We build our working lives on this myth of more.  Our expectation is to make more money as the years go on.  We will get more responsibility and more perks as we move up in our field.  Eventually, we hope, we will have more possessions, more prestige and more respect from our community.  We become […]

Perhaps we cling to our affluence — even though it isn’t working for us or the planet — because of the very nature of our relationship with money.  As we shall see, money has become the movie screen on which our lives play out.  We project onto money the capacity to fulfill our fantasies, allay […]

If you live for having it all, what you have is never enough. In an environment of more is better, “enough” is like the horizon − always receding. You lose the ability to identify that point of sufficiency at which you can choose to stop.
— Joe Dominguez, Your Money or Your Life

Stop trying to impress other people.   Other people are probably so busy trying to impress you that they will, at best, not notice your efforts.  At worst, they will resent you for one-upping them.
— Joe Dominguez, Your Money or Your Life

While economic realities may at times be harsh, it is also the nature of the human mind to make real the thoughts and beliefs that we hold (a fact that should encourage great care in how we think about ourselves).  If you see yourself as a victim, you may well be too busy feeling sorry […]

Respect the life energy you are putting into your job.  Money is simply something you trade your life energy for.  Trade it with purpose and integrity for increased earnings.  Ask yourself:  Am I making a living or making a dying?
— Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin, Your Money or Your Life

This [tracking your spending] is not about following our (or anyone else’s) budgets, with standardized categories and a suggested percentage of income that should go toward each category.  This is not about swearing at the beginning of each month that you’ll do better.  This is not about guilt.  It’s about identifying, for yourself, what you […]

Living within your means suggests that you wait until you have the money before you buy something.  This gives you the benefit of avoiding interest charges.  It also gives you a waiting period during which you may well discover that you don’t want some of those things after all.  He who hesitates saves money.  The […]

To live within your means is to buy only what you can prudently afford, to avoid debt unless you have assurance that you will be able to pay it promptly, and always to have something put away for a rainy day.  It was quite a fashionable way to live one short generation ago, before we […]

What is fulfillment?  Whether in the sense of accomplishing a goal or enjoying a moment of real contentment, fulfillment is that experience of deep satisfaction when you can say, Aaahh … that was a delicious meal, a job well done or a purchase worth the money.  To find fulfillment, though, you need to know what […]