry = more security = greater happiness.
Let’s try an experiment. If you could have everything you want right now, would it be enough? Would you still be satisfied in six months if you could make no further purchases except for necessities? Two years?
If the answer is no, then you may have an appreciation problem.
- Do you care for your clothes, or do they get tossed on the floor or crammed into an overstuffed closet?
- Is your car’s oil changed regularly and tires rotated?
- Is your home well-cared for, even if it is not your “dream home?”
- Do you pay yourself first by putting money into savings every payday?
- Can you pay off your credit card balance every month, or do you use it knowing that you cannot afford more than the minimum payment every month?
Happy people still want nice things, and often times they get them. The difference is that they buy them when they can afford them and when they truly want them, not just because it is on sale, has deferred payments, or because the neighbors have one.
Over the next week I challenge you to an appreciation test. Make a list of 5 things you appreciate in your life every night for the next week. See if it doesn’t impact the way you spend your time, money, and energy.
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