I thought about this idea while reading some rebuttals to a thread about intelliegence and wealth.
No, I am no longer trying to maximize wealth.
I am convinced that if I went back into auto sales I could potentially earn much more, but the hours are terrible and commissioned sales was very stressful for me and even more so for Mrs. Lorenzo.
I made much more in management, but the hours were very long and the headaches made the job insufferable.
I made about 10% more than I do know when I was a pc technician working about the same hours, but after about seven years of that I got really burned out.
Nowadays it’s more about making enough to support a comfortable life and watching the unnecessary expenses. For me a dollar saved goes straight to the bottom line but much less than 100¢ out of every additional dollar earned makes it to the bottom line. It also seems that for every extra dollar I earn they want at least $2 worth of extra work for it.
For me, it just gets to a point that the marginal return on an extra dollar earned diminishes to where it’s just not worth it. Where one is on that curve varies widely among individuals.
What is your attitude toward accumulting personal wealth?
I like wealth. I would rather be wealthy than not. Wealth also ryhmes with stealth, and that is pretty cool cause I don’t know any other words that ryhme with stealth.
Oh wait, health. I like health too though. I would rather be healthy than not. And it ryhmes with wealth and stealth.
personal wealth is great, but its not my be all and end all.
i could certainly earn more than i currently do if i returned to consultancy web stuff, but to be honest its nowhere near as fun and its incredibly stressful - thats why i was happy to take a slight pay cut and do government work.
For me the fact that i don’t make as much as i could is easily balanced out by the lack of stress, paid holidays, and respect for my skills that i now get.
I’m trying to do the best with what I have, but personal wealth is not my priority. My job is low-paid (NHS) but it’s rewarding and that’s more important to me. Of course, I’d like a little more money, but not enough to make me want to work in a less rewarding job.
Being rich certainly has its appeal. I’m lucky enough to be in a job I love, earning reasonably good money (in, unfortunately, a city that has a very high standard of living), living in a nice home, with very few expenses beyond my own personal comfort.
Which is fine by me.
Though no matter how much I have, a little more would always be handy.
I’m with Lorenzo. There’s a certain point at which the extra money isn’t worth the crap you have to take to get it, but there’s a sort of cultural block which tends to keep people from realizing this.
Most people think they need more money than they do, because they’re convinced they have to buy more stuff. So they work harder, go into debt, and then buy MORE stuff! All of this puts money in the pockets of the captains of industry, but produces little tangible benefit for the average person.
Money isn’t wealth (this takes people by surprise sometimes). Goods and services (access to them) are ‘wealth’. Money is simply a representation of wealth for accounting purposes.
If we frame it that way then no, I’m not seeking more wealth. We have too much crap already.
I am actively seeking more money to pay off debts and improve the house, pay for college for the kid(s), etc.
But not more stuff. If it weren’t for books my life would be pretty spartan. But the damn things are more addictive than crack.
I’m attempting to aquire any personal material wealth. However, as I’m an English major who could’ve just as easily been an engineering or computer science major, I’m definately not trying to maximize it.