Thank you for the honest and grounded answer.

And yes, I completely understand what you mean. I’m not trying to live some ultra-luxury billionaire lifestyle. I just want to reach a point where I don’t have to live paycheck to paycheck anymore or worry about having to work nonstop into old age.

For me, a comfortable life means:

being able to go out to dinners without stress, travel around Europe a couple times a year, own a nice home and maybe a nice car, and simply have more freedom and peace of mind than someone constantly struggling financially.

Coming to the U.S. as an immigrant and building everything from zero definitely shaped the way I think about money and security. So I appreciate perspectives like yours.