you've come to a realization that makes you wise beyond your years. I was you, 30 years ago, and like everyone else I was faced with the same choices you're now facing. I leaned heavily in the direction you are leaning and it worked like a charm. You simply cannot replace the truly important things in life, time with your family and friends, with money. I made the conscious decision to earn less money for my entire career so as not to miss anything I wanted to be part of, not many in my particular profession can say that. Are their bank accounts bigger today, some are, some aren't, as so many of them succumbed to lifestyle creep to such an extent that they're worse off than me now, and I always suspected that they spent wildly as the antidote to dull the pain of working so much.
'Contentedness' gets a bad rap, seems almost as though it's become synonymous with 'settling', or even mediocrity. That's a byproduct of our system in America where we've been encouraged to exceed all expectations and gain as much wealth as we're physically/mentally capable of. That, to me, has always been the best recipe for burn out, misery and regret. I'm certainly not opposed to hard work, been doing it my whole life, but I've always known when to put the work down, walk out the door, and go live my real life. I encourage you to stay on that same path.
Being content, after all, is by definition to live "in a state of peaceful happiness", what the hell could possibly be better.
