ABSTRACT
What does it mean to be rich? Many people associate material wealth – money, things, including luxury goods – with what we might call “the good life” or even a “good life.” But, as this section of the book suggests, being or becoming enriched really means learning how to live a satisfying, meaningful, and even purposeful life. To be enriched is to thrive in our daily lives. To explore why and how to achieve this desired outcome, we review the pitfalls associated with undue focus on money and materialism as well as the opportunities afforded to having more time available for doing desirable activities. For example, psychologists have found that there are ways to spend money wisely in order to improve our own well-being (which doesn’t necessarily mean buying ourselves gifts). Some tips will be shared that represent modest changes in your spending habits that can pay back big dividends (as it were) where your well-being is concerned. We will also discuss ways to flourish – that is, to experience lots of well-being and little or no mental illness – and to learn to leverage positive emotions for our personal benefit. As we close this section, we provide guidance regarding how to express gratitude to others, to savor our daily experiences more, and to appreciate that life is indeed quite meaningful.
