[Raine]

you know you can say that life is too short and that you have to live it the way you want to till you're blue in the face. Fact of the matter is, in this world there is no way of ending up "happy" without a good sized retirement savings fund ready when you need it. I think it should be everyone's ultimate goal to be employed in the highest paying job possible (even if they don't like it) up till the age of 50. After that, if you've worked your tail off, you can enjoy the next 20 - 30 years. If taking a pay cut means you save yourself from a heart attack/nervous breakdown then sobeit... but aside from that, work to make yourself the most money. Pay off a mortgage, get yourself on your feet with a property in your name all paid off and you're doing well