Living a long life doesn't mean living a happy one. Happiness requires spiritual fulfillment, and spiritual fulfillment can't be acquired with money. When people chase money, what they truly seek is spiritual fulfillment, and they will never get it because they are pursuing the wrong end.
Having money without meaningful work or meaningful relationships does hell to a person's character. A rich young person without spiritual fulfillment is an egotistical douche bag without any real friends. You may know some people like that. A rich old person without spiritual fulfillment is a greedy, grumpy, lonely, old miser. You may know some people like that, too.
Spiritual fulfillment can only be had through meaningful work and meaningful relationships. If you have meaningful work and meaningful relationships, you've already won at life regardless of whether you ever get rich. You don't need a lot of money to beat life. You need meaningful work and meaningful relationships. If you have those, you have everything that matters; and you won't starve, which is what I was afraid of when I changed careers. It didn't happen.
I believe the road to meaningful work and meaningful relationships is paved with radical truth and radical transparency. Once you start being transparent with yourself and with others about what you really want to do, and start holding yourself accountable for taking the steps you need to do it, then you are well on your way to having meaningful work, meaningful relationships and a fulfilling life. That's been my experience. I don't want to just be an old man, I want to be a happy one too.
