I’m making good money. So why does everything still feel like a slog?

OpinionMoney contributorAugust 11, 2026 — 2:11pmI had a business which I successfully sold. I was pretty burnt out by the end of it. Now, I’m self-employed, I’ve kept my team small, I make good money. I could be making more, but also I’m doing okay – I have decent savings and investments. My problem is that it just never feels like it gets any easier? Over the past five years, my wealth has been growing, but I still feel like I’m slogging away. I’m not afraid of hard work. I’m proud of my work ethic. But sometimes I just feel like it’s meant to get easier at some point. Or do I just keep grinding until I get there, and then retire?Until you change your mindset, your finances may always feel like a struggle.Simon LetchHere’s the short answer – it won’t start to feel easier, until you let it.We are often sold this idea that “ease” exists at a specific milestone in the future. It starts with small milestones – when I get a certain amount in savings, when I can stop living pay-to-pay, when I finally get out of debt – then, life will feel easier. But it doesn’t end there.Then it becomes when I buy a house, when I pay off the mortgage, when my business/income hits $X milestone … then I’ll be able to relax and enjoy my life. But that’s not really how it works.Sure, financial progress can alleviate specific stressors. Having a reliable car, being able to easily afford your bills, having financial buffers for emergencies – if you didn’t have these things before, then you will experience a certain level of ease when you do finally get them.As a society we don’t love it when it looks like it was ‘easy’ for someone. We almost treat hardship as a form of justification.However, as you’ve noted, that relief is often temporary. Eventually, there is another milestone around the corner – and suddenly, you’re working hard again to make it happen.Soon, you start to wonder – when does this end? You start to think that maybe, the relief is right at the end of the road. Maybe, if you work really hard to make lots of money now, then you’ll be able to finally relax when you can retire. But the harder you work, the harder it feels, and soon the experience of hardship starts to become something of a habit.Here’s the thing: the experience of ease is not just about what’s happening outside of you, it’s also about what’s happening inside you. This is clearer when you separate your external circumstances from your experience of those circumstances.You grew and sold a business before. That felt hard. You now have a leaner business. It still feels hard. You had less wealth a few years ago. That felt hard. Today, you have more wealth. It still feels hard. The common denominator isn’t the circumstances – it’s your experience of them.So, at some point the question isn’t “why are things hard?”, but rather, “why am I experiencing things as hard?” Here’s what I commonly see in my high-performing clients:You consider the experience of “hardship” normal and even a prerequisite. Everyone talks about how “hard” it is, how hard one must work, no pain, no gain, you have to make sacrifices, you have to struggle – that’s what they tell you is the path to success, right?So, you work hard. You hustle, hard. You do everything, hard, because you assume hard is the prerequisite. There is no other option. You couldn’t enjoy your way to success … or could you?You have glorified struggle and hardship. It’s not your fault – we all love a good underdog story. In many ways, as a society we don’t love it when it looks like it was “easy” for someone.We almost treat hardship as a form of justification. We want to be able to say: “I deserve this because I worked hard for it.” But as long as you need hardship to justify your success, you’ll cling to it.So, can you let go of the badge of honour that comes with hardship? Those who experience more enjoyment and ease aren’t focused on how much they struggled, or even how hard they worked. They’re focused on how much they’re enjoying the journey.You notice the hardship more than the ease. There is an abundance of “ease” available for you to experience in your life right now. Maybe it’s easy for you to pay the bills. Maybe saving and investing comes easily to you.How much do you enjoy and fully appreciate the ease that is available to you? If you are habituated to noticing hardship, you won’t notice (let alone be able to experience) the ease that is available for you right now.So, perhaps the question isn’t “when does it get easier?” but rather “what’s stopping me from experiencing more ease right now?” and “how can I increase my capacity and willingness to notice and enjoy more ease in my life, as it is?”Paridhi Jain is a money and mindset coach who combines practical strategies with mindset transformation to help clients create more freedom and fulfilment in wealth, work and life. Find Paridhi at: skilledsmart.com.auAdvice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers’ decisions about investing or financial products. They should always seek their own professional advice that takes into account their own personal circumstances before making any financial decisions.Expert tips on how to save, invest and make the most of your money delivered to your inbox every Sunday. Sign up for our Real Money newsletter.Paridhi Jain is a money and mindset coach who combines practical strategies with mindset transformation to help clients create more freedom and fulfillment in wealth, work, and life.From our partners