How important is money when you're an adult?

Look guys (feminine version in the kindest sense), stuff is stuff, but what money really gets you is...Freedom. Freedom from worry, freedom to tell the man to go to hell, freedom to give your kids or your mother nice things, freedom to have a girl on the side in a nice apartment, or freedom to do the Krakauer Into the Wild.

Forget the '62 Ferrari GTO Berlinetta, being able to drive a decent car, live in a place without rats, eat a steak once in a while, and more importantly, not have to drink wine in a box.....takes money. If one has the choice, do something that makes a reasonable amount that allows you to do fun and reasonable things, put money away, and at some point, give the middle finger to the boss....

Just sayin.....

If the OP is still reading, while I might not agree with this posters tone, I agree with him more than not. Don't buy into this. Just look at the specificity and think about whether any of this really matters. I've never spent $100 on a meal, never shopped at J. Crew, and never set foot in Saks. I can assure you my life is no worse for it. Don't fall into this trap because it's what most Americans do. Walk your own path. Live modestly. Be happy.

Go back to that post and find the first point where a choice was made. Knowing yourself only as yourself today ask is that the choice I would have made. Ignoring the narrative progression tick each choice point off on through the post ie is a better car import>...>would you have chosen a car half a step up. Reserved the car upgrade for the next promotion or raise.

Follow a trendy stores idea of what you should look like or decide early you'll buy good quality clothes that will last as a core wardrobe. Slowly establish a connection with a tailor and start wearing bespoke. You get the idea.

You build your life to avoid the pitfalls of poor choices.

So maybe the future is not so much Oh my God what has life brought me as it's painted

Captured my sentiments exactly - especially the last sentence.

Submariner wrote:

I was just reading the thread about how adults making less than $60K should be embarrassed by their careers. It got me thinking about my own choices.

I'm in college right now, and I'm having a hard time justifying busting my ass for the next 3 to 7 years in order to have a few thousand more dollars per year when I'm middle-aged. Is it that important to have more money? More than having free time to be able to enjoy yourself when you're in your twenties? It would be great if some 40 and 50 somethings could weigh in on this. It's actually been on my mind for some time, but I've never asked anyone.

I'm 50. I'm married and have 2 teenage daughters. I want them to live in a nice part of the country, and be able to send them to good colleges. I also want to be able retire in comfort. When you do the math on what all that costs, it's a lot of money. When I was younger, I had these romantic notions that I could live on beans. When I got older, I realized that being impoverished while having dependents was just irresponsible if I had the power to be otherwise. I don't regret being in the rat race at all - my family is worth it.

Xlawyer wrote:

I read a quote once that said "Money. Time. Energy. At any point in your life you can only have 2". When you're young you have time and energy but no money. Middle aged you have money and energy but no time. Old age you have money and time, no energy. While cheesy, this quote says a lot and as a college student, I think it's your job to figure out how you can have all 3.

You can have all three. One of my friends has a secure $100K job and a nice pension (money), a short commute with three day weekends and four weeks of vacation each year(time), and still runs a 55" 400 at the age of 37 (energy).

He's an engineer working for County government. His keys to success? Be in the right place at the right time, and stay single with no kids. That got him a (small) vacation home, a (used) single engine plane, jet skis, snowmobiles, motorcycles, latest & greatest tech gadgets, and great memories travelling the world or simply watching meteor showers while lying in his backyard pool.

After college, I went off to play minor league baseball for 7 seasons. My wife and I struggled to pay the bills during and after I retired. We looked under the couch for loose change, ate Top Ramen and had to sell the car to make rent. Minor League baseball wages set us back in the job skills market but I'd do it again. Jobs will be there...go do what makes you happy while you can.

I am 25 and a few years out of college. I currently work at my first job out of school and feel passionately about the question you pose. Here are my two cents.

Do something you think you might love, because if you are an insightful, realistic person with modest material desires, more money will not be important to you in the long run. I make around 50k a year, I am single, and I have more than enough money to put 16% away up front, cover my essential costs, and have enough money left over to do a reasonable amount of "living" (ie- happy hour, concert, travel...). Also, where you invest in your passion, you may or may not make more money but you are likely to do fine if it is something you don't mind putting all your energy into.

I've found that I have only been motivated by the promise of the next yearly raise in a limited capacity in my job. It sustained my initial interest but it wasn't more than two years that I was yearning to be doing something I was passionate about and because I feel that my current job is not that profession, the money has not kept me motivated in itself (I have a job where I could potentially make over six figures if I chose to invest the effort and time).

All that being said, I completely understand that each person is different. I work with people who are fully motivated by the promise of a long career and a lot of money. They are not hung up on whether or not the job they are doing is meaningful or fulfilling. Knowing yourself and whether or not you think you will be motivated by money or eventually determine that you need to pursue a passion will make a big difference in how you should choose. Hopefully your job offers you a little bit of both. Your personal values about material possession are also going to specific to you (but we have always have the choice to understand that "things" are just empty placeholders that don't provide much value). My two cent is from the perspective of someone worrying about themselves and I haven't yet had to think about a family or the future ego effect that a specific salary might have on me so I think you are right in posing that question to the middle-age folks.

Hope this helps in some way.

Here's what I know.

When I graduated University, my wife and I were making a combined 40,000 a year and we we were happy. Along came 2 children and things changed. 40k wasn't enough. We were stressed out, fighting all the time and our marriage suffered. Living check to check was crap. As a result, I changed jobs to a sales position and slowly over time (12 years) we now earn 250k combined. As our income increased we became happier. The extra $ has given us the opportunity to travel and we can buy almost anything with cash. Life is great. $ has given us choices.

The greatest things in life you do not get for money. Money is obtained through virtue, but it will not give you virtue, nor does it redeem your vices. If you do your job for love, the money comes anyway. The best gifts we have in life are time, health, and happiness.

keeler wrote:

You can have all three. One of my friends has a secure $100K job and a nice pension (money), a short commute with three day weekends and four weeks of vacation each year(time), and still runs a 55" 400 at the age of 37 (energy).

He's an engineer working for County government. His keys to success? Be in the right place at the right time, and stay single with no kids. That got him a (small) vacation home, a (used) single engine plane, jet skis, snowmobiles, motorcycles, latest & greatest tech gadgets, and great memories travelling the world or simply watching meteor showers while lying in his backyard pool.

Single men don't even fit into this conversation really. As a single man you can make $60k a year and have everything you really want and retire early.

The problem is when a family comes into the picture. Things get crazy expensive then.

remnum1 wrote:

The greatest things in life you do not get for money. Money is obtained through virtue, but it will not give you virtue, nor does it redeem your vices. If you do your job for love, the money comes anyway. The best gifts we have in life are time, health, and happiness.

Thanks. That's pretty good advice.

PwacTwac wrote:

Look guys (feminine version in the kindest sense), stuff is stuff, but what money really gets you is...Freedom.

Just sayin.....

Money gives you freedom from worries. I don't have tons of money - I live in a 2 BR apt and drive a 3 year old Toyota - but I have enough to erase a lot of stress from my life. I'm also debt-free. My apartment is in a decent part of town so I don't have to worry about rats or roaches, and violent crime is very rare. So I don't worry. My car is not luxurious but it is dependable, and in case it does break down I can afford to have it fixed. No worries there. I don't have a ton of opulence in my life but I can afford to buy good food and to take care of my health. Once again, no worries. Money is important for peace of mind and for security.

Submariner wrote:

remnum1 wrote:

The greatest things in life you do not get for money. Money is obtained through virtue, but it will not give you virtue, nor does it redeem your vices. If you do your job for love, the money comes anyway. The best gifts we have in life are time, health, and happiness.

Thanks. That's pretty good advice.

Not cool stealing my username. But, yeah I agree that it is good advice...

Submariner wrote:

Submariner wrote:

Thanks. That's pretty good advice.

Not cool stealing my username. But, yeah I agree that it is good advice...

Well that is awkward indeed...

Who to trust?

The most important thing is money.

Yes, "person's" post was depressing and extreme . . . with kernels of truth. The most important message was this: You can get paid well doing ANYTHING, you just need to be good at it.

Work hard because it feels good to work hard (in the sense of applying yourself, not working long hours). Accomplish things that matter.

I lived a life full of fun and recreation when I made $22K/yr, but I set myself up for making $200K down the line by doing good work, learning, building a reputation as a good colleague, and getting degrees I needed to lead work that I cared about.

Now I'm cashing in on the moderately difficult and enjoyable set up work, and saving enough to retire by the time my kids go to college. In retirement I may well continue to do work for pay, I'll just cut the ratio of unpleasant-to-enjoyable work from the current 1/5 to closer to 1/20th. And probably cut the hours, too.

Reading this thread, it appears that the key to happiness is not having kids. It's having kids that seems to make one a slave to career/money. I'm a single guy making about 70k a year, an amount that should make me ashamed according to the other thread. I live very comfortably below my means and save 20+ percent of my salary for retirement. If I had kids, I'd probably be struggling to survive on my current salary. Instead, I have plenty of money and am pretty much worry free. Staying single and childless was one of the best decisions (financially and otherwise) of my life.

asewqrthibdjskdfshflgl wrote: Staying single and childless was one of the best decisions (financially and otherwise) of my life.

This is 100% correct, given your personal priorities and mindset.