Wealth Can Buy Time, But Not Backward.

Issue #41 December 9, 2019

I received a text this morning from my father asking me to call when I was free. When I did I could hear that something had happened and came to find out that one of his dear, lifelong friends (and my former youth baseball coach) had gone into a coma following a tough recovery battle from a recent heart procedure. Ray is/was a great man, a great husband, and grandfather to his family. He was a great role model and coach to me as a young boy. He had infectious positive energy and a legendary laugh that I likely won’t hear again but can picture in my mind as clear as day-squinty eyes and cheeks in full bloom.

Am I getting older and wiser or just older?

Time is precious. People are more precious. The real point of wealth accumulation is to find time and happiness in this short human experience our spirit has in this recurring stint around the sun. Wealth can buy you time but not backward, and money can rent happiness, but only relationships of true meaning (starting with the one we have with ourselves) can yield you true and enduring happiness.

Today’s message is short and to the point, because it doesn’t need to be longer in this hectic time of year. However, I encourage you today to take a few moments of your time back and use them as follows.

1) Call someone you love that hasn’t heard from you in a long time and tell them you were thinking of them and would love to chat if they had a few minutes to catch up.

2) When you are in meetings with people this week, give them your full attention and interest. Be infectiously present and don’t forget to laugh no matter how serious things may be (“Be like Ray”).

3) Hug your family (whatever form that takes shape).

4) Crush it at work and in your activities because it is where the majority of our adult lives and relationships reside and are expressed.

Money is a wonderful tool that will buy you freedom and time forward, but I hope that you use the bulk of it on the climb and at the various summits to invest in the relationships that will make you truly wealthy. ~Chris