Do you still remember MTV’s reality show “The Hills”? Interesting show, isn’t it? Even though there a pros and cons about whether it was scripted or not, it doesn’t matter. The fact is that the show was a huge success. Of course, the success came in one package with the stars themselves, two of them are Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt. At the peak of their fame, they brought home $2 million per year, according to People Magazine. But they were living large, like $1 million just for Heidi’s wardrobe, and another $1 million for Spencer’s crystal collections! And they were throwing down on fancy dinners with $3,000 bottles of wine! You can already see what’s gone wrong, right? That lifestyle eventually landed them in bankruptcy.
If I wanted to list all the celebrities with similar behaviors, it would take up more than one page. I have always admired and loved Toni Braxton and Rihanna for their amazing voices and songs, but I feel sad about their struggles with money management and excessive spending, which led to their bankruptcy. I’m glad now they have already settled the financial problems and are in so much better circumstances. But here’s the truth: Back then, Toni Braxton admitted to spending too much on home decor and flatware. Rihanna, even ended up suing her financial advisors for advising her to buy a mansion despite the fact that she couldn’t afford it. which turned out to be a bad decision due to the mold and various other problems. She had to fix many issues to sell it, and ended up losing money because of it.
Rihanna’s financial advisor responded to her suit with a clear message: “Was it really necessary to tell her that if you spend money on things, you will end up with the things and not the money?”. Some may find this amusing, but honestly, it’s a crucial point. People need to be told that fact. Many people want to get rich because they want to spend all the money on things that they’d like to have. And that’s my friend, I assure you, you won’t get rich. Bill Mann highlights this by stating: “There is no faster way to feel rich than to spend lots of money on really nice things. But the way to be rich is to spend money you have, and to not spend money you don’t have. It’s really that simple.” That’s a bit of good advice. Additionally, Morgan Housel in his book, Psychology of Money, teaches us: “The only way to be wealthy is to not spend the money that you do have.” Wow, that’s solid advice! It’s a powerful yet simple truth: being rich isn’t about how much you earn, it’s about how much you keep.
The idea is, the wealth is what you don’t see. People often mistake displays of wealth (cars, designer clothes, luxury travel) for actual wealth. But Housel reminds us that real wealth is money saved and invested, not money spent. In other words, wealth is hidden. It’s income not spent. It’s the nice cars not purchased. The diamonds were not bought. The watch was not worn. I get it, sometimes we want to look rich by wearing luxury things, so people will notice that we are pretty rich and successful. Probably you want to show it to your friends or your neighbor, too? But here’s the thing, it won’t get us rich, even worse, poorer. Back to our couple, Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt, they said: “We were keeping up with the Joneses, but we were going against Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes.”
We try to match the social status, material possessions, or lifestyle of our neighbors or people, just because driven by the competition or the desire to appear equally successful. Now, it’s getting worse; the Joneses are not only literally our neighbors, it’s the people on social media! They’re influencers, coworkers, or people we barely know on Instagram or TikTok. Like it or not, we often compare ourselves or our lifestyle to match or exceed them, through buying the latest tech gadget or fashion items, going on expensive vacations, showing off achievements, wealth, or status online. And where will it bring us? Overconsumption and debt! Just because we want to keep up with the Joneses.
After realizing they had messed up, the couple, Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt, moved into Spencer’s parents’ vacation home, living there rent-free while they focused on their budget. Spencer mentioned that they hadn’t gone out for a fancy dinner since their anniversary. Later, Heidi said, “Life is so short. And what matters is being happy with family and marriage and with personal progress. We’re in a really good place.”
Heidi, if you can read this, I feel happy for you too, and salute you!
Love,
Kirana
