The "Blue Zones" of Wealth and Happiness

According to a world-renowned researcher and bestselling author, the three things that lead to happiness - and true wealth - are pleasure, purpose and pride.  [Browser View]( [Liberty Through Wealth]( The "Blue Zones" of Wealth and Happiness Alexander Green, Chief Investment Strategist, The Oxford Club  According to a world-renowned researcher and bestselling author, there are three things that lead to happiness.  Today, Alexander Green shares them and adds a fourth item that can help us all achieve true wealth.  [How to Retire Starting With $20](  [Bill O'Reilly and Alex Still Shot](  [Bill O'Reilly and a legendary stock picker just revealed the only way to retire rich starting with $20. Details here.](  Editor's Note: In today's column, Alexander Green introduces you to one of our incredible keynote speakers for the [22nd Annual Investment U Conference](. If you haven't already, I highly suggest you check out the details of our biggest event, which will feature insights from Alex, Nicholas Vardy and The Oxford Club's expert strategists, along with guest presentations from the industry's top economists and investment minds. This is a can't-miss event! I hope you'll join us from April 16-18, 2020, at the beautiful Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad, California. [Click here]( to learn more and register. - Christina Grieves, Senior Managing Editor  [Alexander Green]  A few years ago, a friend invited me to a weekend social event at his ranch near Austin. There I met a journalist who had spent years researching the health, diet and lifestyles of the world's longest-lived people in places like Okinawa, Japan; Ikaria, Greece; and Loma Linda, California. "Wait a minute," I interjected. "Are you that Blue Zones guy?" He was. I was talking to Dan Buettner, the National Geographic fellow and bestselling author of several books on his "Blue Zones" research. Our conversation later turned to the financial markets and the search for practical investment solutions. After a few minutes, Dan said, "Hold on. Are you that Gone Fishin' guy?" Over the next couple days, we talked for hours, played a combative game of tennis and promised to stay in touch. We've since become good buddies. Last year we hiked a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail near Bend, Oregon. And just a few weeks ago, a group of 14 of us - plus two guides - explored the gorgeous Picos de Europa mountains along the northern coast of Spain. I read one of Dan's best books last year, [The Blue Zones of Happiness: Lessons From the World's Happiest People](. I highly recommend it. Yes, I know. Bookstores are swimming in titles about happiness and how to find it. I plowed through dozens during the years I wrote my weekly Beyond Wealth column. Let me save you a lot of time and trouble: If you're interested in the subject, read Dan's book first. The Blue Zones of Happiness is a fascinating exploration of the world's most satisfied people - and how you can tweak your own life to make it more fulfilling. That begins, of course, with defining what happiness is.  [The Perfect Income Investment?]( Imagine a stock that pays you 100% income on your money every year... and continues to do so for the rest of your life. $1,000 in savings would pay you $1,000. $10,000 would pay you an extra $10,000. $100,000 would pay you $100,000. And again, that's every year. We never thought an investment like that would be possible... [Until we saw this.](  In Dan's view, it comes down to three P's: pleasure, purpose and pride. Pleasure includes the time we spend doing things we enjoy, especially with friends and family. Purpose is the strand of happiness that results from living out your values. And pride is feeling satisfied with your position in life, your accomplishments personal or professional. The book kicks off with a Blue Zones Happiness Test that reveals your current state of happiness. It also points out where you should concentrate your efforts to lead a more satisfying life. For example, I scored fairly high on all three measures of happiness. But I learned that I could notch things up a bit if I spent more time socializing, volunteered more frequently and got back to a regular meditation schedule. Dan's research shows that most of us are happier if we live with a loving partner, have friends we can confide in, get at least 30 minutes of physical exercise daily, own a dog, have clearly defined goals, spend less than an hour a day on social media and can articulate our purpose in life. We find it tougher to be truly happy if we are overworking, overspending or undersocializing. (I love spending time with friends, for example. But I'm an undersocializer. Research and writing is a passion, but it's a solitary business.) Dan emphasizes several worthwhile steps, including getting outside more, pursuing a favorite hobby, getting a daily dose of humor and practicing generosity. Better than simply delineating ideas and showing how they'll boost your happiness, he offers dozens of straightforward, actionable ideas to nudge you in the right direction. The book is well-researched, eminently practical and full of wisdom about how to live the kind of life where you feel like you are truly flourishing. Of course, there is another thing that makes life happier for most of us: money. The best things in life may be free, but there are generally strings attached. It's hard to imagine, for example, that anyone is truly happy if they are worried about retirement, living paycheck to paycheck or two steps ahead of the debt collector. In my next column, I'll cover Dan's (and my) ideas about money and happiness. But I'm also excited to announce that Dan has accepted my invitation to be a featured speaker at our [22nd Annual Investment U Conference]( at the beautiful Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad, California, from April 16-18, 2020. This promises to be one of our very best conferences ever. For more information, [click here](. Good investing, Alex [Leave a Comment](  [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [share](mailto:?subject=A%20great%20piece%20from%20Liberty%20Through%20Wealth...&body=From%20Liberty%20Through%20Wealth:%0D%0A%0D%0A According%20to%20a%20world-renowned%20researcher%20and%20bestselling%20author,%20the%20three%20things%20that%20lead%20to%20happiness%20-%20and%20true%20wealth%20-%20are%20pleasure,%20purpose%20and%20pride.%0A%0D ?src=shared)  About Alex  Alexander Green is the Chief Investment Strategist of The Oxford Club. He heads Liberty Through Wealth, [The Oxford Communiqué](, The Insider Alert, The Momentum Alert and The True Value Alert. Alex is also the author of [four national bestsellers](.  [Doctor Holding Bottle CBD]([You've Heard of CBD... but What About CBD+?]( CBD+ is doctor-recommended... extremely safe... and able to deliver LIGHTNING-FAST results. "I am 83 and it has now given me the will to hang around and enjoy life again," said Sandra H., who considered pain pills before discovering CBD+. [Get the details here.]( SPONSORED  More From Liberty Through Wealth  [Gambling]( [Why I'm Betting on a Q4 Rally]( By Nicholas Vardy We've endured choppy markets over the last two years. Does market analysis show the market will sustain its current rally, or will we see a repeat of 2018's fourth quarter? [Chess]( [3 Investing Rules to Swear By]( By Matthew Carr Finding the "next big thing" is only one piece of the puzzle. The trickiest part is uncovering which companies in those disruptive sectors are going to produce the biggest gains. [Southern Spain]( [What Spanish Property Taught Me About Investing in Commodities]( By Nicholas Vardy Contrarian investing is an enviable skill. There are several markets - including commodities - that may be due for a boom, but how can investors know for sure? You are receiving this email because you subscribed to Liberty Through Wealth. To unsubscribe from Liberty Through Wealth, [click here](. Questions? Check out our [FAQs](. Trying to reach us? [Contact us here.]( Please do not reply to this email as it goes to an unmonitored inbox. To cancel by mail or for any other subscription issues, write us at: Liberty Through Wealth | Attn: Member Services | P.O. Box 932, Baltimore, MD 21203 North America: [1.877.806.4508]( | International: [+1.443.353.4610]( | Fax: [1.410.329.1923]( Website: [www.libertythroughwealth.com]( Keep the emails you value from falling into your spam folder. [Whitelist Liberty Through Wealth](. © 2019 The Oxford Club LLC All Rights Reserved [Oxford Club] The Oxford Club is a financial publisher that does not offer any personal financial advice or advocate the purchase or sale of any security or investment for any specific individual. Members should be aware that although our track record is highly rated by an independent analysis and has been legally reviewed, investment markets have inherent risks and there can be no guarantee of future profits. The stated returns may also include option trades. We expressly forbid our writers from having a financial interest in their own securities recommendations to readers. All of our employees and agents must wait 24 hours after online publication or 72 hours after the mailing of printed-only publications prior to following an initial recommendation. Any investments recommended by The Oxford Club should be made only after consulting with your investment advisor and only after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company. Protected by copyright laws of the United States and international treaties. The information found on this website may only be used pursuant to the membership or subscription agreement and any reproduction, copying, or redistribution (electronic or otherwise, including on the world wide web), in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited without the express written permission of The Oxford Club, 105 W. Monument Street, Baltimore MD 21201.