Measure wealth not by the things you have, but by the things you have for which you would not take money.

Measure wealth not by the things you have, but by the things you have for which you would not take money. – Anonymous

This might be worth more than a cheap lunch, but it was your grandfathers, and you just won’t part with it. Wealth, in this case, is measured in fond memories.

What does that mean?
This one hits consumerism below the belt. This quote is a call-out to all those who pride themselves in what they have acquired. It asks them to take another look at what they have, and what they hold as valuable.

You paid money for that car, or that house. If offered enough money, you’d probably part with it, if only to buy the next item on your wish list, right? But is that what makes you wealthy? What joy do you gain from it?

Instead, the quote asks you to consider valuable the things you wouldn’t trade for any amount of money. Cherished heirlooms, the first dollar (or appropriate monetary unit) you earned, your sports trophy, or similar items.

Most of what I just named are worth roughly a lunch at a fast food restaurant. Most are probably worth less. Yet you’d have to be pretty hungry to part with the things you cherish.

The quote says those things, the things you wouldn’t trade for money, they are what make you wealthy. Not in the traditional monetary sense, but in spirit, deep inside. That’s where true wealth resides.

Why is wealth in spirit important?  
I’ll apologize up front for using the word spirit. It has many other meanings, and those may offend some. I mean it to be the warm feeling you have inside when you look at a prized possession. The things you achieved by sweat and toil. The things you worked hard to attain or obtain.

These things make us feel good inside. They are a core part of our being. They are attached to the seat of happiness within us. This is the kind of wealth that brings lasting happiness, not the shiny baubles you buy and sell, each in their own time.

Take a moment and consider some of the happiest moments in your life. How many had to do with the acquisition of something you’d later sell again? How many were of the kind which you wouldn’t sell at any price? Which made you feel better inside?

Which brought you a sense of wealth, a sense of contentedness, and even a bit of happiness? How do you think of wealth now? Do you see wealth in a slightly different light? Does your new view of wealth change who you consider wealthy?

Where can I apply this in my life?
Now that you have reconsidered what you consider to be valuable, take a look at your life. What in it has a little less value than you used to think it had? What is now a little, or even a lot, more valuable than before this attitude adjustment?

Grab some paper and write down a list of things you were planning to do, and the order or priority you had initially given them. When you’re done with that, think for a moment about each item on the list, starting with the first.

Take a moment and imagine you’ve completed whatever it was, and you’re now done and look at what you have. Is it more valuable with your new definition of wealth, or less so? Should it be more or less important or urgent than it was before?

Repeat this for each of the things on your list, and then put a single line through the order or importance it used to have, and write down what you think your new order or priority should be. With that done, take a look at your list. How different is it now? What changed the most, and what stayed the same?

Now think about all the things you have thought about doing, but didn’t do for whatever reason. How many of them are now more important, now that you have a different way of valuing things? Is there anything which needs to come off the “sometime, maybe” list, and get put on the real list? Do it!

Now take a look at your updated list and figure out what the plan is going to be. Which will you get done first, what others can you start, how can you move forward? How can you get a little more real wealth in the shortest amount of time?

What are you waiting for? Pick the item which will bring the most true wealth and get started on it. Select a small detail and do it right now. Make a phone call, figure out what are the first few steps, find a mentor to help you, find a resource online. It won’t get done if you don’t start!

We all have slightly different definitions of wealth. But the truly valuable things are those which we would never trade for anything. Those are the things which make us wealthy in spirit, and they help us find happiness within us. That is true wealth, my friend.

From: a reader of the blog, tivrfoa
confirmed at : http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/w/wealth.htm
Photo by Christian Guthier

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