Its a sad but true fact, that some people are living the lives that others dictate of them. They try to match the behaviour of others, their peers, those they look up to. Be measured by standards that aren’t their own.

This simple quote says it all.

Too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like.

― Will Rogers

I know about it, I’ve been there in the past. Living in a small new housing estate where you were permanently under scrutiny by the neighbours, watching your purchases, your clothes, the cars you drive, what you did, where you went. A measure of you being able to ‘fit in’.

As it turned out, there were a lot of unhappy couples.

•  The couple who moved back to where they used to live, they felt they couldn’t ‘measure up’
•  The couple who ‘moved up’ to a house the poor husband knew he couldn’t afford, but let his wife lead him into more debt
•  The couple where the husband could never live up to his father in law, despite what he bought his wife
•  The couple who had the biggest house, he was going places, but sadly he lost his job and they had sell

There were just two couples who didn’t stay long. They had plans of their own. They didn’t fit in. They had their own view of how life should be lived, one of escaping the rat-race, the material world. One couple moved down, a smaller house, less debt, more time to concentrate on the things they valued.

The other couple, well they did their own thing, one of them writes a minimalist blog now.

Does this scenario sound familiar,  who are we trying to impress, please share or add a comment below.

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