Life Lesson from Travel #11: Money Is Not as Valuable as You Think It Is

I denied this lesson for too many years. It was only through the unforgettable experiences I have had in the past two years that I gathered enough strength and evidence to make myself believe that money is not as important as I thought. Many have said that money can buy happiness, but I beg to differ. I believe money can buy you freedom, but not happiness, at least not directly. By this, I mean that having more money allows you to worry about less worldly things such as bills, which allows you to focus more on the things that will truly bring you happiness in life.

For the longest time, I had a hard time spending money on myself, but never with spending money on others. Because of this, I would often forgo opportunities to do fun things like go to an amusement park, visit museums, and buy myself a gift. I would tell myself that whatever "it" was at the time was not worth my hard-earned money. What I failed to realize was that I was completely wrong.

While on my US Road Trip, I did lots of fun activities, as I mentioned before. I was only able to do most of them because they were free. After experiencing the exhilarating and sometimes life-changing nature of these activities, I began to question why I had deprived myself for all these years.

I have always been an entrepreneurial guy. I started my own small business, and I am always planning out a new method of making a little extra cash. Also, I have been a saver since first grade, and even had a newspaper route in fourth grade. Needless to say, I had more money than most of my friends and classmates, yet I did not spend any of it on myself. As a result, I was missing out on many new and unexpected opportunities.

When I lost all my possessions on the train, I realized that, within the blink of an eye, all my money could disappear. If I continued to hold onto money so tightly, I would miss many opportunities in life, opportunities that could prove to be much more valuable than the money. Unfortunately, it took a severe incident to get me to change my habits. But after that day, I took on a whole new approach to life. If there was something I wanted to do, even if it cost me some money, I was going to do it.

Now, I know that not everything I spend my money on will be worth it, but that is when I think of it as a learning experience rather than a lost cause. For example, I spend $80 zip lining in Vermont. After the fact, I was very disappointed. It was not as exhilarating as I thought it would be. All I could think about was that I would rather have gone go-karting (another one of my new experiences) ten times instead of spending the equivalent costs on zip lining.

I discovered then that there were so many things I could have done differently, but that thinking about them would not move me forward in life. If anything, it would only make me bitter. Instead, I could use each experience as a personal learning tool. Then, through my YouTube videos and travel advice, I could bring the experiences to life and help others to gauge whether it would be something they truly would enjoy. My loss could save many others money and provide them with their ideal bucket list activity.

All this is not to say that I no longer look for good deals or wait for holiday sales to make select purchases. I still do shop frugally, but I do not let money stop me from doing something new or something I would like to do. I maintain a budget and shop wisely, but I also allow myself to have some fun with the money I earn. Each time I remind myself, "Money is not as valuable as I think it is, but the opportunities it enables me to take advantage of are.”