One of the best ways to be happy is to eliminate material items in your life that cause stress. I can't tell you how many people I know that live in nice houses and look like they've got everything together but they are some of the most stressed out people you could ever meet. Sometimes I think we need to take a look at what we really need and don't stress out about other stuff. Society tells us we need things that we really don't need at all like nice cars, nice houses, nice furniture and expensive toys. We don't really need any of that stuff and not having it can actually make you a more likable person and save you a lot of money.
Think for a second about times you've been spending time with people that own a car that's so nice that they don't want you to eat in it because you might get crumbs on the seat. It's so minor that you might not even recognize it but having nice things decreases their functionality. What if this was something that was listed on the amenities when purchasing a vehicle - Dual front side air bags, power windows, sun roof, 5 star crash rating, impossible to eat in... Impossible to eat in? That would actually really be a drawback if you thought of it that way but we don't. We buy it anyway and then just don't eat in it because we want to keep it nice. The functionality is effectively decreased due to the niceness and the outcome is the same as if you bought a car that was impossible to eat in. Eating in a car isn't where it stops. You probably wouldn't want to take it camping or do a whole host of other things with it. The end result is that you stress, even if it's only a little, about keeping your car nice. If this is the case wouldn't it be better to have a functional vehicle that didn't cause you stress? It would save you money, get you where you need to go and allow you to be a little more relaxed and easy going. The only drawback is that other people would see you in a less expensive vehicle. Do you really want to associate with people who care what kind of car you drive? Simplify, and reduce stress!
How about nice houses? I can remember going to certain friends of my parents houses when I was a kid. Everything was clean, expensive, and well protected. I couldn't play or do anything I wanted to do because I might track mud in the house or break something. The adults had to constantly watch and keep kids in line so that stuff didn't get broken. I think everyone would have had more fun if they had cheap stuff they didn't have to worry about and just let everyone have a good time, adults included.
I was at my moms the other day with my sister and her two sons, ages 4 and 3. My mom bought a big bag of plastic balls, the kind that used to be in ball-pits at McDonald's before everyone started caring about germs. It was always a fun game for me to throw the balls at my two nephews while they ran all around the house. All that changed the day my mom bought a big flat screen tv. I started throwing balls and was immediately told to stop by my mom and when I tried to keep playing my sister and brother jumped in and told me to quit too. Don't people realize that having fun and children being able to play and laugh is infinitely more important than a flat-screen tv? That tv caused stress and reduced fun. Why in the world would anyone want something that does that?
The points I'm trying to make with this blog are that you can't afford it if you can't break it and not care, you shouldn't buy it if you're going to try so hard to keep it pristine that it reduces the functionality of whatever you are purchasing and you shouldn't buy expensive things that you'll stress over so much that it will take away from things that are more important. Think about these things when you're buying stuff. Ask yourself if you'll be more happy without it if you just let it go. Being happy is more important than having cool stuff.
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