An Embarrassment of Riches E-Book

Alexander Green

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Serie: Agora Series
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 337

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2013

Beschreibung

Tune into the news and you'll hear stories of war, disease, natural disasters, corruption, violence, poverty, crime, nuclear proliferation, terrorism and political dysfunction in Washington. Polls show many believe the American dream is fading, our children face limited opportunities, and the country is decidedly on the wrong track. Yet this dour perspective - one recycled 24/7 by the national media - is a gross distortion of the world we live in today. As national investment expert and bestselling author Alexander Green reveals in this engrossing and provocative new book, the human race has never had it so good. In the West today, we work shorter hours, have more purchasing power, enjoy goods and services in almost limitless supply, and have more leisure time than ever before. Living standards are the highest they have ever been. The human life span has nearly doubled over the past hundred years. Literacy and education levels - even I.Q.'s - are at all-time highs. Technology and medicine are revolutionizing our lives. All forms of pollution - with the exception of greenhouse gases - are in decline. Access to the arts has never been greater. Crime is in a long-term cycle of decline. And the risk of death by violence has never been smaller for most of humanity. By almost every measure, our lives today are wealthy beyond measure. We are all heir to an embarrassment of riches. Yet - thanks in large part the drumbeat of negative media coverage - most of us don't realize it. Green compares the average citizen to "a lottery winner whose ticket is lost in some upstairs drawer." The consequences of adopting the cynical but popular worldview are many, including needless pessimism, missed investment opportunities, and - surprisingly - even poorer health. Yet An Embarrassment of Riches provides a powerful antidote. Green begins with a robust survey of the many ways our lives are becoming longer, easier, safer, healthier and more prosperous. He then embarks on a wide-ranging exploration of the ideas and the many men and women - both living and dead - that are still enriching our lives today. Among the many subjects explored are American exceptionalism, the extraordinary power of economic freedom, the lifesaving role of medicine and technology, the life-extending benefits of optimism, the radical theology of Thomas Jefferson, the keys to civility and greatness, the wisdom of Confucius and Aristotle, the ability of beauty to enrich our lives, and even one artist's thought-provoking take on "how to defeat death." In An Embarrassment of Riches, New York Times bestselling author Alexander Green offers a holistic approach to wealth - and offers a welcome perspective that allows us to live fuller, richer lives.

Leseprobe

Contents

Preface

Introduction

Part One: A Wealth of Gratitude

A Message from the Land of the Unwell

The Reason You Should Be Biased

What We Live to Discover

Like No Other Nation in the World

How to Put a Touch of Glory in Your Life

The Greatest Star of Them All

The Man Who Invented Christmas

Do You Know Where You Are?

The Mind-Boggling Universe, Part II

The Best That Has Been Thought and Said

A Titan for Freedom and Prosperity

The Great Key to Successful Living

What You Can Learn from “The Gadfly of Athens”

The True Rulers of the Planet

Confessions of an Analog Man

How to Be Miserable in One Easy Lesson

For Music Lovers Only

Part Two: A Wealth of Wisdom

Where Can Wisdom Be Found?

Discovering a New Sense of the Sacred

The Cash Value of the American Mind

The Key to Civility . . . and Greatness

How to Defeat Death

The Sage Who Spoke to Everyman

The Greatest Best Seller of All Time

The Pursuit of Moral Perfection

How Apple Got Its Zen

The Secret of “Big-Ass Salads”

Take a Vacation Inside Your Head

The Biggest Question of Them All

A Requiem for an Atheist

The Nation’s Most Misunderstood Man

Why Grant’s Final Victory Was His Greatest

The Other Freedom Document of 1776

The Right Man at the Right Time

The Most Powerful Thing You Can Do for Your Body

The “Howling Atheist” Who Governed the Country

Part Three: A Wealth of Understanding

Why You Love and Need the Rat Race

How to Live the “Good Life”

Nassim Nicholas Taleb . . . and the Pursuit of Phronesis

The Gift a Man Gives Himself

A Billionaire’s Best Advice

The Lost Art of Conversation

A Visit Everyone Should Make

The Man Who Made Dreams Come True

How to Talk Politics without Committing Murder

The True Secret of Success

How to Be a Big Loser

Three Words That Will Save Your Life

Are You Awake?

The One Factor That Changes Everything

The Lies We Tell Ourselves

How the First Americans Became Last

The Top Five Regrets of the Dying

A Short Lesson in Humility

Afterword

Further Reading

About the Author

Index

Cover image: © Jen Ross

Cover design: Wiley

Copyright © 2014 by Alexander Green. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Green, Alexander, 1958-

An embarrassment of riches : tapping into the world’s greatest legacy of wealth / Alexander Green.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-118-60882-1 (hardback); 978-1-118-64656-4 (ePDF); 978-1-118-64655-7 (ePub)

1. Money—Moral and ethical aspects. 2. Wealth—Moral and ethical aspects. 3. Conduct of life. I. Title.

HG220.3.G737 2014

178—dc23

2013024665

This book is dedicated to the memory of Anna Compton Taylor

The good life is a process, not a state of being. It is a direction, not a destination.

—Carl Rogers

PREFACE

You may not know it, but you are one of the richest human beings ever to walk the face of the earth. Though you have done nothing to earn or particularly deserve it, you are the inheritor of an incredible legacy of wealth, a genuine embarrassment of riches.

This may seem a bit presumptuous. After all, I probably don’t know you personally. And even if I do, I haven’t taken a peek at your bank accounts, brokerage statements, or 401(k). I haven’t seen your home, what you drive, or how much you own. And your income, assets, and liabilities are really none of my business. Yet I still know you to be exceedingly rich. If you’re skeptical, I understand. Like a lottery winner whose ticket is lost in some upstairs drawer, you can’t claim your fortune—or appreciate it—if you aren’t aware of it.

I will make my argument in the Introduction and offer supporting proof in the more than fifty essays that follow. Along the way, you’ll discover that your life is richer, fuller, more beautiful, and far more fortunate than you previously imagined. If I do my job, you won’t only feel wealthier but profoundly grateful.

So let me make my case . . .

INTRODUCTION

Everyone thinks about money. Few think about it more than I do.

That’s not because I’m selfish, greedy, and materialistic. (Okay, maybe a little.) At various times over the past three decades, I’ve worked as a research analyst, stockbroker, investment adviser, portfolio manager, and financial writer.

Today, I am the Chief Investment Strategist of the Oxford Club, a private investment club dedicated to helping investors achieve and maintain financial independence. And we’ve had some success. The independent Hulbert Financial Digest has ranked the investment letter I direct—The Oxford Communique—among the best-performing newsletters in the nation for more than a decade now.

Wealth, of course, is a subject that interests almost everyone. Money makes things happen; it gives us choices. Since few want to live circumscribed lives, the pursuit of wealth is universal. Money allows us to achieve our dreams, whether you define that as education, opportunity, independence, luxury, security, or peace of mind. It’s freedom, power, and opportunity rolled into one. As a result, there is a huge market for financial advice—and I’m fortunate to have a few hundred thousand readers who tune in regularly. Almost every day I can be found—either online or in print—weighing in on stocks, bonds, funds, interest rates, currencies, or commodities.

What is the real advantage of all your saving and investing? As I see it, there are three primary benefits:

1. If you have money, you don’t have to worry about it. This isn’t guaranteed, of course. I’ve known plenty of high-net-worth individuals who agonized over their finances and worried about losing the nest egg they’d taken a lifetime to build. Still, if you have money and manage it conservatively, your worries should be few. Fretting about your investment returns is a lot less stressful than wondering how you’re going to make this month’s rent.

2. Money gives you freedom to pursue your passions. You can spend your days engaged in activities that you find absorbing and satisfying, that you feel you’re good at—or make you feel like you’re doing good. This doesn’t just happen in retirement, incidentally. A measure of financial freedom gives you the ability to swap into a new job that may be less lucrative but more fulfilling.