At my weekend cycling adventure today one of my friends brought his new bicycle. He had spent a fortune on his new bicycle, upgrading everything to almost the top possible spec for each thing. I suspect his bike cost somewhere around the region of RM40,000. That’s equivalent to a small car.
This is my bike. It doesn’t cost that much.
While we were admiring his bike he didn’t seem to talk so much about his bike itself but more about how stress he is at work. He is an entrepreneur behind a really successful business. I found it odd at first. Why is it he suddenly brought up the matter of work stress when we’re talking about something so happy like his bicycle. Then I began to understand.
He’s been really stressed with work. His business has been affected by some really tough challenges lately and he had been working very late and sleeping very little. So to make himself feel happier he splurged on the expensive bicycle. The bicycle that we were all admiring was something he loved but something he couldn’t help associate with the stress he was facing.
Then I thought about myself and whether I had bought nice things for myself just to make myself feel better when I was really stressed. The answer is yes. So when people say a tai tai spends a lot of money to make herself feel better of troubles she may have at home… while it sounds like sour grape talk.. there could be some truth in that. You don’t have to be rich to have retail therapy to make yourself feel a little better.
While I thought about whether retail therapy helped though I began to remember that yes it did distract me or make me feel a little better…. but it was short lived. In a matter of weeks or even days sometimes, I take for granted the new toy I have bought and it doesn’t make me feel as good as it used to. This reminds me of something my uncle once told me. He said he doesn’t believe in buying material stuff because there is no limit and no end to it. Once you satisfy a want, there will be something else you want and when you think about it… that’s really true.
That’s the nature of our materialistic world though. We have grown so good at making things that people want that there is no limit. Perhaps a better way to spend money to relieve stress is on holidays. Holidays don’t last forever of course so they suffer the same thing as buying a material item. However it offers something else. During the few days or weeks that you’re away you offer yourself an escape from your stress or your problems. And it gives you a new experience to focus on or at least distract yourself with … at least for a while.
So what do you think is better money spent when you’re stressed? Buying yourself a new handbag? Or traveling?
Timothy Tiah – Co-Founder of Colony, Kuala Lumpur Co-Working Space