Values and the Dimensions of Wealth

If wealth is multidimensional, how do we find out what those dimensions are? Are they the same for everyone? How do we prioritize?

To create a more holistic concept of wealth, each of us must look at our system of values. We must identify and prioritize the things in our lives to which we attach meaning. After all, how can you create a Wealth Manifesto and declare your intention to become wealthy if you don’t know what being wealthy means?

Our system of values is fundamental to who we are. Values guide us in deciding what kind of food we eat, how we discipline our kids, how we behave in business negotiations, the amount of time we spend learning, the role of spirituality in our life and just about everything else we do. Even the most basic day-to-day decisions are reflections of our values, whether we acknowledge this or not. Values determine how we prioritize what is important, where we put our energies, and how we focus our intentions. Values lay the foundation for how we define our wellbeing and provides us with the “why” when we set goals for ourselves.

In short, our values provide us with the “categories” of our wellbeing and are the guidelines we use to measure the breadth of our interests, passions, and in short, the Quality of our lives. The more dimensions of wealth/wellbeing we are involved in, the more rich our lives are, the more the possibilities for growth and the more we will learn to truly live to the fullest extent possible with our time here on Earth.

There is one final thing we have to discuss: How do you assess your wealth? Well, financial wealth is pretty easy. Everyone who has some amount of money knows how to count. Money is easy to value. Someone with $1.6M is clearly more financially wealthy than another person is with $1M. What about peace of mind? The “value” of your relationships? How do you assess time with the family vs. more time at the office?

You prioritize based on your system of values. How you determine that a particular activity is giving you what you want, what you need and what you are typically hoping to experience is through Quality (that’s why it called Quality of Life!).

The way that we experience value is through Quality. I’ll talk more about that next time.

Cheers to your wealth!