"Separating between needs and wants" is an advice that has been flogged to death by financial planners and wealth gurus alike. But it is not always easy.  As unique as our fingerprints, our psychological buildup varies from person to person.  What A considers as "needs" can be contrasting to what B thinks about.  Let us examine the three basic human requirements and the inherent difficulty of sifting between wants and needs.  (1)  Food -  We are what we eat To eat is to live.  We consume food for energy, for body repair, maintenance and growth.  Yet as society gets richer, people start to turn the notion on its head - we now live to eat.  Instead of local fish, we go for Norwegian salmon and cod from France.  Instead of standard beef, we opt for the wagyu variety.  As if the ......