I’ll kick off a short series of mini-essays…
Some Thoughts On Money (SToM).
They will be about… well, money.
But these won’t be the kind of notes (or thoughts) you’ve heard before.
My take on money can sound funny, outrageous or even silly when you hear them for the first time.
And yet… can you afford to ignore them? 🤔
You decide.
😇
Here’s the first one.
It was one of those transformative books I read as a youngster.
Mark Victor Hansen is an impressive guy.
His ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul‘ series of books (co-authored with Jack Canfield) are a phenomenon.
Over 500 MILLION copies have been sold!
(No wonder this is among my most prized possessions! 🥳)
Mark has also written several other books.
One of them is about wealth. It’s called ‘Cracking The Millionaire Code‘. And in it, he outlined a very interesting perspective.
How wealthy are you?
He addressed this in a roundabout way.
“Do you have eyes?” he asks.
Yes. Two of them.
“Would you sell one of them to me – for a thousand dollars?”
No?
How about ten thousand dollars?
Still no?
Then it’s fair to say one of your eyes alone is worth at least $10k.
And you’ve got two of them!
He works his way down a list of organs, arriving quickly at an estimated value for YOU… of a million bucks.
At least!
But how many of us have ever run a value estimate like that?
Throw in intangibles.
- Like your intelligence and education.
- Like opportunity, economic and political stability.
- Like a social network of friends, family and contacts.
- Like your age, health and attitude.
With even very conservative valuations, you’ll have to admit that without a single material possession, your ‘net worth’ is actually astronomical!
Now how about resources you’ve always taken for granted… but oughtn’t?
- Clean water to drink.
- Fresh air to breathe.
- Sunlight to bask in.
- The song of a bird.
- A cool breeze against your face on a hot evening.
You pay little to nothing for all of it.
How about the delightful scent of a flower? Or the innocent smile of an infant? Or the sight of two lovers strolling by, hand in hand?
What’s that experience worth, in dollars-and-cents… even assuming you could place a value on it?
We’re all truly rich beyond our wildest imaginations!
But remain blissfully unaware of it all.
Instead, we focus on – even obsess over – a societally-imposed metric.
That’s limited to a bank balance.
Or physical belongings.
Or fame, status and celebrity.
And consequently, decide that we’re NOT wealthy at all.
That’s a shame.
Because once you open your eyes – and mind – to all the richness that abounds everywhere around us, even within ourselves, it can be freeing and transformative.
You’ll suddenly realize you’re free to pursue every dream you’ve ever had… because you’re wealthy and resource-rich –
In the things which matter most!
Poverty is a mindset.
Anyone can transcend it.
But not everyone will.
That’s the tragedy.
🤦♂️