"There are two things to aim at in life: first, to get what you want; and, after that, to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind achieve the second." - Logan Pearsall Smith

Do you ever remember wanting something so badly as a child? That one toy that you absolutely "needed"? Then when you got what you wanted, you hardly ever used it or played with it, right? It was a novelty for a moment, but then bigger and better things came out and you "needed" those. Children do not clearly see the distinction between "want" and "need." As a result they get into the habit of thinking they need things when, really, these items are a luxury. Childhood has the greatest impact on us; habits and mindsets we gain during this time are harder to dispose of later in life.

Money is also associated with success. "He who has the most toys wins." How does one acquire the most toys? By having the most money, of course. Everyone wants to be successful. Why would anyone aspire to be unsuccessful? That would be unnatural.

Sure, one could be satisfied with what one has once the goal i achieved, but what happens then? Say, hypothetically, a man retires once he has some unknown amount of money in his bank account. At that date, he has enough to live comfortably. However, the value of his money decreases due to inflation. Then he is suddenly in a tight spot because his bank account won't outlive him.

Having a decent amount of money is a necessity in today's world. If you don't have money, you don't have anything. Survival instincts kick in and the race to earn it begins. But why do we want so much of it? Well, people are natural worriers. We are always asking ourselves "what if...?" and we think of all the ways we could lose money. This causes us to want enough for insurance. Now you are probably thinkin, "Okay, that's fair enough, but why do people spend all their money on material objects then?" Well, we also hate to waste. We have all this money and it is just sitting there. Why not buy all these cool things to entertain us or make life easier? The great thing about possessions is that they can be resold. If you run into financial trouble, expensive items can be sold to pay off the debt.

People want more money than they can handle because they are afraid of running out of it. Theoretically, more you have, the less likely you are to go bankrupt.

Learn more about this author, Ariele Chow.
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