“Life is for the living”: what Femi Otedola did not say about money

Femi Otedola, one of Nigeria’s most prominent billionaires, once said:

Money you do not spend is not yours. Life is for the living.

It is a powerful quote that has made its way across social media, often cited to justify lavish lifestyles, impulse buys, and a “you only live once” approach to money. But let’s get something straight:

That quote is about perspective, not permission.

Far too many people interpret it as a green light to spend recklessly, live beyond their means, or even go into debt; all in the name of “enjoying life”. This is not wisdom, it is financial self-sabotage dressed up as motivation.

What Otedola’s quote really means

When Femi Otedola said, “Money you do not spend is not yours,” he was pointing to a truth about control and mortality. He was not saying:

• Spend everything in your account
• Do not save for tomorrow
• Take out loans to live large
• Buy liabilities and call it “enjoyment”

He was reminding us that life is short, and that hoarding money with no purpose or joy can become meaningless. If all you do is accumulate wealth without experiencing the rewards, you are not really living.

But here is the catch: The ability to enjoy money comes from having it, not from chasing a lifestyle you cannot afford.

What the quote is not encouraging you to do:

• Spend Money you do not have: There is no wisdom in buying a Ferrari on credit when your retail business seriously need a boost in working capital. Flexing for Instagram while your bank account is gasping for air is not what Otedola meant.
• Ignore Financial Planning: Living for the now does not mean ignoring tomorrow. Wealthy people understand the power of compound interest, investments, and delayed gratification. They “enjoy” from a place of security, not struggle.
• Confuse Lifestyle with Legacy: You can pop champagne today, but if you leave nothing behind; no assets, no foundation, no impact, what was it for? Otedola is known not just for spending, but for building. He did not tweet his way into wealth; he structured it.

Here is the deeper truth. The quote becomes meaningful only when you understand the balance:

• Yes, enjoy life.
• Yes, reward yourself.
• Yes, travel, dine, gift, wear good clothes, take breaks.

But do so from a place of financial responsibility, not desperation, not recklessness, not show-off. Do so after you have saved, invested, and built something solid. It is not enjoyment if your future self has to pay for it in regret.

Real Financial Awakening: Earn. Manage. Enjoy. Repeat.

Before you spend:

• Know your numbers – Are you living above or within your means?
• Ask yourself – Is this purchase adding value or just ego?
• Remember – Discipline now creates freedom later.
• Plan enjoyment – Budget for joy the way you budget for rent.

The point is not to hoard money and die with it. It is to use it wisely so you can live fully; not just today, but tomorrow and the years after.

Finally, Otedola lives in wealth, Not in wishful thinking. Let’s not twist financial wisdom to excuse financial recklessness. Femi Otedola enjoys his wealth because he built it, managed it, and understood it. So yes, life is for the living. However, if you really want to live well, remember: Spending what you don’t have isn’t living, it is borrowing misery.

Spending what you don’t have isn’t living, it is borrowing misery.

To better appreciate the man Femi Otedola, the book “Making it big” comes highly recommended. It is a good read! It will provide deeper understanding into the principles of the man behind the quote.