Justin Welsh’s definition of true wealth:
To think, uninterrupted — creating space for original ideas and deep work
To sleep without an alarm — allowing our bodies to follow natural rhythms
To move at our own pace — rejecting unnecessary urgency
To live without constant noise — choosing a clear mind over chaos
Redefining Luxury
Justin Welsh, in his Saturday article, redefines the idea of luxury to mean “the freedom to live and think with clarity and intention.”
And I believe that is the growing sentiment of the new generation.
I think that would have been the sentiment of past generations if it had been remotely possible for the average worker. I see evidence of it in books like The Quest of the Simple Life written in 1907.
But life has dramatically changed in the past hundred years, and I think it’s the convergence of these factors which gives this generation cause to reconsider the nuances of what it means to be wealthy:
The average US citizen has far more practical conveniences and “toys” than ever before in human history.
I believe the achievement of material comforts has realigned much of this generation’s viewpoint to look beyond the material, realizing from experience that things alone can’t satisfy and make for a full life.
The division of labor, founded originally on the assembly line mentality, has become the norm for employment.
While this is good and necessary, it is often taken to the extreme which leaves employees feeling micromanaged, monotonous and unfulfilled from the lack of task variety, autonomy and the ability to see a meaningful end result of their work.
What it takes to achieve a physically and mentally healthy lifestyle is far better understood today.
Bodily health is now understood far better at the metabolic and cellular level, as well as how to best achieve a lifestyle which supports that health. Nowadays, money is not the only thing employees are after. If they have to materially sacrifice their mental or physical health to do a job, there’s no salary high enough to compensate for that.
Stories through books, movies, etc. have caused us to examine ourselves more closely with regard to spending quality time with family.
There’s an extremely common theme in movies of a parent who is regularly absent from their children’s lives, missing their sports games and things which are important to them, for the sake of giving them “the life they never had” through the work that they do. I think this message has settled into most people’s psyche and changed how we think about work/life balance.
The interconnectivity of the world causes us to see and consider other ways of living.
We now see people’s lives displayed on social media and elsewhere, and we can observe how others are living life in great detail. This helps us not to get caught in a rut way of thinking, and at least makes us ask ourselves the question regularly if there might be a better way.
All things considered, I do think that this generation is particularly interested in optimizing their total wealth, material and immaterial. And I think if we can answer this question in a satisfactory way, the shockwaves of that revolution will echo through many generations to come.