PEOPLE - 10 Important things that Money can’t buy

Article by mayuri agarwal

All the time, we talk of money, how should we get money, how should we save money, how should we spend money. Our mind literally revolves around money. However, the question that comes up is, can money buy everything? If that was true, why do we see even the wealthiest of people unhappy? Surely money is important, without money we would not have food to eat, a roof on top of our heads, clothes on our body, education etc. Money is surely a means to an end but even though money can buy most of the things that we need, it cannot buy some things.  Even if you have thousands and millions of dollars, some things are priceless and cannot be bought. Here is a list of things that surely, money cannot buy!

10- Love

Love is a thing you cannot buy even if you have loads of money. Surely you may be able to buy infatuation as a result of being rich or maybe even lust, but love can only come from proper understanding, care, feelings and spending quality time with each other. For love, you have to completely understand your partner and accept him/her in each sphere of your life. Often you might have seen that some people marry others just because they are rich and they think that the richness will overcome all the differences, but such marriages do not last long. Love cannot be obtained by money, but only by a pure heart.

9- Peace of mind

Peace is something that dwells inside all of us, but is mostly hidden. Peace is not something money can buy; it can only come out of your soul as a result of humane acts, by acting fairly and treating others just the way we want ourselves to be treated. You must have often heard even the richest of the people saying that they have all the luxury in the world but they do not have peace. They have sleepless nights and all the time they are worrying about their money. The more money you have, the less peace you will have. Surely money may provide you with some kind of recreation, but it cannot provide mental peace.

8- Confidence

Confidence is something that you acquire from experience. You might be having all the money in the world, but you may be lacking the confidence to utilize it. You might get an appointment fixed by your money, but unless you have the confidence to make that appointment successful, your money is useless. Confidence has the ability to make or break your career plans. Unless you have the confidence to try something new and take a risk, you will not succeed at it. If you think you can buy confidence from all the money you have, think again 

7- Luck

Consider a situation, you are a millionaire and you are going to sign a big contract with a company, you are on the way when suddenly your car crashes and you are severely injured. How can money help in such a situation? What if you invest money in a big company and that company is a fraud and runs away with all your money, what will you do? Sometimes, you cannot escape luck no matter how rich or poor you are. Luck can turn you from a beggar to a millionaire and from a millionaire to a beggar within seconds. You just cannot “buy” luck. All you can do is wish that luck goes your way.

6- Childhood

Don’t we all remember the happy times when we were kids and had nothing to do except roam around freely, play games, have ice creams, do whatever we wished without a care in the world? Childhood is a phase which is engraved at the back of our minds and gives us a happy memory each time we think about it. But can we get that time back? Can we go again into time and live freely as we did when we were kids? The answer is NO. No matter how much money you have, you simply cannot buy some memories for example your childhood. You cannot bring that time and relive those moments.

5- Health

Money can surely buy you medicines and treatment for your health issues, but it cannot replace the health you had once it is lost. Instead of relying on money to help you in saving your body once it has started failing you, it is better to take preventive action for example not smoking, exercising regularly and eating things that suit your body. Money will also not buy the youth in which your body could do anything very easily. Today, there seem to be treatments available to “preserve” your youth and health, but all of that is an illusion. No amount of money will get back your health and youth so start taking care of it from today.

4- Manners and class

There are so many poor or middle class people who in spite of having less money, have more class and manners than the rich ones who often are rude with no manners. Manners and class are things which you learn from your family and the society you are living in. They reflect your upbringing and family background. Manners or class cannot be bought with money, they can only be learnt. Good behavior and money do not necessarily go hand in hand. There might be lessons for manners which you can obtain through money, but still a session on manners will not change you. Money might buy you entry in a place that has better class, but it cannot make you “behave” with class.

3- A good relationship with your kids

You can buy your kids all the toys, gadgets and games in the world but you cannot make them love you if you are not well connected to them. A good child-parent relationship is only possible when you spend time with them, help them in their homework, teach them new tricks, help them in their games and go out with them. A nanny raising your kid will not give you a good relationship with your kids. By doing this, your child might only know you for the money you have, and they day you do not have that money, your child will also drift away from you. You will benefit more by spending time with them, rather than spending money on them.

2- Friends

Money can only buy companions, not friends. The so called friends that you have are because of the money you have. They are people who will agree with everything you say and flatter you just so that they do not disappoint you. Such friends are selfish and are only concerned with your money. The day your money goes, they will also go. Real friends are the ones which you make over time regardless of the money you have. Such friends are there for you in every aspect of your life and are not concerned about your money but the value you hold. So if you think you can “buy” friends with the money you have, remember that they will be just companions who will be there as long as you have money.

1- Lost time

The most important thing that money cannot buy is time. You might waste your time right now and procrastinate but soon you will realize that the time you have lost is priceless and the clocks cannot be turned back. When you miss the chance of proposing to a loved one, or telling your kids that you will play with them later, the opportunity that you had that time, is gone. If you do not study for an important exam from the beginning and regret one day before the exam, you cannot turn the clocks and get back the time you had wasted. Thus, no matter how much money you have, you cannot get back the time you have lost. Utilize every minute of your life so that in the end you don’t regret.