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The Golden Triangle Part 2: Wealth

The second corner of the triangle is wealth, which, as the other corners of the triangle, is further divisible into 3.

1 - Career

Your career is your source of wealth and the main way in which you provide wealth to the world, and the primary consumer of your time, so it’s important. There are a couple of things that I think make a good career: firstly, it provides value to the world, even if it’s not immediately obvious who is the recipient of the value is. This is only positive if you feel that the recipients of your value are deserving of it (providing arms to the KKK provides value, but to the wrong people) ...

and secondly, it has some intrinsic level of interest to you as an individual - which isn’t to say that you enjoy doing it every day. A good rule of thumb is to aim to find a job doing the things you did for fun as a child, when you were free of the prejudice that some tasks were productive and others were a waste of time.

2 - skills

This category includes your education and hobbies. While your motivation to spend time on your career is mostly extrinsic - motivated by the outside factor of money - skills are intrinsic. You give them your time purely because you enjoy them.

Everyone should have 3 skills/hobbies (this is getting downright fractal!). One should be social, one should be creative and one should be active. Practicing these things shouldn't feel like a chore and one shouldn't put pressure on you if you don't feel like pursuing it with a great level of discipline.

3 - stuff

This is how you spend your money and the belongings you surround yourself with. I’m in no position to say anything about money except that I doubt anyone ever bought happiness living outside their means.  William Morris said 'Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful'
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