Have you ever met a poor rich person? I have. I've worked with plenty of them. That is, people who have lots of money and assets... but not much else. Financially wealthy but emotionally, physically, spiritually, mentally and even socially, bankrupt. If you own a mansion (or ten) but you "live" in an over-weight, unhealthy, stressed, anxious, over-worked, sleep-deprived, over-medicated body that's gonna die twenty or thirty years too soon (as many do), are you wealthy or broke? So maybe health equals wealth? Or if you're a billionaire but you live in an unhealthy marriage with a spouse you haven't spoken (nicely) to for a year and three kids who hate your guts because you never see them or invest into their lives, are you really rich or do you just have lots of money? Of course the answer is completely dependant on the criteria by which we personally evaluate wealth and therefore the answer will be different for all of us. And yes, a big bank account can go hand in hand with the "other types" of wealth but so often, it doesn't. Maybe some of us need to change that criteria?

The Cost of Chasing the Dollar

In the pursuit of financial wealth, the cost for some people is... them self. That is, they seem to become their business. Their assets. Their money. Their title. Their achievements. What they do and what they earn and own becomes "who they are". And as long as their identity (and self-worth and self-esteem) is completely tied into their "stuff", they will always be insecure and miserable because all that stuff is temporary. Yep, you and I live in a culture that says "he(she) who dies with the most toys wins". And while we might laugh at that as nothing more than a sarcastic comment, in reality it could be seen as an insightful commentary on the collective mindset that is Australia (USA, Britain, NZ, SA, etc.) in 2009.

But it's Okay to be Rich.... Phew!

Now before my message gets misinterpreted (as it often does) and someone finds a new and exciting way to get offended, I am not in any way being critical of people who have made (and continue to make) a financial fortune or achieved great success in the professional world. In fact, I respect them, their ability and their achievements very much. And of course for us "non-billionaires", setting financial goals, growing a career and building wealth (in the traditional sense) is an intelligent and practical thing to do considering the world in which we live and how that world "works". What I am saying is that if you and I lived in a collective mindset and culture that valued emotional, social, mental, spiritual and physical wealth as highly as we do the sacred bank balance, we just might see a lot less dysfunction, a lot less stress and anxiety, a lot less unhappiness and a lot more "wealthy" people.

Let me know your thoughts on this topic - I'm interested. Enjoy your Easter, do your best not to eat your own body-weight in chocolate (unless of course, it's drizzled over strawberries) and I'll see you crazy funsters on Tuesday. If you're not sure how to leave a comment, click here.

P.S. I've just been informed by he-who-must-be-obeyed (Johnnie) that apparently many of our subscribers are struggling to leave comments because there's some kind of problem in cyber-space. So if you're reading this in your in-box (via email) and you would like to leave a comment (aah... go on), then you can overcome that minor technical issue by simply going to my home page and commenting there. The issue should be fixed soon.

Ciao x