7 Surprising Links Between Money and Peace of Mind

In medieval times, anyone who violated the king’s rule, or posed a threat to the throne, could be locked away for any length of time without trial or hope of release. The infraction didn’t have to be particularly grievous— maybe a noble simply failed to follow the king’s orders fast enough.

This practice is called “arbitrary imprisonment” and it’s something you probably assume no longer happens in a civilized society. But what if I told you that it’s common, and in fact, that you yourself are a victim? You’d probably be shocked and confused.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of people today are locked away in a “metaphorical” prison without even knowing they are there. In this prison, you are not free to do as you please, you live in constant fear of upsetting the guards around you, and there’s no obvious way out. The prison I speak of is….

Stop! What is the Prison?

If you’ve read this far you are probably curious as to what type of prison you might be living in.

The prison of debt? No, not everyone is in debt, and debt can in fact be financially advantageous for some people.

The prison of consumerism? Nope, not everyone is a consumerist, and there’s nothing wrong with treating yourself to nice things occasionally.

The prison of materialism? Not really. Materialism is mostly about how much you love “things” but I’m talking about something else— something that you have no choice but to always think about.

Last guess? The prison of greed? Again, not exactly. Greed leads to bad decisions, but it’s not an issue that impacts everyone.

The Real Prison: Money Stresses

The prison I’m talking about is the prison of financial worries. Almost everyone in the modern economy has money problems on their mind— whether it’s stressing about how to pay for an unexpected expense or how to maximize your savings for the future. The problem isn’t that these are bad things to spend your mental energy on, but that it’s practically all we think about.

Almost every decision is refracted through the lens of money. Can we afford something? How can we get it cheaper? Is it a better investment? How can we have more?

And even if you are someone who isn’t fixated on money— you really have no choice. To live free of financial worries is to be totally dependent on someone else worrying on your behalf.

The Only Way Out

Ok, now that you see this prison you might be wondering if there’s any way out. The short answer: not really. The whole way out is to not live in a financial-based economy, and if you are reading this, that’s probably not an option.

When I wrote the title of this article, you might have thought I was going to provide a way of having more money and less stress— and I am going to do that. But it’s important to recognize that this is only a relative solution. You’re not leaving the prison, you’re just not living in constant fear of the guards around you.

And personally, I think that’s a good goal. We can’t escape money but we can learn to relate to it with greater peace. At the end of the day, managing your money well is mostly about setting yourself up for ways to avoid financial fears. Let’s take a look at some of the ways you can do that.

Establish your own safety net and stress less about the unexpected.

Everyone knows that the best way to avoid money stress is to have a big pile of money you can draw upon in times of need. But when most people think of this, they think of a big emergency fund in a savings account. Certainly, there’s a place for that. But one of the greatest ways to protect your money is to buy the insurance you need. If that sounds boring, maybe this real-life example will help: my wife had her wisdom teeth removed recently and it cost us $0 thanks to our dental insurance. Without insurance, that kind of news would have been a significant source of stress for our budget this year.

Dial back your fomo and reclaim your stolen time.

Here’s a deeply rooted fear that’s common among all people: the fear of missing out on the best deal. I see people agonizing over this in so many ways: they research for hours before a small purchase, wait years to make a decision for the “perfect” time, and only book vacations at the last minute because they’re holding out for a better deal to pop up. This fixation on timing all your purchases perfectly is not only stressful, but it’s a waste of time. Why not put all that energy to better use? Instead of worrying about what you might be missing out on, realize that you’re missing out on a stress-free life right now!

Dodge the scams and keep your hard-earned money safe.

People are naturally afraid of being scammed and for good reason. If you fall for a con artist’s trap, you’ll probably be too embarrassed to tell anyone and never get your money back. That’s why I always stick to buying items from reputable sources. On Amazon, I look for sellers that are “Fulfilled by Amazon” and “Amazon’s Choice.” When ordering takeout, I never order directly from a restaurant’s website, which is more likely to be hacked, but only through UberEats. In a world where online scams are everywhere, these precautions make me feel a lot safer.

Avoid lifestyle inflammation and have less stuff to worry about.

When you look at the happiest people around you, are their homes adorned with flashy products and gadgets, or is their life marked by contentment and simplicity? In my own life, I’ve found that constantly upgrading my lifestyle with newer, fancier stuff eventually brings a level of complexity and clutter that can leave me feeling overwhelmed. When I’m content, I seek less, and when I seek less, my daily life becomes more streamlined and less chaotic. It’s not flashy, but I believe simplicity is the real secret to having more peace.

Minimize frustration by buying things that are nice and work well.

When was the last time you splurged on a luxury item that was just a little bit fancy? I do it all the time. Just today I bought a $4 Coke Zero from the fancy French bistro downtown, and I have no regrets. Why not? Because in my experience, it’s often worth a little extra to have things that are nice and work well. When I try to go the ultra-cheap route and get an off-brand item or a budget version of something, I usually end up regretting it. Either it’s a hassle to use or it breaks down, and I’m definitely not going to make that mistake again. By simply splurging a tiny bit, I avoid a whole world of frustration and keep my future self from being unhappy.

Be more generous and stop worrying about being judged as a cheapskate.

One financial worris that you probably have is the fear of being judged as a cheapskate. Nobody wants to be seen as someone who doesn’t contribute their fair share. What’s the best solution to this fear? I think it’s delightfully simple: just be more generous. My rule of thumb with group events is to offer to pay first before anyone else chimes in, and if that’s not an option, always suggest to split things evenly. This way no one is stuck with a bigger bill because they ate smaller or didn’t drink. It’s one thing to be frugal with your own money and another thing to be frugal with someone else’s. Don’t be that guy.