I am sure that if the topic of this thread was 'do you want to become rich?', a lot of people would respond saying "I just want to be comfortable".

Well I have heared a lot of people saying that all they needed was comfort in life, or even "I do not need all the riches in this world". But never have I found a single person in this category of people, that could define what comfort to them means, without seeing them stammer.

Well I am yet to find one actually. Maybe it is you? who knows? I think when someone says "I just want to be comfortable" that person does not really know what he or she wants. That Person is confused and is avoiding being tagged as greedy because he or she actually wants the riches of this world.

Because to be comfortable in life means a lot of things. Things like Fulfilling ones desires and and dreams should be included, Besides having the ability to buy whatever someone wants. And the list goes on and on.

I think comfort in life cannot be attained without riches. Or do you have a different or similiar opinion in regards to that? what do you think?. Let me hear from everybody .

yes you can be comfortable without being rich. And that's because all you need is a smile.

i sincerly believe that one can be comfortable without being rich. comfort has nothing to do with riches. comfort is a state of mind in my humble view.i might be a 'poor' man but i can still be comfortable........i.e.....happy with myself and my condition.
i would like to ask a question here, how much money does one ned to have to be termed to be a 'rich' man?

You can be comfortable without being rich just like myself.
Wealth is not all, money though can give comfort to some extent but can not give joy and peace.

Many of our so called big men are not comfortable anyway despite that they ride big cars.

"Si posse recte, si non, quocumque modo rem" "By right means, if u can, but by any means make money" Well one can be comfortable in the USA or UK but not in Africa or rather Nigeria.

whats up kazey?

to be comfortable, u'll definitely ned some stash. DEFINITELY.

To be comfortable in life:


- You need some cash in your pocket
- You must be able to pay your bills at the right time
- You should be able to afford the basic necessities of life
- If you are living in Lagos, and especially this raining season, you need a car to commute yourself
- To avoid being a perennial slave to your landlord, you need to build or buy your own house.

Now, if you can achieve these basic things without being rich, then you must be comfortable.

Thank you bros. You said it all.

But peter u said "like myself" , but you didnt tell us about yourself. I wouldnt classify it bragging and would really appreciate if you explain what you mean by being comfortable as par your current status.

Hey, of course you can't be comfortable without being rich. I'm very sure we have all seen how difficult life becomes when you get a little broke.

i dont think anyone can be comfortable without being rich.

you can be comfortable without being rich you know..
rich is different from rich
a. one rich is whenyou can afford food,clothing,shelther and water
and another kind of b.rich is when you are rich like paris hilton or oprah
so when u not rich you can still be comfortable..

you dont have to be posh to be priviledged

there is no way you can tell me you are comfortable without being rich,

mhmm...thats different

i aint talking about you personally

one can be comfortable to some extent, if you have the basic needs of life ur fairly rich and thats worth it

you might say partially comfortable but not totally comfortable

mhmm..i can agree to that

Kazey has raised a very pertinent issue about being comfortable in Nigeria. Reading your posts, I would, however, disagree with Uatuku that it’s impossible to live comfortably in Africa, let alone Nigeria.

What if I said that all you needed was a source of income? What if I told you that a little consistency with your finances could afford you the basic necessities of life on the smallest income? Like Diakim rightly said, one must be able to pay one’s bills on time.

For those of us who live in developing countries, the idea of living on credit would raise brows and a lot of people would swear “NEVER!”; that it’s impossible for the Western model of lifestyle to be implanted in Nigeria (of all places) and they would prefer to go to the UK or USA to live a life of ease and comfort…ON CREDIT! Credit is crucial for any economy as it mobilizes resources that can be used in other productive ventures and encourages the growth of the private sector- a strong indicator of a developing economy.

It’s why life is comfortable in developed countries. Not because the people are rich, but because they’ve learned how to be financially responsible especially where it concerns credit. With a regular paying job, they can afford the basics and some luxuries on a few dollars or pounds a month.

Take this scenario: Say you earn 10,000 naira a month and need to cater for a wife and two kids. Even if you were single, it would still be difficult to maintain a ‘comfortable’ lifestyle every purchase is cash-based and payment is usually upfront or pre-paid. One would have to take into account food, accommodation, education, clothing, transportation, etc. So you borrow from friends/family and struggle along or you try to run your own business which would take up time from your work which would affect your productivity which could get you fired or you do like Anini and invest in a shotgun and rob people who travel on the night bus.

But Imagine that you earn the same amount, you can pay your rent in little bits over a 12 month period, your children’s fees over a 3month period, and there’s even this new Toyota you’ve been eyeing can be bought and financed over a period of time… would make a difference wouldn’t it? It would mean that you could own everything you cannot immediately afford and pay for it in little installments and still have some cash in your pocket to take the kids to Mister Biggs and invest with! This is long overdue.

One major factor by which this can be achieved is through the service of a credit referencing agency.XDS Solutions is a risk solutions company that runs a Credit Referencing Agency and it is based in Abuja, Nigeria. Luckily, the CBN and the banking industry have found it necessary to formulate policies for the successful operation of such an agency. With such structures in place, the improvement of banking logistics, credit education, technology and the proper capture of credit information, the concept of a comfortable life for the ordinary, honest Nigerian is just within reach.

Thank you for your patience in reading this looong piece.


G. Egba
XDS Solutions Ltd.
g.egba@xdssolutions.com

woohoo, honestly I am impressed by the post, although it happened to be a little bit of promotional of a certain product , but nevertheless who cares, a lot of points were raised and they are very true. I even once blogged on the issue of credit cards especially when it comes to the issue of supporting ones lifestyle with it. The post was titled Developing Developed VS Developing Undeveloped. I think I should just post it here. And here it goes

Developing Developed VS Developing Undeveloped, Comfort Bankruptcy VS Comfort Poverty, and the list goes on and on. The Developing developed world (The USA, Australia, European Countries and even Some Asian Countries) whilst in the other case The Developing Undeveloped (Most African countries, Some South American countries, Some European countries, and also not forgetting Asian countries). Nest of comfort packaged around governmental level of citizen support in terms of education through loans, house acquisition through mortgages, Free shopping through credit cards etc.

Many of us actually still have this believe that the state of the Developing developed world is what to dream for and what to expect in what we may called a perfect system of governance and livelihood. The dream has elevated to the extent that there is nothing that could stop them from making use of any opportunity to migrate to any country that gives such opportunities as listed above. Frankly when I take a look at such system I don’t see anything to look or copy from.

Firstly the method of getting educated in the developing developed world. Getting education from such countries are so expensive that the citizens are left with no choice but to take loans or financial aids to support them through out the education.

Now this loans means they are automatically in debt from day one of deciding to get an education in a higher institution, and mind you there are not interest free loans, they are in fact supported by an interesting amount of interest that you have to struggle all you life trying to repay after getting out of this institution. So what is so special about getting in debt when you find yourself struggling your entire life trying to pay back. I think those in African countries should be proud of the fact that after education in the higher institution, they are not in debt!!

Mortgages is another way to get you in debt. Now I need a home. I can get it due to support by the system I stay in, but then what about the interest rates, the debt? I mean what is so special about it, why cant I just rent like in the Nigerian case, instead and be debt free?

And besides the idea of saving the money that is supposed to go for repaying mortgages plus the interest would eventually be able to be saved for a new debt free home.

And besides using the part to also pay rent don’t you think this is just a perfect solution, but yet again many of us still think we really need mortgages, and having a house is an asset, but not forgetting the debt!! That you would have to be repaying all your life, and even maybe your children would continue repaying too. Stay safe my brothers.

Another form of slavery is here and is here to stay in the new developed world!! Or even yet to be developed. Slavery to Banks, government, and financial institutions is really what this is, and what can be worse than that. Well I guess every development or progress has its price.

Well I think most of the last posts queries where answered in the post, Credits are not just the key, to comfort in life.

Its good to be rich. You will be hopeful and purposeful. You will be listened to. etc. just imagine things works your way.

I think comfortability is from the mind.
You may have the whole world if you are so covetous like our senators and governors you will end up die of hypertension.

Riches make one glad and happy. Poverty is frustrating. You are either rich or poor.

I agree with you.

Comfort in life cannot be achieved without riches. The truth about life is that the poor are never happy bcause poverty spells lack...what you are incapable of doing...it spells a lack of influence or ability.

The big question is in the definition of poverty or riches. If this is answered, we will understand why many cannot be satisfied, fulfilled or comfortable in life even with all that they posses.

Riches i believe is a state of mind even as poverty is a state of mind. It now depends on what
you define riches to be. The one who defines riches in terms of the abundance of the things he posseses will never have the  satisfaction and comfort that should be enjoyed by the rich. This leaves him poor even with the much that he posseses. Because he is always aware of what he does not have and this pushes him on to look for more, thinking he will get atisfacion and comfort with more. He does not have peace. This is like a mirage.

Whereas the one who defines riches not as the abundance of things he posseses but as how much he has contributed to the society in which he finds himself..... how much he has influenced the world in which he lives for the better, will always find satisfaction and peace and comfort  even though he may seem to posses little.

And the truth is, because he lives his life investing in others, or investing in a course greater hmself, he does not know lack. He is not aware of what he does not have. He is satisfied and he is comfortable especially when he fulfills the good purpose or course for which he lived.

to some extent, you can be rich without being comfortable

That was an interesting article you posted: developing developed vs. developing underdeveloped. First of all, although I understand ego’s inclusion of his/her company’s name, the crux of the post was to highlight the benefits of being comfortable through credit. You’ve raised some valid arguments regarding the issue of debt in the developed countries (your last post). True, most students who go through such educational systems are expected to pay back with interest on fees used but that doesn’t mean that this should or must be incorporated into the African setting. Most people fail to realize (including those who did get their education in developed countries) that a sure way to failure is the blind replication of structures used in other countries. Most African countries give soft loans to their citizens to enable them to gain entry and complete any tertiary institutions. Unfortunately, in the case of some African countries, most of them do not repay such loans making it difficult for future and well deserving students to get the same benefit. The developed country’s models, take the US, set up such structures to provide loans to the underprivileged in society, provided that they strive to repay.
Mortgage is another example. How many people you know in Nigeria, kazey, who can afford to own a house even in their early thirties (exclude the politicians and 419ers). Buying a house requires a lot of capital as it is seen as a long term investment and unless your father is Adenuga or Dangote and co, you will have to secure a loan to allow your cash to attend to other needs. If I’m reading ego’s post right, a credit referencing company in Nigeria will marry the reduction of cost of credit; improve fraud detection whilst maintaining the advantages peculiar to the Nigerian setting.
From the ‘developed’ post, I wouldn’t read too much in an article that warns against ‘slavery to banks, government and financial institutions’, unless, of course, such a person is marooned somewhere on a deserted island. I’m sure you see yourself, several years from now owning a house, car, good savings and good pay that can adequately take of the almighty debt that everyone’s afraid of- or maybe like this author, you wouldn’t mind spending the rest of your life paying rent to someone (a house or apartment owner). Development does come at a price so I ask you which do you prefer- paying through your pocket or through your nose.

Nice reply, You have a very valid point there. hehehe I rest my case. My post was an opinion, and it is just what it is, an opinion .

one can be rich without him being comfortable but
but one can't be comfortable without him being rich

comfort comes from being satisfied with what u have

having what u have, comes from riches

hello

What is 'Rich'?, u gotta answer that to urself first,

Yep!!!!!! Contentedness

very nice post, but i think its a matter of perspective, lets use nysc as an example, assuming we're all payed 8500naira (so we're not all rich :#), but someone serving in a village skuul in kebbi (with free food, free accormodation, e.t.c) would be very comfortable, but someone serving in lagos workin in VI and living in abuleegba will NEVER be comfortable,

my point is that, riches are not the only things that make u comfortable, the family u come from, where u work, ur environment and all , are factors that collectively affect ur "comfortability", so if u have everything working together for ur good, u dont need to be rich to be comfortable,

To find the most appropriate answer to that question;

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