The Art of Spending Money – and the Deeper “Why” Behind It
I’ve been reading The Art of Spending Money by Morgan Housel, and like most of his writing, it’s filled with lines that make you stop and think. Two, in particular, stood out to me:
“Money is so tangible that it’s an easy goal to strive for, and pursuing it can become the path of least resistance for those who haven’t discovered what truly feeds their soul.”
“Not needing wealth is more valuable than the wealth itself.”
Coming from a financial planner, those quotes might sound unusual. But they capture something I’ve believed for a long time: money is a tool, not the goal.
When Money Becomes the Goal
When you make money the goal, you set yourself up for a lifelong chase. There’s always someone with more—more zeros, more toys, more square footage. And once you reach one milestone, another appears just a few steps ahead. It’s a cycle that never ends.
That’s the danger of confusing money for meaning. If your worth or happiness depends on accumulation, you’ll never feel like you have enough.
This is where it gets tricky for high achievers: this pattern often comes from the same qualities that made you successful in the first place. You’re driven. Ambitious. Focused. You’ve spent years setting big goals, checking off boxes, and striving for progress. That tenacity has likely opened doors and built a career you’re proud of.
Yet that same drive can turn on you when it’s never given space to rest. The “what’s next” mindset (so helpful in achieving) can become a silent thief of contentment. You achieve something great, but instead of celebrating, your mind rushes to the next target. You get the promotion, the house, the raise—and almost immediately, your brain resets the bar higher.
It’s not that ambition is bad. It’s one of your greatest strengths. But when the constant pursuit of more replaces your pursuit of meaning, the cost is high. You start to feel restless. You compare yourself to others. You wonder why success doesn’t feel quite as satisfying as it once did.
That’s when money stops serving you and starts consuming you.
When Money Becomes the Tool
The shift happens when you start viewing money as a tool: a means to live your values, not a measure of your worth. It’s no longer about how much you have or how much you spend. It’s about what your spending says about what truly matters to you.
If your value is meaningful work, maybe your financial plan helps you save enough to launch a business or take that nonprofit job you’ve always dreamed about.
If your value is family, maybe you spend on experiences that create connection: family vacations, weekend getaways, or saving for your children’s education.
Money, in these examples, isn’t the goal. It’s the enabler. The freedom to align your time, energy, and choices with what you actually care about.
Spending That Feeds the Soul
Housel uses an example that nearly everyone can relate to—buying a bigger house.
It’s easy to be excited about extra space, new features, or that golf simulator in the basement (I’ve seen those wish lists!). But what we’re often really craving isn’t the house itself, it’s the feeling it creates.
Maybe that bigger space means room to host family dinners, game nights, or holidays. Maybe it means your kids can each have their own rooms, or friends can stay comfortably. The excitement isn’t about the walls or the square footage, it’s about what the house provides: connection, belonging, joy.
The same idea applies to all spending. A purchase might look like a thing, but often it’s really about a feeling: safety, freedom, peace, time, or fulfillment.
When we spend intentionally, we’re not just trading money for goods. We’re trading money for meaning.
The Real Art of Spending
The real art of spending money is knowing what enough looks like for you, and recognizing that it might look different than it does for anyone else (and that’s okay!). It’s about designing your financial life around your values, not around comparison. It’s about aligning your spending with fulfillment, not fleeting satisfaction.
And sometimes, that means spending less—not because you can’t afford to, but because you realize you don’t need to. Because, as Housel reminds us, “not needing wealth is more valuable than the wealth itself.”
That’s where contentment lives. That’s where financial clarity turns into emotional clarity. And that’s where money finally starts working for you, not the other way around.
The views stated in this article are necessarily the opinion of Cetera Wealth Services, LLC and should not be construed directly or indirectly as an offer to buy or sell any securities mentioned herein. Due to the volatility of the markets mentioned, opinions are subject to change without notice. Information based on sources is believed to be reliable; however, their accuracy or completeness cannot be guaranteed. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
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