Creating My Own 'Finish Line'

The Never-Ending Game

Have you ever experienced this? The moment you finally achieve a goal you desperately wanted. The very day you get accepted into that company you longed for, or hold the keys to your dream car. You feel like you own the whole world, but strangely, that overwhelming emotion quickly fades away. After a few days, that thrilling achievement becomes just an ordinary routine, and you start anxiously looking toward new goals, higher places. Chanting the mantra, “If only I had this, I’d be truly happy…”

This strange mental affliction becomes even more dramatic when it comes to money. We live in the most prosperous era in history, yet we suffer from a stronger feeling of “lack” than ever before. Social media is filled with sparkling moments of people enjoying luxury brands, overseas trips, and fancy dinners. We compare their glamorous highlight reels with our humble behind-the-scenes, feeling inadequate.

Here, we face a fundamental question. Is the essence of this problem really the absolute amount of money we have? Or is it in our mindset toward money?

Morgan Housel, author of The Psychology of Money, says the ability to build wealth depends not on intelligence but on behavior. And at the heart of that behavior lies a dangerous trap called ‘desire without satisfaction.’

Now, let’s uncover the identity of that endlessly “moving goalpost.” And escape this seemingly never-ending game to draw our own ‘finish line’ and embark on a journey to true happiness.

Chapter 1: Who Moved My Goalpost?

Behind the phenomenon of our satisfaction quickly fading lie several powerful psychological mechanisms. This is not because you are weak, but because it is a very human trait we all share.

The Hedonic Treadmill: The Virus Called ‘Adaptation’

Have you heard of the term ‘hedonic treadmill’? Just like how you’re startled when first stepping into hot water but quickly get used to it, humans tend to adapt astonishingly fast to any stimulus.

Money works the same way. When you earn 50 million won a year, imagining earning 100 million is thrilling, but once you reach 100 million, that joy instantly becomes the new ‘baseline.’ Now you notice those earning 200 or 300 million, and 100 million is no longer satisfaction but the ‘default.’ We have to run faster to be happy, but our minds stay in the same place.

Social Comparison: My Life vs. Their Highlight Reel

Humans are social animals who instinctively compare themselves to others to gauge their position. This survival instinct has gone into overdrive in the social media era. Whereas in the past, comparison targets were neighbors or colleagues, now the edited lives of the global top 0.1% are our benchmarks.

We watch their ‘highlight reels’ of their happiest moments 24/7 and feel deprived when comparing them to our unvarnished reality. It’s like a marathon runner comparing themselves to a 100-meter sprinter—an unfair game we can never win.

Fixation on Ambition: When Yesterday’s Success Becomes Today’s Standard

Another culprit of insatiable desire is ‘past self.’ Yesterday’s success becomes today’s new standard. The joy of your first 1 million won salary becomes a distant memory when you reach 3 million. Like flying business class once makes economy feel uncomfortable, our expectations keep rising. Ambition drives growth, but uncontrolled ambition can poison satisfaction.

Chapter 2: Those Who Design Our Dissatisfaction

There is also a powerful force that exploits these psychological weaknesses to fuel our sense of ’lack.’ We might be living in a world designed to make us feel perpetually insufficient.

The Engine of Capitalism: The Desire for ‘More’

Capitalism inherently pursues ‘growth,’ which feeds on ‘consumption’ and ‘desire.’ Companies constantly release new products, turning yesterday’s latest into today’s ‘old model.’ Under the alluring slogan of a ‘better life,’ we are encouraged to desire new things endlessly. In this massive flow, shouting ‘What I have is enough’ is like swimming upstream.

The Magic of Marketing: “You Have a Problem”

Modern marketing finds problems we don’t even know we have and offers their products as solutions. Cosmetic ads with beautiful models subtly implant the anxiety that ‘your skin is lacking,’ while luxury car ads quietly suggest ‘your life isn’t free enough.’ It’s not easy to maintain true satisfaction in the face of such sophisticated psychological warfare.

The Whisper of the Financial Industry: “Numbers Don’t Lie”

The financial industry constantly sends us the message that ‘higher returns’ and ’larger asset size’ equal success. We easily compare our returns to market averages and our assets to others’, growing impatient. The relative deprivation of ‘falling behind others’ shakes our important decisions more than the security of ‘how much we have.’

Chapter 3: Changing the Rules of the Game

So, must we helplessly succumb to this massive ‘dissatisfaction system’? No. The only way to win is to stop following their rules and start your own game. It takes courage to draw your own ‘finish line.’

Step 1: Redefine ‘Enough’ — From Numbers to Values

If you think of a number like ‘1 billion won’ when asked, “How much money would satisfy you?” you might already be chasing a moving goalpost. True ’enough’ should be defined not by the amount of money but by the ‘state’ of life you want.

Ask yourself: “If all money worries disappeared, what kind of day would I want to live?”

• Would you want to wake up every morning without an alarm?
• Spend more time with loved ones?
• Devote time to what truly excites you?

The answer to this question is your standard of ’enough.’ The greatest value of money is not expensive things but buying ‘autonomy’—the ability to control your time as you wish. Once you define your ’enough’ by your way of life, you no longer need to run on tracks made by others.

Step 2: Dig a Moat Around Your Mind — Escape the Prison of Comparison

You can’t completely eliminate the instinct of social comparison, but you can reduce its influence.

• Social Media Diet: Boldly unfollow accounts that make you feel deprived and fill your feed with inspiring, positive content.
• Gratitude Journal: Every night, write down three things you were grateful for, no matter how small. Gratitude is the strongest tool to shift our focus from ‘what we lack’ to ‘what we already have.’
• Change Your Comparison Target: Compare ‘yesterday’s me’ with ’today’s me’ instead of others. This healthy comparison becomes a positive force for growth.

Step 3: Invest in Invisible Wealth — Dividends Called Freedom

True wealth is not flashy cars or luxury watches. Those are often ‘symbols of wealth’ bought on debt. Real wealth is invisible money we haven’t spent yet, giving us choice and flexibility.

This ‘invisible wealth’ gives us the power to handle sudden crises, the freedom to seize good opportunities, and above all, the right to say ’no’ to situations we don’t like. Isn’t this the greatest luxury in modern society? Instead of flaunting wealth through consumption, we should invest in the wisest assets: ‘freedom’ and ’time.’

To the Wealthiest Person in This Room

Ultimately, the conclusion of this long story is very simple. Winning the race around money is not about running faster but stopping the race and drawing your own finish line.

The true rich are not those who have the most but those who want the least. If the goal of our lives is to narrow the gap between ‘what we have’ and ‘what we want,’ then instead of endlessly increasing ‘what we have,’ we need the wisdom to wisely manage ‘what we want.’

Look around you now. There may be people with far more money than you. But if they are always anxious wanting more, can we truly call them rich?

On the other hand, if you have less money but are satisfied within your self-defined ’enough,’ fully control your time, and smile, perhaps you are the richest person in the world.