The patterns of greed, overconsumption, and instant gratification that were prevalent in the 1980s created a lot of financial havoc that many people are still trying to recover from. The movements toward simplicity and spiritual growth seem to be among the leading trends of the 1990s, but it’s difficult to concentrate on inner peace if you can’t pay the rent.
Often it’s the way we spend indiscriminately and the constant media pressure to buy that drains us emotionally as well as financially. We’ve been led to believe that whether or not we can afford it, there’s no reason not to get it—whatever it is. Often we’re impelled by advertising hype to part with our hard-earned dollars in exchange for items we don’t even want, that end up cluttering up our lives and getting in the way of our personal growth.
If your financial life is suffering from the expansion of the past decade, it may be time for you to make some drastic changes in the way you relate to money.
There are many books available today that can help you get back on track financially. One of the best, in my opinion, is Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin. This book will give you a new way of thinking about the time you spend getting money versus how you spend it.
And of course, living simply, as outlined in my book Simplify Your Life will reduce your expenses automatically.
Once you establish financial tranquility in your life, inner tranquility will be a lot easier to come by.