“You are richer than 93 percent of people. Not in money, but in time. Over 108 billion people have lived throughout history. 93 percent of them are dead. You have what every king and queen, every pharaoh and ruler, every CEO and celebrity of the past would give all their wealth and power for: Today.”
James Clear
“Free space is useless without uncluttered time. Indeed, a nest of time need not require a special place at all: its only two requirements are that it concern some desirable activity and that it be, barring emergencies, inviolable.”
Robert Grudin, Time And The Art Of Living (Page 91)
“It’s easy to assume that getting rich in money will also mean you are rich in time, but it is often the case that when you earn more money, you end up with less time and more responsibilities. Being rich is nice, but what you really want to optimize for is (1) an income that exceeds your spending by a healthy margin and (2) a lifestyle that is free from rushing.”
James Clear
“A person who lives below their means has far more latitude than a person who can’t. That’s why Michelangelo, the artist, didn’t live as austerely as Cato but he avoided the gifts dangled by his wealthy patrons. He didn’t want to owe anyone. Real wealth, he understood, was autonomy.”
Ryan Holiday, Discipline Is Destiny (Page 35)
“Rich experiences can make you happier than simply being rich.”
Bert R. Mandelbaum, MD, via The Win Within (Page 103)
“‘It is good,’ he thought, ‘to taste everything that one needs to know. As I child I learned that wealth and worldly pleasure are not good. I knew it for a long time, but I experienced it only now. And now I know it, know it not only with my memory, but also with my eyes, with my heart, with my stomach. Good for me that I know it!'”
Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha (Page 87)
“He could have remained with Kamaswami for years, acquiring money, squandering money, fattening his belly and letting his soul go thirsty; he could have gone on living for years in that gentle, well-cushioned hell—if this had not come: the moment of utter hopelessness and helplessness, that extreme moment, when he had hung over the rushing water and had been ready to destroy himself. He had felt that despair, that deepest disgust, and he had no succumbed: the bird, the cheerful source and voice in him were still alive; and that was why he felt this joy, why he laughed, why his face beamed under his graying hair.”
Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha (Page 86)
“What’s the point of success if it doesn’t free you up to do the right thing? If your money doesn’t give you the security to tell a jerk or a racist to go to hell, how much is it actually worth? The Stoics said that money, like power, was neither good nor bad—that having it was not itself virtuous—but they also believed it was better to have than not, especially if it facilitated being able to act on your virtues”
Ryan Holiday
“If you already live a comfortable life, then choosing to make more money but live a worse daily life is a bad trade. And yet, we talk ourselves into it all the time. We take promotions that pay more, but swallow our free time. We already have a successful business, but we break ourselves trying to make it even more successful. Too much focus on wealth, not enough focus on lifestyle.”
James Clear