The Ironies of Money

Some people have an obsession with wealth – how to get more of it and what to buy with it – and they dream of the feelings of security and freedom that come with it. Yet the irony is that such people are not the most likely to become super wealthy. Successful wealth creators are driven not by the motivation to create vast wealth or by what they will do with the money. Instead, it’s all about the journey, the thrill of taking risks and of competing, the sense of adventure, that satisfaction that comes from achievement and building something from nothing. The true rewards for entrepreneurs are psychological rather than financial. In fact, the greatest rewards for super wealthy people often come from giving their money away to help make a better society.

While money can make you happy, it does so only to a point. Beyond a certain level of income, negative issues can arise, such as an imbalance between life and work, stress and health problems. Striving to make more money so as to provide for the needs of a family ironically can produce the opposite of the intended result. That’s because children need time with their parents more than they need expensive toys or a private school education.

Will money help you find a better life partner or more friends? It is a cruel irony that some of the wealthiest people in the world are the loneliest. You might think that people with significant wealth have financial freedom, but in fact, significant wealth needs to be looked after. Along with wealth comes status, and expectations from society that might limit how you live your life. It’s not how much wealth you have that matters, but why you’ve got it and what you intend to do with it.