Time to Decide !!!!

Yesterday, I was driving, and the FM radio went off for few seconds. I thought, I should have an i-Pod. Then suddenly I realized that I have not used my i-Pod in last 6 months. And then more things possessed but unused, Handy-cam in last 2 years, Digi-Cam in last 2 months, DVD player in last 1 month & many more. Now I can say that I bought that Handy-cam just out of an impulse, as I have used it only once in last couple of years.
So, what’s wrong & where? When I look at myself or my friends, I can see it everywhere. We are not happy with what we have but are stressed and not happy for the things we don’t have. You have a Santro, but you want City; You have a City, but you want Skoda; just after buying a new phone, we need another one; better laptops, bigger TVs, faster cars, bigger house, more money. I mean, these examples are endless. The point is, is it actually worth?
Do we ever think if we actually need those things before we want them, buy them?
After this, I was forced to think what I need & what I don’t. May be I didn’t need this Hand- cam or the i-Pod or that DVD player. When I see my dad back at home, he has a simple BPL color TV, he doesn’t need 32”Sony LCD wall mount, he has a cell phone worth Rs 2,500. Whenever I asked him to change the phone, he always replied: It’s just a phone, I need this just for calls. Believe me, he is much happier in life than me with those limited resources & simple gadgets.
The very basic reason why he is happy with so little is that he doesn’t want things in life to make it luxurious, but he wants only those things which are making his life easier, convenient. There’s a very fine line between these two. But after looking my dad’s life-style closely, I got the point.
He needs a cell phone but not the i-Phone. He needs a TV but not the 32” plasma. He needs a car but not an expensive one.
Initially I had lot of questions.
I am earning good, still I am not happy...why ?
I have all luxuries, still I am stressed...... why ?
I had a great weekend, still I am feeling tired...... why?
I met lot of people &thought over it again and again, I still don’t know if I got the answers, but certainly figured out few things. I realized that one thing which is keeping me stressed is the stay-connected syndrome. I realized that, at home too, I am logged in on messengers, checking mails, using social network sites, and on top of that, the windows mobile is not letting me disconnected. I realized that I am spending far lesser money than what I earn, even then I am always worried about money and more money. I realized that I am saving enough money I would ever need, Still I am stressed, worried & in secured about job, salary and spendings.
May be, many people will call this approach a non-progressive attitude, but I want my life back. Ultimately it’s a single life, a day gone is a day gone. I believe, if I am not happy tonight, I’ll never be happy tomorrow morning. I finally realized that meeting friends, spending quality time with your loved ones; spending time with yourself is the most important thing. If on Sunday you are alone & you don’t have anybody to talk with, then all these luxuries of life, all this money is wasted. May be, cutting down on your requirements & wants, re-calculating your future goal in the light of today’s happiness is a worthwhile thing to do. May be selling off your Santro & buying a Honda City on EMIs is not a good idea.
I believe putting your happiness ahead of money is the choice we need to make.
I think, a lot can be said and done but what we need the most is re-evaluation of the value of happiness and time we are giving to our life and people associated with it.
Change does not Happen when Circumstances Improves......
Change happens when YOU Decide to Improve YOUR circumstances !