Beyond Wealth

It's not all about the money; the key to true riches Leo Tolstoy said, "e;Nobody knows where the human race is going. The highest wisdom, then, is to know where you are going."e; Yet many today chase the false rabbits of success: status, luxury, reputation and material possessions. In the quest to "e;have it all,"e; our lives often lack real meaning and purpose. Beyond Wealth is the antidote. New York Times bestselling author Alexander Green takes things right down to brass tacks: We are here for a short time. Knowledge is limitless. Therefore, the most critical knowledge is not any particular skill but rather wisdom about "e;how to live."e; Fortunately, men and women have had several thousand years to think about what it means to live "e;the good life."e; And the answers found here, from Plato and Aristotle to Mahatma Gandhi and Stephen Hawking, will both surprise and delight you. Beyond Wealth provides insightful commentary on the most important aspects of our lives: love, work, honor, trust, freedom, death, fear, truth, beauty and other timeless issues. The book is both a thought provoking read and the ideal gift, guaranteed to ennoble, uplift and inspire.

It's not all about the money; the key to true richesLeo Tolstoy said, "Nobody knows where the human race is going.The highest wisdom, then, is to know where you are going." Yet manytoday chase the false rabbits of success: status, luxuryreputation and material possessions. In the quest to "have it all,"our lives often lack real meaning and purpose. Beyond Wealthis the antidote.New York Times bestselling author Alexander Green takesthings right down to brass tacks: We are here for a short time.Knowledge is limitless. Therefore, the most critical knowledge isnot any particular skill but rather wisdom about "how to live."Fortunately, men and women have had several thousand years to thinkabout what it means to live "the good life." And the answers foundhere, from Plato and Aristotle to Mahatma Gandhi and StephenHawking, will both surprise and delight you.Beyond Wealth provides insightful commentary on the mostimportant aspects of our lives: love, work, honor, trust, freedomdeath, fear, truth, beauty and other timeless issues. The book isboth a thought provoking read and the ideal gift, guaranteed toennoble, uplift and inspire.

Foreword ixIntroduction xiiiPART ONE: DOLLARS AND SENSE 1Are the Rich Smarter than You? 5Are You Losing Your Soul? 10Impatient Optimism . . . and Radical Generosity 14You Can't Google This 18The Only Thing that Really Matters 22The Principle Thing 25The One Thing that Changes Everything 28The Trouble with Happiness 31The Key to Personal Freedom 35Change Your Perspective, Change Your Life 38How Your World Will At Last Be Built 42The Most Important Job on Earth 46One of Life's Great Miracles 51The Power of Negative Visualization 55How to Reclaim Your Life 58Why It's One of the Seven Deadly Sins 62The Ruling Passion of the Noblest Minds 65PART TWO: WEALTH BEYOND MEASURE 69Are You Uncurious? 71The Road Not Taken 74They Make Us All Richer 77Are You Ready for the Grand Tour? 81The Quintessence of Life 85What Women Really Want 89An Incandescent Drop of American Fire 92The Most Civilized Thing in the World 95How to Eat Like a Zen Master 99The Sublimest Activity of the Human Mind 103Drunken Monkey Ice Cream . . . and the Wisdom of Thornton Wilder 107The Lost Art of Conversation 110What Success Really Means 113What Are Your Sins of Omission? 116The Beauty of Slowing Down 120When Entertainment Becomes Art 123Do You Have a Secret? 128Are You Amusing Yourself to Death? 133In Praise of Idleness 137The Tyranny of the New 140Why You Should Know "The Indispensable Man" 143A Revelation at 4,500 Feet 146PART THREE: KNOWING AND BELIEVING 149Tolstoy's Forbidden Book 151A Shameless Veneration of Heroes 154A Path to Personal Freedom 158Your Greatest Risk 162Are You Part of "The Great Conversation"? 166A 2,600-Year-Old Manual for Living 170If You Knew What Jim Brown Knows 176The Noblest Expression of the Human Spirit 179The Art of Living Consciously 183How to Let Your Life Speak 188A Legacy of Inspiration 192The Only Thing New in the World 195The University on Your Shelf 198We Are All Greeks Now 202The Wisdom of Hillel 205Meditations of the Philosopher-King 208PART FOUR: MATTERS OF LIFE AND DEATH 211Discovering a New Sense of the Sacred 214The Highest of Arts 218Emerson: The Quintessential American 221The Life You Can Save 224Coming of Age in the Milky Way 229The Literature of Truth 234Your Connection to Everything 238The Difference between Knowing and Believing 241The Lessons of Haiti 244Your Trip to "The Undiscovered Country" 247The Beginning of Wisdom 252Of Lost Souls and Lucky Stiffs 255How to Pull the Universe Out of a Hat 258It Makes Everything Meaningful 262The Truth about Myths 265Your Place In "The Great Story" 269Seven Principles of Spirituality 277Afterword 285Appendix 287Further Reading 289Acknowledgments 295About the Author 297Index 299