When someone says, “I put my pants on one leg at a time”, it can mean different things to different people.  But someone who says that is usually someone out of the ordinary trying to show some humility and that they are ordinary in many ways.  It would be common for a celebrity or rich person to make such a statement.

It is obviously true that most people do put their pants on one leg at a time, unless they like to sit down and shove both legs in at the same time.  Perhaps a better quote is, “Almost everyone puts their pants on by themselves.”  This may not apply for little kids or really old people.  It might not apply to a few people who have a disability or have a temporary injury.  But for the most part, adults put on their own pants without any help, including those with servants.

My guess is that Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos put on their own pants.  They probably do a lot of other things on their own.

I think it is important to acknowledge that no matter how rich someone is, or how glamorous their life seems to be, they still have to do many things that almost everyone else does.  They also have days where they don’t feel well.  They may have some days where they are just in a bad mood.  Despite what you might read from your friends’ posts on Facebook, everyone has their struggles in some way.  It’s just that some are worse than others.

I think this is important when looking at money and wealth.  There are a lot of people who think their problems would go away if they won the lottery or somehow made a lot of money.  Some of their problems and stresses probably would go away, but hopefully they wouldn’t be replaced by a whole new set of stresses.  Sometimes people need something of a routine and something that provides some fulfillment or sense of purpose in life.  If someone strikes it rich, they risk losing that fulfillment unless they are wise.

When thinking about money, realize that there is not that much difference between a multi-millionaire and a billionaire.  Most people can’t spend a billion dollars, even in a lifetime, unless they are buying a sports team or something similar.  And if you really want your own yacht and private airplane, the multi-millionaire can probably just rent or lease one for the time period that he wants it.

There have been studies that a higher income does not provide that much more happiness when you reach a certain level.  Some say it is rather low, say, around $75,000 per year.  But in America today, that kind of income does not get you that far, especially for a family.  If you know how to handle money well, then I would think a family earning twice that amount of money would find a lot less stress, at least in terms of paying the bills.  It wouldn’t change a lot of things though.  You aren’t hiring a chauffeur to drive your kids to their local activities.

You will always have certain stresses in life.  In terms of money, I think the key is to get to a point of being comfortable, while still saving money.  I know some rich people and entrepreneurs will say that being comfortable is bad because it makes you complacent.  There is some truth to this, but complacency isn’t that bad if you don’t have money stresses and you are living a content life.

Of course, I think it should always be a goal, even if longer term, to find financial freedom.  This does not necessarily mean being a millionaire if your living expenses are low enough.  It means being able to quit your job if you become miserable, without being really stressed out about money.  It doesn’t have to mean that you can quit and never work again, but it does mean that you should be able to quit for at least a few years without working.

Let’s take three families for example.  Let’s say there are two children in each example.  Family A earns $50,000 per year and barely scrapes by.  Family B earns $125,000 per year and is able to live a comfortable middle class lifestyle while saving 10% each year and taking one nice vacation each year.  Family C earns $1 million per year and lives in a really nice house in a country club and can take lavish vacations.

I would say there is probably a bigger difference between Family A and Family B than there is between Family B and Family C.  Family A is barely grinding through life and is constantly stressed out about paying the bills.  Their biggest treat in life is being able to eat out once a week at the local all-you-can-eat buffet.

There is obviously a far greater disparity in numbers between Family B and Family C, but they aren’t that much different.  Family C probably drives luxury cars, and everything in life is just a little more luxurious.  They fly first class when they go on a trip.  But the day-to-day activities are not that different.  And while Family B has to be a little cautious about where the money goes, they are still comfortable as long as the income keeps coming in.

The point is, most middle class people shouldn’t look at the super rich.  They can strive for that if they want to, but they should first seek just to make their lives easier.  This means not having to worry about money to the point that it causes anxiety.

Also, it isn’t all about income.  It is about spending and savings too.  Family A may find that they can still live on $50,000 per year and not be miserable if they only had a year’s worth of salary in the bank.  Then the little emergencies and repairs in life are not that big of a deal.

You can strive to be Family B with some money in the bank.  This will not eliminate all of the stresses in life, but it should eliminate most of the money stresses.  Of course, there are other factors to weigh, such as actually liking your job.  There is also the consideration of whether one parent should stay home with the kids and not work a salaried job.

Family C may not be that much happier than Family B, if at all.  There is one thing for sure though.  The people in Family C are still putting on their pants by themselves, whether if it is one leg at a time or not.