Do you love money?

Do you love to earn it? Dream of what it can buy? Visit your bank accounts often and watch them grow? Review your investments with eager anticipation, and fancy yourself an amateur trader in your spare time? Do you read countless articles on money making strategies, from businesses to investment and tax-saving tips? Discuss detailed money matters with your family and friends over dinner?

 
Well, you’re sick.

 

Do you hate money?

Do you ignore your investments? (Or not have any to begin with)? Bury your head in the sand when the monthly bills roll in? Politely excuse yourself when family or friends start talking about money or careers or taxes? Put off filing your taxes each year? Cringe when you have to go to the ATM, and quickly discard the transaction receipt without looking at the balance?

 

Well, you’re sick too.

 

 Or maybe not.

 

 Maybe it’s not bad to love money.

Maybe keeping track of your accounts and investments helps to provide peace of mind for the future, and empowers you to spend within your means now.

Maybe knowing what your money can buy and working towards goals helps you stay motivated, and even tolerate a job you can’t stand, by keeping your eye on the ball.

Maybe an awareness of your investment portfolio and trading activity is good in this ever-changing world of economics.

And reading articles on business, taxes and money matters just might save you a few bucks or help make a few more, getting you even closer to your financial goals (both short term and long term).

And with a family and circle of friends who share the same ideals and attitudes towards money, maybe talking with them about it creates an open and healthy relationship with finances, and gives you a forum for keeping your own finances in check.

 

Then again, maybe it’s not bad to hate money.

Maybe talking about finances with other people is unsavoury, socially awkward, and unacceptable in your circles.

Maybe ignoring an investment portfolio is the best way for it to grow in the long run, since you’re not supposed to actively trade and get sidetracked by short-term fluctuations. They do say “slow and steady wins the race”, after all.

Nobody likes bills. So is it really so bad to hate them? They still get paid in the end after all, right?

And for heaven’s sake, taxes are highway robbery. Procrastinating on filing in an effort to enjoy the little things in life is not a crime. (Then again, maybe it is)!

 

 

Within both scenarios, most people would agree that there are some legitimate points. Loving money to the point of obsession is unhealthy, as is hating money to the point of ignoring all financial matters to your own detriment.

Luckily, if you are reading this article you probably already chose to be aware of your finances and take control of money matters, either to repair blunders of days gone by, or to take your financial plans to the next level.

 

But do you love money? Really love it? Or is it a necessary evil that rots your socks?

 

Ultimately, is it possible to love some aspects of money and what it can do for you without letting it control your life and turn you into a money-hungry pig? Can you become the Millionaire Next Door and quietly harness your money to work for you and still maintain friendships with people from all walks of life?

 

Does living in a mansion and driving a fancy car make you unattractive, or attractive? And to whom? Is being the object of envy a good thing? Does it inspire people to create achievable goals for themselves and have something to work towards, or does it further create a rift between the haves and have-nots of the world?

 

 

I honestly don’t know the answer to most of these questions. Is it good to love money? Or hate it? Is there an easy middle ground to stand on? It seems that to have an attitude towards money at either end of the love/hate spectrum is considered sick in one way or another. So what are we supposed to do? Love it or hate it?