Do you have the feeling that money is always not enough?

Hi Veejay, even if we can live well below our means, we would still feel that money is not enough. The reason is that we have to save up for the future. Most working people do not even have enough money for a year of expenses without working. Imagine having to live for 20 years after retirement, and no earned income. That is why nearly everyone feels that money is not enough. It is not that they do not have enough to live on, or that they are greedy. They are just cautious, and thinking about the future, and all the associated expenses.

Hi Shanemae, even rich people feel that money is not enough when they have a big project coming up. The only difference is that rich people find it easy to take loans, and they are very confident of repaying billions of dollars. For us, we always feel that money is not enough, because we fear that we live too long, and we may lose our jobs anytime. Right now there is no such thing as job security until retirement, and we know that it is hard to find job when the economy is not doing well. I think the feeling of money is not enough has nothing to do with how much savings or how much we spend, it is a fear of the future.

Hi Shanemae, that is good. It is always risky to rely on just one source of income. Much better to have income from full time work, and side jobs, and to have income from investment or other forms of passive income. I think when our passive income or investment income is higher than our full time job, then we will feel better.

yes, you are right. that is why i do not only rely on my work. i do have side jobs. as long as we live we would need money.

" irrespective" and " independence"--"successful" --typos regretted.

Hi Kalav, not everyone has the financial intelligence of your husband, and a good job as yours. Many people have the feeling that money is not enough when they think about the future. They have to spend nearly 25 years to pay off the mortgage, and provide for the education of their children. On top of that, they have to take care of aging parents. If they think about their own retirement, they would feel even worse, since the retirement age is about 60, and they can live for another 20 years after retirement. I think some cultures are very forward looking. Chinese people happen to have such a culture. We tend to think very far when it comes to money matter. Some Chinese families even plan a few generations ahead.

Hi Youless and Naseemkum, it is true that even necessities such as rice and vegetables are getting more expensive. Now that Thailand is facing severe flood, we are looking at another round of price increment. Thailand produces rice for nearly all countries in South East Asia. The flood means no harvest for this year, and price will definitely increase next year. There is simply no way to cut down on eating rice. Even if we start to eat half a bowl less, it is still better than nothing.

Yes its true that some mens had more lust upon money even they had more money with them. But now a days our necessities are more but our salary gaining is less so we cant control our economic needs so every man thinks about how can he gets more money by improving himself if we are struggling to get more money without robbery or any bad things then its safe way for life.

Yes, that movie really reminds us to try our best to earn as much money for our future needs. Because there are just too many types of expenses that we will needs to pay day by day in our daily life...

Hi Myfb, that is true. At least you have the choice of moving to a smaller town in order to cut down on the living expenses. However, for us, we can only leave the country if we want cheaper house or land. Just hope that economic situation continues to improve, and that we can earn more and more.

Hi Myfb, even if we can save part of our salary, we still feel that money is not enough. We know that we must have savings for retirement, yet the amount is never enough. We expect the inflation rate to eat into the value of our savings, and even a million dollars is not enough for us to retire now, and live to ripe old age of 100. That movie about Not enough Money is really about us, the common people. Even over here, the people like it very much, since it reflects what everyone has been thinking at one time or the other.

Hi Momo, even if a person feels contented with his current lifestyle and possessions, he will still feel that money is not enough. The simple reason is that we do not know how long we are going to live on this Earth. Even if we think we have enough for the next 20 years, the risk is that we will outlive the 20 years of savings. It is possible that we can live to a hundred and beyond. Money is not enough unless we know the exact date that we are going to die, and we have prepared for it.

Hi scheng1 I just want to point out that you have forgotten about people like Gandhi and mother Terasa. These people may have gone hungry but they know something that most of us dont. They have achieved peace without a lot of material wants. Unfortunately I am not like any of them but i do know they exist.

Hi Momo, those are people of very strong faith. Most of us do not have their spiritual strength to free the whole world or the whole country. Even they are not immune to the power of money. Mother Teresa knows the importance of providing good food and medicine to the poor people under her care. She is not worried about her own personal material comfort, but she does know that money is not enough to help all the poor people in the world. Some would die of hunger and preventable sickness. I think many rich people have really done a lot of good by donating their wealth to the rest who need it more than them.

Hi Bingskee, actually those who feel that money is not enough are great savers! They just feel insecure since the inflation rate is always higher than salary increment. That is why they try to save lots and lots of money to prepare for more than twenty years of retirement living. Over here in Asia, the household saving rate is very high. Most people can think very long term when it comes to money matter. Even when their children are just a year old, they start to buy all sorts of insurance policies to make sure that their children are adequately covered. They also start to save for college funds, and marriage expenses for their children. They are the ones who feel that money is not enough, since they can never save money to a point where they feel comfortable. In Asia, working adults have to provide for aging parents. We do not have social security safety net or free medical. In fact, nothing is free. If old people do not have enough savings, they have to work too.

Hi Millertime, for those who have retirement planning, they are the ones who always feel that money is not enough. When we think about retirement, and start to plan for it, we will see how badly we need money. Even assuming that we live 20 years after retirement, and we spend just $1000 a month, that would mean a quarter million dollars! Who on earth would have such a big amount in the bank? The increasing rate of inflation is worrying too. When people see how prices for food increase, and medical cost increases too, they definitely find that money is not enough, even if they can save part of their income every month.

Hi Megamatt, even for people who can save 20% of their earning, they still feel that money is not enough. When we think about retirement, and life after retirement, the sense of not having enough saving is very acute. Even now when people think about the increasing price of food, they feel that the income cannot keep up with the inflation rate. The feeling is not the same as saying that we do not have money to spend. It is just our sense of insecurity telling us to face the reality of increasing inflation rate.

Hi Kukueye, while most people can live within their means, it is true that when we think about saving for retirement, we feel that money is not enough. Many people find it tough to save 10% of their income. When they did manage to save money, something always happens, and they have to dig into their savings. For example, my aunt returns from a holiday to find that her fridge stops working, and the TV stops working. She already used part of her saving for the vacation. That is a planned trip, and she had to save extra hard for months to go to the vacation. The TV and fridge unexpectedly stopped working, so she had to fork out more than a thousand dollars for both items. Sometimes life is like that. When you really want to save money for retirement, something happens to cause you to spend a large sum of money.

Hi Sanofer, most people here are not really spending too much on luxuries, yet they are feeling that money is not enough. Some people can even save half of their income, and they think twice even about buying necessities. I think the fact that we are going to live longer than our ancestors, and the fact that we have at least 20 years to live after retirement is a sobering thought. Even if we have a million dollars now, and with aging parents to take care, and kids to feed, we dare not just quit our job and retire young. We fear we do not have enough money if we stop working, and live for next fifty years on our savings.

Hi Karstine, actually the feeling that money is not enough has nothing to do with our wants or desires to have more material goods. Most people have stopped thinking of luxury, since they can see how fast the price of food is going up. They are just worried about not having enough money to meet retirement needs. When you start to think about cost of living, and retirement, that is enough to kill all desires for branded goods or long vacation. The fact is that it is harder for older persons to get jobs. The fact is also that medical care is very expensive now, and getting more and more expensive. Our income can never match up to the level of inflation. That is why we always feel that money is not enough, even if we save part of our income every month.

Hi LoriRuri, even if you have savings, and you do not overspend, you would still feel that money is not enough. Feeling that money is not enough is not the same as saying that you do not have enough to spend. Actually over here in Asia, most people can save a lot of money, but they still feel that they do not have enough to fund retirement. I have known some people who can save half their monthly income, and they are always feeling insecure. They know that their income will never catch up with inflation rate, and that inflation has eaten into the value of their saving.

Hi Sumitlohakare, yes, you are right. How we feel about money and how much we really have are two entire different things. In fact, many middle class and rich people feel that money is not enough. For the rich people, they have to raise money for new projects, and they have to learn to negotiate the lowest possible rate when they borrow money from the bank. For the middle class and the poor, they feel that money is not enough because the inflation rate is always higher than salary increment.

Hi Didi, sorry to hear that. I know how terrible it is to have bills unpaid, and income not arriving on time. Sometimes when company has financial difficulties, the salary can come a bit later. I think even when the salary comes on time, we may have unexpected expenses that need immediate attention. Over here, we are preparing for a huge increase in the price of rice, since Thailand is having a very severe flood. The newspaper said that the flood is the worst in half a century. That means the end of rice harvest, and rice will definitely become very expensive next year. When our income does not increase at the same level, and prices of food increase so much, it is hard to make do.

Hi Thatgirl, yes, I agree with your points. I think we also face the problem of deciding to save the money or buy things with our money. When we decide to save the money, we need to work extra hard to get money to buy things that we need. Since we can never have enough savings to last us for the next 50 years, we always will feel that money is not enough.

Hi Naseemkum, in view of the recession in many countries, making enough money to survive is a challenge. it is not as if they are not satisfied when they should be. The problem is that the price of food is increasing at a rate unexpected by many people. For some people, they have lost their jobs, and rely on their savings. Money is really not enough for most people for survival. It is true that some people feel money is not enough for wants, but that is rather rare nowaday.

Hi Baanadetto, yes, even if we can save 20% of our income, and invest wisely, we still will feel that money is not enough. When we think about the retirement, and how much we really have, that is the time when we feel the tightness of money. Sometimes a medical condition that happens to our family can cause us to lose a few years of saving too. Just too bad that we do not have the foresight to know when we need money, and how much to prepare for it.

Hi Clearwater, it is not just the things that people want. Sometimes when we think about how long we can live, and how long we can work, we really feel that money is not enough. Over here, the retirement age is 62. If you happen to have grandparents who live to 90 years old, it makes you worry that you have no income for 28 years after retirement. Most people tend to outlive their grandparents and parents, since they have better food, and better medical care, and the good genes from ancestors. That is the time when we really feel that money is not enough, and that we have to save as hard as possible.