The Luxury of Looking Rich - LOH 303

If there is one luxury I think is completely overrated, it is buying expensive things just to prove that you can afford them...

I have never really understood the obsession with looking successful...

You see someone with a very expensive car, designer clothes, an expensive watch, or a huge house and immediately people assume, "This person has made it."... But has he?

Sometimes the car is on finance.
The clothes are bought on credit.
The house is eating half of the person's monthly income and the expensive lifestyle has become a full-time job by itself...
That's the part I don't understand.

When a person becomes financially comfortable, I don't think the first thought should be "Now I need to buy something expensive so people know I'm doing well.".. for me, I'd rather buy myself time... Give me a comfortable home, reliable transportation, good food, peace of mind and enough financial freedom so I can decisions without constantly calculating what will happen to my account balance...

Dont get me wrong, I don't have anything against expensive things..
If someone genuinely loves a particular watch, car, bag or piece of jewellery and they can comfortably afford it, good for them but the problem starts when the thing becomes a measurement of your worth because then you are no longer buying the product, you're buying validation and validation is an expensive thing to keep buying..

Today, you buy the latest phone.
Tomorrow, there's a newer one.
You upgrade your car.
Someone else buys a better one.
You travel to Dubai.
Someone travels to Switzerland.
You post the hotel.
Someone posts a private jet and suddenly, something that was supposed to make you happy becomes a competition you never agreed to enter...

That's why I think financial freedom is a much better luxury than luxury itself...
Being able to wake up and not immediately worry about bills.
Being able to help your family when they need you.
Being able to leave a bad situation because you have options.
Being able to take a break without feeling like the whole world will collapse financially..
Being able to invest in yourself and being able to say "no" to things you don't want because you aren't desperate for the money... Those things might not look impressive on Instagram, but they mean a lot in real life..

I think we've somehow confused expensive living with good living... They are not the same thing.

A person can live in a modest house and sleep peacefully every night while Another person can live in a mansion and spend every night worrying about maintaining the lifestyle..

So... if I could afford almost anything tomorrow, would I suddenly start buying every luxury item I see?... Honestly, my answer is NO.

I'd probably become even more selective because once you understand what money is actually supposed to do for you, impressing strangers becomes a very poor investment.

For me, the real luxury isn't looking rich.
It's having enough freedom that I don't need to prove that I am.

Thanks fo reading..

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