1. Live Below Your Means

    There will always be temptation to forsake the future for immediate gratification. We all want to buy that new piece of technology, treat ourselves to an expensive night on the town, or take out a loan for the flashy car we can’t afford. It might feel great at the time but rash spending hurts a lot later on.

    Enjoy life’s simple pleasures and save as much as you can. Expensive things don’t create lasting happiness and security. Careful spending will bring you greater leisure and enjoyment in the long run.

    2. Put Your Money to Work

    Saving is great, but to make the most of your money you need to put it to work. Good investments can be the difference between retiring in your 40’s or in your 60’s.

    A post today at The Simple Dollar really got me thinking. According to Trent’s projections, if a person in their early 20’s invests 20% of their income in an S&P index fund, the interest they earn will equal their current salary when they reach their early 40’s. They could retire without a drop in income!

    Wise investing is the surest path to financial independence and it’s something everyone can work on. It’s definitely an area I’ll be devoting more attention to in my personal life and on this blog.

    3. Educate Yourself

    To be happy we need continuous growth. The best way to grow is life long education. This doesn’t mean you need to pursue a doctorate or spend 2 hours reading every day. Self education can be anything that takes you out of your comfort zone. The important part is keeping an open mind and searching for fresh ideas and perspectives.

    Education builds over time. It might feel like the bits of wisdom you acquire don’t mean much, but over the years they add up to form a wiser, kinder, more interesting person.

    4. Develop Lasting Personal Relationships

    Suppose you had everything you wanted. Would you be happy without anyone to share it with? The personal relationships we develop with friends and family members are the greatest source of happiness in our lives. Don’t forget about them.

    Taking the time to cultivate and enjoy personal relationships is essential to longterm happiness. Without the people you care about you’ll probably be miserable, no matter how successful you become.

    5. Work Towards a Dream You’re Passionate About

    Even if your life isn’t perfect, you can always build towards a goal you’re passionate about. If you aren’t building towards something, you’re probably stagnating. When this happens to me I start to feel like a victim trapped by my own life. The best way to reverse this is working towards a goal.

    We can’t control everything about our lives, but working towards a goal gives us something positive to focus on and lays the foundation for future success. No matter what your passion is, get out there and start doing something. As Lao Tzu said, even a journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step.

    Bonus: 6. Stay in Shape

    You only get one body. Once it’s been ruined there isn’t much you can do about it. Exercise to keep the rust off. Avoid excessive consumption of damaging substances and unhealthy foods. It may feel like terrible self denial at the time but enjoying good health in your later years is worth the sacrifice.

    1．量入為出的生活方式

    這個世界充滿太多的誘惑，使得很多人都因暫時的滿足感而放棄了未來。我們都想要擁有最新最昂貴的技術產品，奢侈地享受某個夜晚，或者用貸款購買一輛無法負擔的豪華轎車。當種感覺可能真的很好，但毫無計劃的開支只會帶來更多的后遺癥。

    享受生活簡單的快樂，并盡可能保持這種狀態。奢侈的物質享受是無法帶來持久的快樂和安全感的。最終，只有量入為出的生活方式才能帶來安逸的生活和幸福。

    2.投資事業

    節儉是美德，但要充分地利用你的金錢，就把它們投資在事業上。好的投資能讓你在40歲時就得到財務上的解脫，這比60歲退休要好得多。

    今天收到的來自The Simple Dollar公司的郵件讓我為之深思。特倫特的觀點是，如果有人在20歲早期就開始將收入的20%投資在S&P的指數化證券投資基金上，那么當他們40歲時所賺的利息就等于現在的工資。那時，他們就可能在沒有任何收入的情況下達到財務解脫。

    明智的投資是通向財務解脫最可靠的途經，也是每個人都學得會。毫無疑問，這是我愿意為之付出心血致力在這個博客上研究和學習的。

    3．自我培養

    我們需要不斷地成長來獲得最終的快樂幸福。成長的最好方法是窮其一生的學習。但這并不意味著你必須要獲得博士頭銜或每天兩小時的閱讀。自我培養是能讓你從安逸環境中走出的任何方式。最關鍵的是保持思想開放，尋求嶄新的想法和觀點。

    自我培養是通過時間累積而成的。可能你所學到的聰明才智在目前并無特別之處，但許多年后，它們會在漸漸累積，幫助你成為一位智者，善人，或幽默風趣的人。

    4．持久的人際關系

    假設你已擁有想要的一切。但如若無人分享，你還會開心嗎？我們與朋友親人間建立的感情關系是快樂的最大來源。切莫忘了這點。

    懂得花時間來培養和享受人際關系是永久快樂的本質因素。假如你沒有真正想要關心的人，那樣的你是悲慘的，不管有多成功。

    5．致力于你的夢想

    即使你的生活并不夠完美，你也可以朝著你的夢想前進。沒有可為之努力的目標，可能就會慢慢變得頹廢。當這種情況發生我身上時，我就開始感覺那是生活的一個陷阱。扭轉這種狀況最好的辦法是朝著一個目標前進。

    對于生活，我們無法掌控，但不停地追求目標可以讓我們變得積極，為成功打下基礎。不管你的目標是什么，只要你下定決心踏出第一步。老子曾說，千里之行始于足下，就是這個道理。

    6．保持良好狀態

    生命只有一次。一旦身體出了什么問題，就再無法挽回。多做運動會讓身體更加健康。盡量避免有損身體的過量運動和危害健康的食物。也許你會有反抗情緒，但為了以后的健康生活，這種犧牲絕對是值得的