A few weeks ago, I heard a guy on the radio discussing how Kimora Lee Simmons (the American Fashion Model and President of Phat Fashions) spent $20,000 on a “baby stroller.”

Do you think that $20,000 is too much for a baby’s stroller?  If you do, then you need to keep on reading. 

[If you happen to think that $20,000 is a reasonable price for a stroller, then please feel free to move go the next article on this site]

What struck my attention when I heard this on the radio was the apparent dissatisfaction from the radio host.  He was acting as if he was paying for the stroller.  He spoke with disgust, and in a condescending tone, he said, no one should waste $20,000 on a stroller, how inconsiderate; that money should go to charity!

What’s the problem?  The radio host can’t understand why his life savings amounts to… $2,000, while a fashion model can spend $20,000 on a stroller.  It’s not so much that he wants the money to go to charity.   He feels compelled to speak up because her actions make him feel inadequate.

If nothing else, her purchase is stimulating this economy.  He would rather she save her money, versus help stimulate the economy, which gives you some insight into his thinking.  It’s not the best interest of everyone he’s concerned about; it’s his own feelings of inadequacy which upsets him, unknowingly. 

The reality is, you get paid based on what you expect and what you will accept from life.  And obviously Kimora Lee Simmons expects and accepts a lot from life, at least financially she does.

The question of “expensive” is really quite relative. 

We must ask ourselves, “Why is $20,000 too much for a stroller?”  Is it because you can purchase a “decent” stroller for $200? 

The reality is, if you’re a multi-millionaire, $20,000 is an insignificant amount of money.  It may represent .00001 percent of your net worth. 

However, for the average person, $20,000 represents a much more significant portion of their net worth.  To purchase a $20,000 stroller may cost the average person everything they’ve got.  So when they see someone spending $20,000 on a stroller they get upset.  Why?  Because they are thinking from their “limited perspective” and not from the other person’s “unlimited perspective.”

Does this make sense?

Is it possible that people think you are being wasteful in your spending?

To people in the poorest countries in the world, a $1 represents a significant amount of money.  You may spend a $1 on a bottle of water; they look at this as an extravagant waste, because that $1 could have fed them for a day.  Why didn’t you drink out of the faucet, and donate that $1 to charity.  The answer is because it represents such a small portion of your net worth that it’s insignificant to you. You also feel like you deserve the convenience of drinking bottled water. You feel like you can easily generate another $1, and so you don’t mind spending it. 

Kimora Lee Simmons feels like she can easily generate $20,000, so she doesn’t see it as outrageously extravagant.  The difference is in perspective. 

She obviously believes she is getting additional value by spending $20,000 on a stroller (or she wouldn’t do it).  Her purchase sends a powerful message to herself that she deserves to have the very best, and so although the stroller may not be “functionally” better than a $200 stroller, it is considerably better because it sends a better message. 

What angers people is when they look at her purchase and say, “I don’t see any additional value!”  They say this because they are looking for functional value (e.g. the stroller doesn’t “push” itself), but functional value is not the only value that exist. 

There is a priceless value in the “message” that such a purchase sends to the purchaser, a value that you may not be able to fully understand until after you make such a purchase.

You have to change the way you see money

You see…the radio host doesn’t see money the way multi-millionaires do….which explains his outrage, as well as why he doesn’t have a lot of money himself, and why he won’t have a lot of money until he changes his mind-set about money.

Where I grew up, people didn’t spend $20,000 on strollers and they didn’t live in houses like I live in today.

How did I change my thinking?  By associating with them, maybe not directly at first, but through books and tapes.  You can do it through Web sites like this one; get comfortable with the idea that $20,000 is not a lot of money.

When you are comfortable with this idea, you will begin to expect $20,000 to come into your life more easily.  Why?  Because it’s not a lot of money to you. 

But just expecting it isn’t enough, it’s only the first step. 

Next, you’ll have to refuse to accept what you think is very little, this gets you into action.  If you believe that making $300,000 a year is an unacceptable income, then you’re going to work to change it. 

It all starts with associating with people who think a little bit bigger than you currently do.  I’m not a snob or anything, but I like to hang around people who have more money than I do, who live in bigger houses, and who drive bigger cars.  I believe this rubs off on me; not in a literal sense.  It rubs off because I begin to see that it’s possible for me; it changes my perspective, expands my mind and my thinking.  I begin to think, if they can do it, then I can do it.

That’s what I aim to do with this Web site, when I talk about my home, or cars, or vacations, etc.  I’m not doing it to brag (because I’ve not arrived), I’m doing it so that hopefully you can see yourself a little bigger.  Maybe you’ll say, if he can do it, than I can certainly do it.  I want you to get comfortable with the idea of living in a big house.  That’s my purpose and that’s my passion, it’s why I write, so that you can see yourself “bigger.”

Thank you for reading mrselfdevelopment.com where every article expands your mind, increases your faith, and changes your life.

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