“Great things can not be bought for small sums; so reckon up whether it is preferable to leave your own true self, or merely some of your belongings.” – Seneca

Spoiler alert. Life is really hard sometimes. In fact, the more valuable something is, the harder it is to get.

The same is true of our relationships, valuable relationships like marriages, friendships, business partnerships, and others take a lot of work. They aren’t easy.

Being in good shape and staying healthy involves exercising, eating right, and getting the right amount of rest. Those things aren’t easy.

Being financially secure takes more than just having a good job that pays well, or inheriting a large amount of money – anyone can spend more than they make, any idiot can chew through an inheritance. Being financially secure involves limiting our spending more than it does maximizing our earning. If we spend a moment on that idea we’ll realize that our spending is the part of our financial equation we have the most control over. Not one hundred percent control but certainly more control than we have over how much we earn. But being financially disciplined isn’t easy.

And these are just a few of the voluntary hardships we will endure to get some of the things that we deem worth having in this life. But the end result is the same for all of them, nothing worth having comes easily and the greater the struggle, often the greater the reward.

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