Frugality is Not the Key to Riches

One of the greatest myths of wealth creation is that being as frugal as possible is the key to riches and a happy life. There are countless articles written about how to save money and become wealthy by recycling materials, making your own household cleaners, growing your own vegetables, upcycling furniture and so on. While all these activities are very meritorious and may indeed save you money, they are not the path to riches, and definitely not the way to have a happy life.

Being frugal often leads to a poverty mindset. Filling your mind with thoughts of going without and not having enough can lead to missed opportunities, not only to create wealth, but to enjoy life. If you want to get ahead, it may be more beneficial to set up a business or take on an extra job than to spend your time doing home maintenance, household cleaning or gardening. Unless you have plenty of spare time, it is often better to pay someone else to do these things to free up your time to be doing things that give you a greater return.

The right mindset for creating wealth and being happy is one of shifting your money and time resources away from those things which are not really that important to you towards the things that bring you the highest return or the most pleasure. That can, and should, include being generous towards others. This kind of mindset is one of abundance and opportunity. I once heard of a man who used to carry one thousand dollars in cash in his wallet, not to spend, but because he found it gave him an abundant mindset that made him happier, more positive, and more likely to see opportunities. Perhaps we should all give it a try!