Just How Much Is Enough?

A foundational question about defining wealth is "How much is enough?" As it turns out, the answer - and the definition of a rich life - is largely personal. [Liberty Through Wealth]( SPONSORED ["The Largest Economic Opportunity of the 21st Century"]( [Lead Investor]( Billionaire Lead Investor Behind Google and Amazon Targets New IPO Stock. [Story Here.]( Tell Us... Do you have a solid investing strategy? [Click here to answer.]( Note from Managing Editor Allison Brickell: Defining wealth is trickier than you think. What may be plenty of money for one person is simply not enough for another. But everyone wants to know... how much is enough? More and more people are trying to pinpoint a magic number that will finally make them feel wealthy. But as Alexander Green writes below, defining wealth comes down to you... and you alone. THE SHORTEST WAY TO A RICH LIFE Just How Much Is Enough? Alexander Green | Chief Investment Strategist | The Oxford Club [Alexander Green] One of the foundational questions about money is one that few agree on: How much is enough? In our increasingly competitive world, some believe that money is the way we measure competence, success, even our worth as individuals. This isn't just wrongheaded, in my view. It's offensive. [Do This]( [Click here]( to watch Alex's latest video update. There are plenty of folks doing incredibly skilled and underpaid work as teachers, coaches, social workers, nurses or soldiers, to name just a few. Many feel that there is [a gap between how they live and the way they should be living]( - and that money would make up the difference. And perhaps it would. Money is a linchpin issue in all our lives. We want and need things. It takes money to get them. Some live openly with the accumulation of money as a primary goal. Others think it isn't important - or shouldn't be. Yet millions harbor a chronic fear that they will never truly have enough - or be able to keep it. It's easy for those of us with money - even if we were born into modest circumstances - to forget what a struggle life can be without it. Studies show the majority of Americans spend almost everything they make, shouldering enormous stress as [they live paycheck to paycheck](. It's not just the poor and lower middle class, by the way. SPONSORED [Brand-New "TEK Talk" Reveals the Secret to Retiring Rich on One Stock]( World's greatest stock-picking millionaire shows - live on stage - how he identified six of the greatest stocks of all time. [See his presentation (and get details on the $3 stock he's targeting now) right here.]( A realtor friend once told me I'd be shocked to discover how many neighbors in his gated community were "just two mortgage payments from the edge." Money can do great things and promote important causes. But it can also dissolve business partnerships, cause friction between family and friends, and end marriages. Even in households where the cash flow is ample, partners often fight over how much to spend, how much to save or how to invest. If you're reading an investment column like this one, you almost certainly have more money than most. (Or soon will.) Our primary concern here, of course, is not wages or savings, but wealth - and its successful management. So let's be clear in our terms. [Wealth]( is not what you make. It's what you own: stocks, bonds, cash, real estate, precious metals and other financial assets. Most decide who is "rich" with a particular number: $1 million... or $3 million... or $20 million. I can tell you that as a kid growing up in a middle-class household, I thought anyone worth a million dollars was unspeakably rich. While that is still not an inconsequential sum, it is no longer rare. Thanks to inflation and our society's increasing affluence, a million-dollar net worth - total assets minus total liabilities of a million dollars or more - is now pedestrian. Even after the first quarter's stock market crash, there were still 10.5 million American households with a net worth of at least $1 million, excluding the home equity in their primary residence. Are the folks in these millionaire households satisfied? Do they feel like they have enough? Not necessarily. According to a recent Ameriprise Financial survey of more than 700 millionaires, only 13% defined themselves as wealthy. No matter what some people have, [they will consider it inadequate when they learn what others have](. (This is the defining impulse behind the growing "economic inequality" movement.) How much you "need," of course, is very much tied to where you live, the size of your family, your monthly overhead, and your desire to travel or enjoy the finer things in life. "The finer things" are hardly necessities, of course. I grew up without them and could easily live without them again. Indeed, many of my most enjoyable years were spent as an impecunious bachelor in my 20s. (Fortunately, some women don't care what kind of car you drive if you can work small miracles on the grill.) Bottom line: When it comes to how much is enough, only your own definition matters. My view is you're wealthy if you have the resources to live the way you want to live. Money unspent - capital - is power. It gives you the freedom to make choices, help others and enjoy what's most important to you. It's hard to argue with the words variously attributed to Mae West, Gertrude Stein and Sophie Tucker: "I've been rich and I've been poor - and believe me, rich is better." Good investing, Alex [Leave a Comment]( For Alex's latest video updates, subscribe on [YouTube](. JOIN THE CONVERSATION [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Twitter]( [Email Share](mailto:?subject=A%20great%20piece%20from%20Liberty%20Through%20Wealth...&body=From%20Liberty%20Through%20Wealth:%0D%0A%0D%0AA%20foundational%20question%20about%20defining%20wealth%20is%20%22How%20much%20is%20enough?%22%20As%20it%20turns%20out,%20the%20answer%20-%20and%20the%20definition%20of%20a%20rich%20life%20-%20is%20largely%20personal.%0A%0D [Email Share](mailto:?subject=A%20great%20piece%20from%20Liberty%20Through%20Wealth...&body=From%20Liberty%20Through%20Wealth:%0D%0A%0D%0AA%20foundational%20question%20about%20defining%20wealth%20is%20%22How%20much%20is%20enough?%22%20As%20it%20turns%20out,%20the%20answer%20-%20and%20the%20definition%20of%20a%20rich%20life%20-%20is%20largely%20personal.%0A%0D MORE FROM LIBERTY THROUGH WEALTH [A Crash Course in Financial Freedom]( [What Poker Players Can Teach You About Successful Trading]( [Why Intuition Beats Rationality in Building Wealth]( SPONSORED [$526.8 Billion Discovery Found at 17.2° N, 89.8° W, Beneath Ancient Mayan Temple]( [Remote Rainforest]( This is an area deep in a remote Central American rainforest. What was found here could help you make 145% within the next two years... And it's not what you think. [Click here to uncover the discovery of the century.]( [The Oxford Club]( You are receiving this email because you subscribed to Liberty Through Wealth. Liberty Through Wealth is published by The Oxford Club. 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. [Privacy Policy]( | [Whitelist Liberty Through Wealth]( | [Unsubscribe]( © 2020 The Oxford Club, LLC All Rights Reserved The Oxford Club | [105 West Monument Street](#) | [Baltimore, MD 21201](#) North America: [1.800.589.3430](#) | International: [+1.443.353.4334](#) | Fax: [1.410.329.1923](#) [Oxfordclub.com]( 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.