Money is not the only wealth
You've been told that money is the only type of wealth. This is a lie. These are the 5 types of wealth you must understand.
Hi everyone,
Welcome to Nishant’s newsletter, name to be decided soon :D, I’ll be sharing what I read with you all every week.
This is a baby step towards an end goal, let’s go together towards it!
You’ve been told that money is your only wealth type. You believe that your success is defined by the amount of money you have, also called “Net Worth”. This is a life lie. By doing blind pursuit of just money, you rob yourself of other wealth you have.
These are the five types of wealth:
Financial
Social
Physical
Mental
Time
Let’s take a look at each of them in more detail:
Financial Wealth
This is the most commonly understood type of wealth. It’s generally what people mean by when they say someone is wealthy. It is the only point people consider while seeing someone as successful. And in this it all boils down to one thing:
That is - Net Worth = Value of all assets - the value of all liabilities.
If we go even deeper, then in most families it comes down to the salary. The amount of money the person earns each month.
Coming back to the point, most people think that financial wealth creates happiness. I also used to believe that the life of people with money would be amazing.
I was wrong.
Money is scientifically correlated to happiness - but only up to a baseline level of life, that’s lower than you think.
Once above this baseline, incremental financial wealth does not create incremental happiness.
So, If your goal is happiness:
Focus on getting above this baseline.
Focus on other drivers of happiness.
Social Wealth
Social wealth is about your connection to others in your respective worlds - your relationships.
It combines BREADTH and DEPTH of your connectivity to those around you.
Some people accumulate relationships via their financial wealth - by joining clubs, and hosting parties.
This is a road to nowhere because money only gives you BREADTH but not DEPTH.
True social relationship requires DEPTH - a few unbreakable bonds. These are the people who stand with you even in your darkest times.
Spend time building a T-shaped relationship, broad and deep.
Build an army of mentors, and friends.
Cultivate deep relationships, but also embrace the power of weak ties.
Your company matters.
Physical Wealth
Physical Wealth is about your health, fitness, and vitality.
It is the most critical - and perhaps the most under-appreciated type of wealth.
Without physical wealth, it is almost impossible to appreciate other types of wealth.
Most of us engage ourselves so much in all other activities and ignore our physical health the most.
Physical health is built through long-term compounding effects.
It can be divided into three broad buckets:
Exercise - daily movement
Nutrition - fresh food
Sleep - good sleep habits.
It is never too late to start building or restoring physical wealth.
Mental Wealth
Mental wealth is about mental health, mental fitness, and the ability to wrestle with tangible and intangible questions in life.
It may include (but isn’t limited to):
Mental health
Knowledge/ wisdom
Mindfulness
Spirituality/ Faith
Mental health is often overlooked - particularly by those in the pursuit of world-changing endeavors - but is it SO important.
Never sacrifice mental health for any reason.
Talk to someone, ask for help, and take actions to improve mental health on daily basis.
Mental fitness can be referred to as the flexing of your brain as a muscle and the continued growth of that muscle over time.
It is the most important muscle to flex daily.
To flex brain muscles - read, write, talk, and learn daily.
Mental wealth also covers and ability to wrestle with tangible and intangible questions in life.
It is generally achieved through:
Mindfulness - an awareness of oneself brought through meditation, breathing, or other practices.
Spirituality or faith - formal or informal.
Time Wealth
Time is the most precious wealth you have. Time wealth is the freedom to choose:
How to spend your time
Who to spend it with
Where to spend it
When to trade it for other types of wealth
When you are young you are a “time billionaire” - rich with time.
Too many people fail to realize the value of this asset until it is gone.
Treat your time as an ultimate currency - It’s all you have and you can never get it back.
Most of us think that we have a lot of time, and never understand its value. We get so engaged in financial wealth, that we forget that the ultimate wealth is not money but time. Choose your freedom, how to spend your time, and financial wealth should be a tool to increase your freedom to choose and not a chain to make you a slave.
Accept your time as finite, and you will be able to live.
These are the five types of financial wealth, you have. Don’t let the pursuit of only financial wealth rob you of others.
An Exercise for You
Mark yourself in each of these wealth types on the basis of 1 to 5, with 1 being the lowest and 5 the highest.
Don’t take much time on it, just right down the first number that comes to your mind.
Then look at it and decide where you need to improve upon.
You can also take a test here: https://life.mindvalley.com/
It will give you a deep insight into areas you need to work on.
Quote of the week
Most powerful is he who has himself in his own power
My Favorite books
Rich dad, Poor dad
Ikigai: The Japanese secret to a long and happy life
Psychology Of Money
Atomic habits
How to win friends and influence people
The code of the Extraordinary Mind
The courage to be disliked
Book I am Reading Currently
Steve Jobs: The exclusive biography