How old are you, how much do you make, are you satisfied with your life, etc.

[Anonymous]

How old are you?
How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI)
Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful)
What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? )
Are you satisfied with your life?
Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have?

[Anonymous]

How old are you? 50

How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI)] 60k

Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful) yes, but maybe not in conventional terms; I've succeeded, after a career change, to find a job that I'm good at and that's fulfilling.

What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc. ) Ivy education, supportive husband, family with some money to help me through the rough patches. As far as things that may have both contributed and detracted from my personal success -- probably the early death of my mother; growing up without her was tough but made me resilient.

Are you satisfied with your life? Mostly, but not completely. I'd like to make a little more money to be able to travel more. I'd like to lose 30 lbs. I'd like a better sex life.


Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have?
Maybe 50% -- these rest is due to my strong relationships with my husband and kids, and the fact that I love what I do for a living.

[Anonymous]

38
$0
Extremely happy.

[Anonymous]

34
$190k
Don't feel successful (compared to my friends, I'm not)
I should be at about $250 to $300 if I had managed my career better. Compared to my classmates I'm a failure.
Mostly satisfied unless I talk to my friends who are clearly living lives I can only dream of, then I get kinda depressed.

[Anonymous]

How old are you?

39

How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI)

Zero. Lost my job eight months ago.

Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful)

No.

What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? )
Are you satisfied with your life?

Lack of success - health issues.

Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have?

Partially because I am very worried what I will do once savings run out.

[Anonymous]

How old are you?
47
How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI)
About $800 a month (I work very part-time)
Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful)
Yes
What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? )
Great parents. Supportive spouse.
Are you satisfied with your life?
Yes
Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have?
No. We are not monetarily wealthy. But we are very content. We are living our lives based on the things we feel are most important.

[Anonymous]

How old are you?
41

How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI)
$225k

Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful)
Yes

What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? )
The work ethic my parents instilled in me, my decision when I was 24 to no longer sweat the small stuff, and my willingness to forgoe short term benefits for longterm rewards.

Are you satisfied with your life?
Getting there. I am currently struggling with whether I should move back to New England to be closer to family. This struggle has stained my ability to be completely satisfied with my life in NOVA

Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have?
Yes, to some extent, but not 100% tied to it. It makes some choices easier (short weekend trips home to visit family that don't break the bank). But, I am mostly concerned about whether I am a good Mom to my children and no amount of money can help me with that.

[Anonymous]

How old are you? 28
How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI) $87k from my job, more from interest made on investments
Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful) yes
What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? ) genetics and drive and financial support
Are you satisfied with your life? yes
Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have? to a certain degree, sure, but it's not the driving force.

[Anonymous]

Age: 48
Income: 0
Successful? Yes
Contributed to success? Buck-stops-here approach to life. During a 20-year career, I worked hard, used my gifts and had much professional success. Now I focus with equal determination on the happiness and well-being of my family and the neighborhood, church and school communities I'm engaged in.
Satisfied? Yes, very.
Satisfaction connected to money? No, not in a big way. We're content to live on one income and go without some things. But we do have enough to not experience real financial hardship, and that security does contribute to overall well-being.

[Anonymous]

32
100k
I'm relatively successful given the amount of effort I exert and I love my job and coworkers.

My parents were great and supportive and paid for college that wasn't covered by scholarships. I chose a major that was marketable out of school (engineering).

It's slightly connected to the amount of money since I like to travel and that's not cheap. I also stopped comparing myself to other people who either have jobs that I wouldn't want (big law, finance) or have work schedules and commutes that are harder to manage.

[Anonymous]

How old are you? I am 43.
How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI) Current salary is $130K
Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful) Yes I consider myself successful.
What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? ) Working hard and smart. Goals that are within reach. Thankful for what I have, including a motivated spouse. Made a decision to not keep up with the Joneses. Don't dream way beyond what I can afford.
Are you satisfied with your life? Yes
Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have? I can't say that money drives my satisfaction but if I had a lot less, it may affect my satisfaction.

[Anonymous]

How old are you? 50

How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI) none, retired

Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful) Yes

What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? ) the best husband in the world

Are you satisfied with your life? very much so

Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have? no

[Anonymous]

36, $80k and I feel like a failure. I had a great career making $20k more plus well-respected in my field, presenter at national conferences, etc. I felt very successful. Then we moved here for DH's job and the career I was supposed to be able to do from anywhere turned out to be not very viable in DC. Now my job is in a different field, my bosses are all at least five years younger than me and making over $100k, I hate every second that I'm at work and I directly attribute my lack of success to relocation. When I'm feeling particularly bitter I blame DH but that's not so great for our relationship, so I only do that in my darkest moments.
I'm not satisfied with my life because I feel like a pathetic loser every day at work and I know I could've been so much more, career-wise. I'm trying to find satisfaction in other areas of my life, but it's hard.

[Anonymous]

How old are you? 44

How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI) $150K income

Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful) Not as far as work goes. I should be in a higher position at this point, but made some tradeoffs for work-life balance. I think I've been successful in that and have a good quality of life, but sometimes I regret not really going for it professionally.

What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? ) Great parents, good-enough school, good timing (not graduating into a recession), having a knack for networking.

Are you satisfied with your life? Mostly.

Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have? Somewhat - even though it doesn't seem as though I've met my potential, earnings-wise, I have more than enough.

[Anonymous]

How old are you? 45

How much money do YOU make? (This is only your individual income- not your HHI) $120k

Do you consider yourself successful? (based on your own definition of successful) Yes

What do you think contributed to your success or your lack thereof? (example- an ivy education, good parents, etc? )

Being good at computers and math, degree from UMCP

Are you satisfied with your life? Yes

Is your level of satisfaction connected to how much money you have?

To some extent, not completely. I could make more and see kids less so money is just a part of it.. I would not do that. If I made a lot less and the kids could not live in a safe and healthy environment then I would not be happy with my income.