“He that is of the opinion money will do everything may well be suspected of doing everything for money.” – Benjamin Franklin
I’ve never been one to employ large sweeping generalities. I try to recognize that everyone lives unique lives with unique backgrounds focused on unique passions. We are different in our nationality, our heritage, our gender, our family status, our religion, our culture, and our worldview. But I am becoming increasingly convinced there is one characteristic that unites each of us:
We don’t need more money.
I admit that some have stumbled upon this blog post today who do need money for legitimate survival. But it is probably not you. After all, you clearly have access to the Internet… which doesn’t guarantee you have everything you need for survival, but it sure increases the probability. Add to that the reality that 6 billion people live on less than $13,000/year and Daniel Suelo has survived the past 12 years with no money at all and I’d say chances are pretty good your basic needs are already taken care of.
We don’t really need more money.
But most of us still want it. We’d like more cash in our pocket. We want a bigger paycheck each week. We want a larger balance in our checking account, savings account, or retirement account. And many of us have tied our happiness to this pursuit of money.
Even though our basic needs have been met, our desire for money persists. Far too often, this desire begins to take root as a need inside of us. Before we know it, we forget that we were talking about a want and begin confusing it with a need. But what we need and what we want are rarely the same.
We don’t really need more money. Instead…
- We need to show more spending restraint.
- We need to discover gratitude and contentment.
- We need to practice generosity.
- We need to stop comparing our lives to others.
- We need to change our view of money.
- We need to realize our lives are far more valuable than the amount of money we possess.
Jennifer G says
Wow, I am surprised at how many people took offense at this post. We chose for me to stay home with our children a few years ago and we “need” more money because we also choose to continue living the lifestyle we were accustomed to pre-children. But if we really took your advice to heart and started “Dave Ramsey-ing” up our life, we could really do well with the money my husband makes…once we are debt free. And we don’t really need to continue living with our previous “lavish” lifestyle or wasteful spending habits. It is just that they are, well, habits that we haven’t broken yet.
The Christian Housewife says
Just last week our pastor spoke on the lie that the world offers us that our job (money) is our security. We’ve made it into a false god where we sacrifice so many things because of the trust we put into it. We spend way too much of our lives neglecting relationships, serving, etc. just to try to get more money. Maybe another reason we “never have enough” is because we believe that money is what will safeguard us from things to come? We can certainly be wise with our money and make good choices, but security is never guaranteed. In the same way that you can eat healthy and exercise yet are not guaranteed that you’ll live past tomorrow.
With the messages (lies) that the world gives us that money makes us happy and money keeps us safe from the worries of tomorrow, it’s no wonder that we’re always searching yet never reaching our destination. We’re chasing illusions.
Once again, great post, Joshua!
Janette says
I think most of us can live with less, a lot less. Your point is well taken. When we lived in China, most families grew their own vegetables, or traded them, and lived on a bit more than $300 a year.Their houses were built from the earth around them. Their families cared for the needs of the old and the young. Sounds a great deal like my grandmother’s house in the 1890’s in the US.
As for Daniel, he can survive without money because we all make the money for him to survive. He lives on public land (doing what comes natural in the setting), hunts public wildlife and foods, scavenges off of food that others leave behind, begs for food and when ill, is cared for by the public. If we all lived his life- no one would have anything—including an education. We used to call these people hermits and feel sad that they could not find enough in their selves to contribute to society. Now we glorify them as minimalists.
Daniel and the people in China are not even close to the same. One group chooses to find a way to live with little because they do not need the outside society, the other chooses to not participate in society.
Betsy says
I am kind of envious of the life you are describing in Alaska. So simple and meaningful. Here I sit in the comforts of home, everyone is plugged into something, meals are whenever we can eat, the kids complain when a hike is suggested, no one wants to get up at 8 on a Sunday morning to go to church. The world has its grips on us.
Enjoy Alaska. Enjoy living within our mean. Enjoy simplicity and having the basics.
I love this blog.
Jeff says
Thanks Josh. We moved here to Alaska from A wealthy suburb of Dallas Texas . Many here do not have bathrooms in their homes, or a finished houses. It’s not uncommon to have youth get showers at our church on Sunday mornings before Sunday School in -30 degree weather . Everyone fishes in Summer to get enough fish for the entire year. we adjusting toDirt roads, no fancy shops or restaurants. The Love and generosity here however is more than we could ever imagine. People actually spend time at home preparing meals with their kids . After dinner activities might include a family hike, building a fire, or just a game of cards at table together.
Our lives are forever changed. This place would be considered poor and unihabitable by many. One year removed from the wealthy burbs… We have found life again in a place rich with friends. Enjoying the simple and abundant life.
Youth ministry is crazy good too. Youth who travel
Miles on snow machine to lead worship
For their peers every week.
Christine says
Jeff,
I would love to know what part of Alaska you moved to! I just came back from an Alaska vacation and I absolutely fell in love with it. From what you have mentioned, it sounds like you are surrounded by wonderful people.
Jeff says
We live In the Kenai Peninsula. It’s about 3 hours south of Anchorage.
Kasilof is the Town.
Janete Canteri says
I love this blog and I think nobody has to agree with me but it not correct to come here and say bad words about the blog. I am Brazilian, I live in Brazil and I am sure that people like me ( my family income is about 40,000 dollars a year; four people) have the necessary to live with dignity. Here as well the Americans, people work too much to increase their income to put their children in ballet, foreing language schools, swimming, to pay nannies because they don’t have time left to be with their children. And they want to buy a new car, a new house, a beach house, a country house, and so on. Do they need all the money? I am pretty sure they don’t.
There is a passage in the Bible in the old testement:” Whoever loves money will never be satisfied with money”.
God bless you all!
Janete Canteri
Linda Pinda says
I think it’s weird when people get caught up on one post and take it out of context from all the other information the author has shared over a long amount of time. This post reflects one aspect of minimalism, and is good advice. He plainly begins by saying there are some who actually do need more money to provide for basic needs. He also has gone on at length about “RATIONAL minimalism”, explaining that our needs vary depending upon what our family size is, our job is, our interests are. His point has always been; Have what YOU need, and not more. Another words, if you want to travel the world, make a nice income, buy tickets, travel. But don’t waste your money on a ballet slipper collection you’re never home to see. On the other hand, if you’re a ballerina, there’s a reason to have a collection of ballet slippers, and perhaps you don’t need the hiking boots and kayak if you haven’t seen woodland in 8 years.
I can honestly say that with the rising cost of health insurance and other mandatory costs, my husband and I are still working to raise our income. But… mind you… we have been married 28 years, are the parents of six children aged 24-2, and have never made more than $50,000./year. We have enjoyed an amazingly full, joyfilled, life including healthy homemade meals. Our children have all excelled academically, and are healthy, talented, well-rounded, caring citizens. I have discovered that what children really want is their parents. They want our attention, our time, our company. Buying them fancy toys means nothing if we don’t play with them. I don’t want to spend more time away from them earning a paycheck to buy them more things. I want to find more ways to let go of things and free up my time to be with them.
Bonnie Jean says
have lived on little in the past, often out of necessity and then out of a desire to live a life without obligation to work for someone else in a 9to5 way. Was inspired by the Mennonite Book, “Having More With Less.”. Like your blog and FB page, am now working toward producing less waste and more living off the land, buying local. I didn’t see any comment about the Internet so can’t comment on that, but disagree with the comments that claim you shouldn’t be paid for a book, or the ones that complain of poverty. A big part of today’s economic crisis is the feeling by most of is that you can never have enough, you always want more…and more. the truth is you don’t need a new car every 2 years and new fashions each season. The less you spend on “stuff,” the more you have to help others who truly don’t have enough, and the less impact you have on a suffering environment
Chirstina says
Well, I’m glad the bashing kind of died down towards the later comments. Honestly, you can’t expect people to take those kinds of comments seriously on a blog about living with less, intentionally. I’m here for the constant reminders to change my mental habits and it’s working. Thanks Josh for this and all your articles, they’re really helping me change my thoughts on my own life and in turn the world and others in it. Once basic needs are met, we are free to decide how much or how little we ‘need’ to feel comfortable in life. Reframing our relationship to money and material things is the cheapest (but not easiest) way to get us off the hamster wheel and on to doing more purposeful things with our lives.
Erika says
This was the perfect thing for me to read today on my lunch break. I emptied out my online shopping cart (a brand I like is having an online special with free shipping, but I didn’t feel like I needed anything in my online basket), and instead made that donation I budgeted for this month, but had previously been putting off for a more convenient time. Thanks for the encouragement!