I recently had the chance to interview for a high-paying job but decided to decline the opportunity since the company requires me to work on-site full-time from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. It would be hard to find any time for myself to exercise, practice Jiu-Jitsu, or maintain much of a social life outside of work.

Having money is definitely great—money can buy you things and get you where you want to go. Life becomes more comfortable and easier once you have a lot of money, but money is only a vehicle, a means of transport through the journey of life. Having wealth is not the end goal or the destination; you have to know where you want to go, or else you won’t know how or when you’ll arrive. Sometimes, what you need out of life may not even require money to achieve—it could be more time with your loved ones, health to do what you love, or more time to take care of yourself to improve the quality of your life. It’s easy to confuse money as the end goal, getting stuck doing a job you don’t like just to increase the number in your bank account, associating a higher number with how happy you are.

To be free to do what you want and be who you are is a true blessing. Maybe I’m finally influenced by Chris McCandless’s view of life and living.