Your personal finance

Tips in living a happy life with or without money

The book The Last Lecture by Dr Randy Pausch is one useful piece you need to have on your book shelf. The man died of pancreatic cancer in 2008 when his book had just been published and became a best seller. Allow me to share excerpts from his book on how to achieve a better life. These are ordinary day-to-day way of life elements but easily forgotten. Yet when applied, they help you live a happy and fulfilling life regardless of how much money you have. Here is the guide to good life tips from Dr Randy Pausch’s book. Enjoy!

  • Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is about
  • Don’t have negative thoughts of things you cannot control.
  • Envy is a waste of time. Concentrate on what you can achieve with your potentials
  • Forget dwelling on issues of the past – but never lose the lessons you can get from it
  • No one is in charge of your happiness except you
  • Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime
  • Your job will not take care of you when you are sick. Your family and friends will – so value them and stay in touch.
  • Strive to do the right things always – you will avoid so many problems and mistakes
  • However good or bad a situation is, it will change – so be ready with the next steps.
  • Put GOD first in anything and everything that you think, say and do. You will always have hope for the future.

Some secrets of money and life success

Here are some little thoughts and things that have improved my finances, improved my career, and made my life better over the past years. Read and apply– you will never regret:

  • Stuff you are not using at your office or home is money that is not invested.
  • Children are expensive, but they save money, too. It doesn’t cost anything to spend the evening playing games like hide and seek with them or watching cartoons with them than spending your money at a beer hole with friends every evening.
  • Whenever I meet someone, I have a choice. I can either respect them and get along with them, or I can judge them. One route leads to good relations and boosts potential for future financial growth. The other route leads to failure.
  • Don’t overthink your investments before you start. You are better off starting to invest now and making needed changes down the road later.
  • Time is money. Don’t waste either one.
  • Your true friends are still there when you lose everything else—such true friends should be treated as part of your family—hold steadfast to them. Actually, one real relationship where the other person cares about you is worth a hundred weak relationships where the other person will drop you when it’s convenient.
  • The more you give without strings or regrets, the more the income that flows to you.
  • If you think about every kwacha you spend before you actually spend it, you will find more kwachas in your wallet.
  • If you want to learn and master something, surround yourself with that topic: books, DVDs, CDs, and experts in that area.  Make the ideas flood your mind.
  • If you have debts, eliminating them should be your top priority starting with ones with high interest rates.
  • No matter what kind of positive life change you are trying to create, it is always easier if you have a friend doing it with you—usually your spouse.
  • Tell the people you love that you love them. Do this as often as you can. You never know the last time you will be able to tell them that, and if you don’t take that chance, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.
  • Lastly and most importantly, spend less than you earn—it’s the golden rule of effective personal finance management.

Have a blessed week-end as you sit thinking hard on how you can apply this to your life and see how much money gets attracted to you in the process. n

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