We all know that being a musician is a difficult career choice money-wise. That’s why I wanted to create this article to show you that money isn’t everything.

It’s possible to live a perfectly good and happy life without money.

Unfortunately, living without money runs counter to our cultural understandings of success. And most people think that success equals happiness.

However many people are waking up to the idea that easing up over financial concerns can impact your health and your outlook on life.

Living without cash offers lots of possible benefits to you and your society.

Reducing your environmental impact

By buying less ‘crap’ you are not contributing to companies’ need to ‘overproduce’.

Your environmental footprint will be reduced when you don’t need to buy fancy electronic devices that are made in countries very far away from your own.

If you do want items, you may be more inclined to buy them used, which will save you money and also reuse materials instead of contributing to the manufacturing of new ones.

Focus on the important things in life

Self-realization is a great way to figure out where you are and where you are heading. This means in a self-actualized way, not measured by your financial position.

This is the centerpiece from where you start your journey of attaining your goals. The first and the primary thing to be done is to make clear who and what are the most important things in your life.

As soon as these objectives are clear, focus your attention on these aspects and don’t let them deteriorate.

Family and friends

Focusing on family and friends as an anchoring point will help you increase your understanding and appreciation of what you have, and help you live a more purposeful life.

Set aside time for your friends and family and show them that you appreciate them. You do not need to buy them things to show you care for them.

Playing board games with them, listening to music together, telling each other stories are great ways to pass the time with your friends and family.

For gifts, on Christmas or birthdays, it’s not necessary to buy them presents, sometimes making a meal for them or writing a poem could be enough!

Make time for the things you love

Most likely, the things you really love don’t require too much money.

For example, if you make an investment in a guitar, it may seem like some money at first, but it will pay for itself in the number of hours of fun you will have with it.

This type of investment is not like a videogame, where you play it for a while and then get bored with it. The guitar, or any instrument, is a whole universe to explore, and people can dedicate their entire lives to exploring it.

Many activities don’t require any money at all, writing stories, poetry, singing, doing exercise, playing sports.

It is important that you make time for these things so that you can get the feeling of progression.

Become passionate about your hobbies

Learn to become very passionate about your hobbies and try to get as good as you can about them. Let everyone know how passionate you so that they can help motivate you when times get tough.

• If you play guitar, organize a jam session with musicians in your neighborhood. Organize a concert.
• If you make art or crafts, set up a small showing of your work.
• If you write stories or poetry, start a blog and share them with your friends.

It is important to be passionate about these activities because only then can you grow, meet new people who also enjoy these activities and have something that is worth living for.

Practice gratitude and being happy

Did you know you can train yourself to be happier? Research has shown that meditation practice is one of the best ways to become equanimous with life’s pulls and pushes.

There are great apps that you can download for free to start your meditation practice. Or simply type in mindfulness into YouTube.

There is also a practice in meditation called Metta, which is a practice of loving-kindness for yourself and others around you. This practice will make you feel energized and grateful for the things you do have in your life!

Build a growth state of mind

A growth mindset refers to the belief that we can change ourselves. When we learn to train our minds to always seek improvement, we can change our brain to wanting the right things in life.

Keep practicing to increase the favorable states of mind and decrease the unfavorable ones. This skill has been linked to a better capability to cope with tension and be more resilient in the face of stress.

Imagine the worst possible scenario

The stoics from ancient Greece and Rome had a way of dealing with the hardships of life.

Certainly, you could imagine your life a lot worse than it is right now. The idea is to imagine yourself in a worse state so that you can be grateful for the place you are right now.

This may seem morbid, but the idea is not to dwell on how your life could be worse, but rather be grateful that you have the capabilities and opportunities that you do.

Take breaks from social networks.

Instagram and other social media tends to have a negative impact on our happiness. By selecting to take breaks from these social media networks, or changing the method we use social networks, we can boost our happiness.

Take care and be well!