It is common for people to reply, when asked what their chief goal in life is: "to make lots of money." When further pushed as to why they feel this is so important, they respond with notions such as that having a lot of money will leave them free to do what they want; that people who are wealthy command more respect from others; that money is needed to raise a family well and that money is essential for a secure old age.

These ideas are mostly illusions.

Most school leavers believe in the ideal of having a lot of money and the trappings that go with it. Only a fraction of a per cent can ever attain such wealth in their lives, while the others slave away dreaming of it. They spend year after year working in jobs they don't like and which make them unhappy. This alone illustrates the contradiction of seeing such enslavement as the path to get freedom to do what they want.

A solution lies in writing down the specific things you want to do in your life and figuring out how you could, if motivated, do these things as soon as it feels right. If accumulation of material goods is your life goal then, yes, you will have to obtain a lot of money - but a goal like that is neurotic. Starting a family is something you don't have to build up funds towards. There is a misconception that this simple act that the poorest of people and even every non-human creature is able to do must be very expensive.

People who know what they want to do with their lives go ahead and do it, while those who are not as sure try to make money first doing something else. Tradition teaches us that we should develop our own skills, things we want to do, and become good at them. Therein lies freedom.

We don't respect people for their money. Ostentatious displays of wealth are really a sign of shallowness and lack of concern for the environment. We might respect them for their knowledge and experience or having an influential position in society. Loyalty, honesty and generosity are often hard to find in the wealthy. Such qualities don't go with being money-obsessed.

It cannot be worth missing out on living your life while young just so that you have more money in old age. We can't be sure of even reaching old age anyway. If you are a friendly, intelligent, adventurous and experienced person then friends and family should always be there to help you. And as long as the state is paying for old folks' homes you wouldn't be left to starve anyway. Wars, depressions and other crises can wipe out pension savings or the state may take assets to pay for what they otherwise would have provided free.

There are alternatives to the treadmill of a job you hate doing. All it takes is some get up and go.