Description
Book SynopsisIt''s not all about the money; the key to true riches Leo Tolstoy said, Nobody knows where the human race is going. The highest wisdom, then, is to know where you are going. Yet many today chase the false rabbits of success: status, luxury, reputation and material possessions. In the quest to have it all, 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 how to live. Fortunately, men and women have had several thousand years to think about what it means to live the good life. 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
Table of Contents
Foreword ix
Introduction xiii
PART ONE: DOLLARS AND SENSE 1
Are the Rich Smarter than You? 5
Are You Losing Your Soul? 10
Impatient Optimism . . . and Radical Generosity 14
You Can’t Google This 18
The Only Thing that Really Matters 22
The Principle Thing 25
The One Thing that Changes Everything 28
The Trouble with Happiness 31
The Key to Personal Freedom 35
Change Your Perspective, Change Your Life 38
How Your World Will At Last Be Built 42
The Most Important Job on Earth 46
One of Life’s Great Miracles 51
The Power of Negative Visualization 55
How to Reclaim Your Life 58
Why It’s One of the Seven Deadly Sins 62
The Ruling Passion of the Noblest Minds 65
PART TWO: WEALTH BEYOND MEASURE 69
Are You Uncurious? 71
The Road Not Taken 74
They Make Us All Richer 77
Are You Ready for the Grand Tour? 81
The Quintessence of Life 85
What Women Really Want 89
An Incandescent Drop of American Fire 92
The Most Civilized Thing in the World 95
How to Eat Like a Zen Master 99
The Sublimest Activity of the Human Mind 103
Drunken Monkey Ice Cream . . . and the Wisdom of Thornton Wilder 107
The Lost Art of Conversation 110
What Success Really Means 113
What Are Your Sins of Omission? 116
The Beauty of Slowing Down 120
When Entertainment Becomes Art 123
Do You Have a Secret? 128
Are You Amusing Yourself to Death? 133
In Praise of Idleness 137
The Tyranny of the New 140
Why You Should Know “The Indispensable Man” 143
A Revelation at 4,500 Feet 146
PART THREE: KNOWING AND BELIEVING 149
Tolstoy’s Forbidden Book 151
A Shameless Veneration of Heroes 154
A Path to Personal Freedom 158
Your Greatest Risk 162
Are You Part of “The Great Conversation”? 166
A 2,600-Year-Old Manual for Living 170
If You Knew What Jim Brown Knows 176
The Noblest Expression of the Human Spirit 179
The Art of Living Consciously 183
How to Let Your Life Speak 188
A Legacy of Inspiration 192
The Only Thing New in the World 195
The University on Your Shelf 198
We Are All Greeks Now 202
The Wisdom of Hillel 205
Meditations of the Philosopher-King 208
PART FOUR: MATTERS OF LIFE AND DEATH 211
Discovering a New Sense of the Sacred 214
The Highest of Arts 218
Emerson: The Quintessential American 221
The Life You Can Save 224
Coming of Age in the Milky Way 229
The Literature of Truth 234
Your Connection to Everything 238
The Difference between Knowing and Believing 241
The Lessons of Haiti 244
Your Trip to “The Undiscovered Country” 247
The Beginning of Wisdom 252
Of Lost Souls and Lucky Stiffs 255
How to Pull the Universe Out of a Hat 258
It Makes Everything Meaningful 262
The Truth about Myths 265
Your Place In “The Great Story” 269
Seven Principles of Spirituality 277
Afterword 285
Appendix 287
Further Reading 289
Acknowledgments 295
About the Author 297
Index 299
