Buying your dream home won’t fix your problems – but this might

April 7, 2026 — 1:01pm

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“You must live in a big house, right?” She asked me with curiosity. I was visiting South India on a volunteer trip with a group of university students. Part of the experience included staying overnight in a small village on the outskirts of the city.

The next morning, I was invited to join one of the families for breakfast in their home.

It was a small hut – a makeshift kitchen-area with a small area for a fire on the floor (no stove-top), and a combined living-bedroom space (no beds, just mats on the floor). There was no internal bathroom – they went out and squatted in the middle of the fields.

Her question caught me by surprise. At the time, I lived in a two-and-a-half bedroom apartment with my family, and it felt cramped – especially compared to friends who lived in big houses.

I suddenly felt awkward. I nodded. I guess I did live in a ‘big house’. It was a moment that showed me how much what we think we ‘need’ is driven by comparison. My ‘cramped’ apartment felt suddenly palatial.

I was reminded of this moment last week when reading an........

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