![\"Janis](\"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/janis-joplin.png\" "\\"Janis")
<\/a>Looking back at some of the toughest times in my life, I can honestly say that I was happy.\u00a0 When I was 21 and very broke, I could survive a whole day on a hamburger and find beauty in the sunset, while I was surfing on an empty stomach.\u00a0 I didn’t need any material goods\u00a0to make me happy. \u00a0I was happy just to lay in the sun and have a roof over my head.<\/p>\n
Obviously, my life got a little more complicated after I got married, had kids and bought a house.\u00a0 But, I felt the same simple pleasure when I was laid off for six months in 2002.\u00a0 I would sit on a bench at the beach eating a bean burrito and\u00a0think about how lucky I was to be sitting in the sunshine.<\/p>\n
The main difference between these two periods in my life is that I had money saved up the second time around.\u00a0 So, I didn’t have to worry about how I was going to pay my bills or find my next meal.<\/p>\n
Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz<\/h3>\n
This\u00a0week, I was looking\u00a0at motor homes on Craigslist.\u00a0\u00a0I’m not ready to buy yet, so\u00a0I was\u00a0just dream shopping.\u00a0 Anyway, I came across a beautiful Class A motor home that was for\u00a0sale in a bankruptcy auction, along with a Mercedes\u00a0560 SL.\u00a0 I thought it was\u00a0a cruel twist of fate to lose everything in a bankruptcy auction.\u00a0 But, that’s the risk\u00a0people take when buying expensive items on credit.\u00a0 Income can disappear quickly, while payments last for years.<\/p>\n
It doesn’t really matter how much money people make or how many toys they buy.\u00a0 If they continuously spend more than they earn, sooner or later, they will be headed for bankruptcy.\u00a0 On the other hand, if they can afford some toys and experiences without going into debt, then why shouldn’t they enjoy them?\u00a0 Life is short and happiness can be fleeting.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
You Know you Got it, If it Makes you Feel Good<\/h3>\n
For me, happiness doesn’t come in a box or from a store.\u00a0 It doesn’t come with leather seats, Hi-Def\u00a0or a swimming pool.\u00a0\u00a0It comes from the freedom to do as I choose and the ability to live without worry.\u00a0 The most important things in my life aren’t things all.\u00a0 They are the people,\u00a0places and experiences that brighten my life in countless ways.<\/p>\n
Looking ahead, my fondest dream is to return to the simple happiness I felt as a young man.\u00a0 That doesn’t mean I’m going to give up all of my possessions and live an idle life.\u00a0 It means I’m going to pay off debt and save money, so I can enjoy my days without worry.\u00a0 And, I am going to cultivate income streams that can’t be taken away by an angry boss or a fickle economy.\u00a0 At least, that’s my dream for now.\u00a0 I will keep you posted on my progress.<\/p>\n
The Bottom Line<\/h3>\n
The bottom line is that saving a little bit of money right now could help avoid a whole lot of worry later on.\u00a0 And, spending a little bit of\u00a0time planning for the future could provide a life of peace and happiness.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon’t compromise yourself. It’s all you’ve got.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n
Janis Joplin<\/strong> – American Blues Singer<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Recommended Reading<\/h3>\n
Financial Samurai\u00a0– A Little Inspiration Means so Much<\/a>
\nOnline Investing AI\u00a0– Are Gadgets Better than Financial Freedom?<\/a>
\nLive Richly\u00a0– Advice to my 18 Year Old Self<\/a><\/p>\nThis post was featured on the Carnival of Personal Finance<\/a> over at Magical Penny<\/a>. This week, I made the Editor’s Choice for my post.\u00a0 Check it out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Some of the people I know who were making buckets of money a couple of years ago are going through some hard times. And, some of my closest friends have become the victim of layoffs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sfsi_plus_gutenberg_text_before_share":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_show_text_before_share":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_icon_type":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_icon_alignemt":"","sfsi_plus_gutenburg_max_per_row":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[199,9],"tags":[576,62,508,506,505,507],"class_list":["post-3509","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-my-favorites","category-personal","tag-debt","tag-dream","tag-feeling-good","tag-hapiness","tag-janis-joplin","tag-prosperity"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3509","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3509"}],"version-history":[{"count":28,"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3509\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7908,"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3509\/revisions\/7908"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3509"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3509"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hopetoprosper.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3509"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}