Sometimes its not just about the money

I understand we are all here to learn and work on building/creating wealth, but perhaps sometimes we should throw caution to the wind and enjoy the moment. Spend and live a little and I am not talking about being reckless with money.

I know an investor who lives a miserable life, saving every penny, their tenants are living a better life, makes little sense to me.

No point making money if you are not enjoying some of the spoils today and you certainly cant take it with you.

MTR

 

Grea

Great
San Fran amazing

 

I would agree. I have always been fairly frugal on things like cars, homes, and expensive 'Toys' but always been prepared to spend on experiences like holidays.

 

Have they said their life is miserable, or is that the perception you have of the way they live?

 

For me having recently lost everything due to bad investing it is definitely not about the money anymore! Luckily I traveled a lot in my younger years! camping will now be my favorite activity lol

 

They have mentioned selling their properties due to the stress, ie tenants and finances are tight.

Also mentioned whether the sacrifice and pain was worth it....considering the amount of properties they would need to own vs the income required

 

That does sound miserable

 

Yeah I'm a scrooge, but luckily I have a wife who reminds me that there's no point in being old and rich if you don't make the most of the experiences you could have when you're young(ish).

It makes for a nice balance.

 

Have not worked out how to enjoy the spoils as yet - this is due to a combination of private school fees and an expanding portfolio.

Agree in general that enjoying some of it is the way to go.

 

Agree with @MTR . I also believe that actually enjoying the spoils along the way can lead to you making more money due to motivation to keep doing what you enjoy. For me I'm heavily family and lifestyle driven and I keep aside a decent amount from every "win" to be as entirely frivolous as I wish. Between 2 long haul and about 6 SEA holidays, rent and my generally slightly indulgent lifestyle I would've spent well over 200k of after tax dollars just in 2014 alone and don't regret any of it. Got to live where I had wanted to ever since I moved to perth in 1997, had amazing experiences locally and overseas I'll cherish for a long time and most importantly got to help out some people close to me.

It's only money and we're pretty damn fortunate to live in a country with a lot more opportunities than people willing to take them.

 

I believe it's their attitude rather than their situation which makes them miserable.
There would be plenty of people with positive attitudes who would love to be in their current position.
Those with negative attitudes generally play the victim, even if they are doing ok.

 

In this case it's about not balancing lifestyle vs financial planning/investments

 

I lashed out on Maccas tonight.

Topped it off with a 30c soft serve ice cream cone ( I plonked 50c on the counter and told the kid to keep the change).

A bit of extravagance every now and then makes one feel wonderful.

 

Totally. You can't take it with you.
I get "delayed gratification" as a strategy while you save for deposits early on, or pay off a PPoR, but I reckon there's no point to it all if you don't enjoy it. Go on a holiday, buy an impractical car, start a home business, write that novel... we're all put here for a reason, and it's not to work our whole lives, die and leave it all to the kids.