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I am rich and have no idea what to do

vinay.sh

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Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#31
post #11

Wealth makes it even more difficult to figure out what to do with your life. It's almost as if you can either have wealth/comfort or purpose/fulfillment, but it's vanishingly rare to have both at the same time.

This is such an American thing that I find it hard to respond to, because these cultural things feel universal when you're swimming in them.

Wealth doesn't make it difficult to figure out what to do with your life if you never thought wealth is the goal. The problem is that the sole life goal for this person was to get rich, and now that's the endgame, and he doesn't know what to do.

If the goal, instead, was to have fun, to foster a strong social circle, good relationships, to do things for and with them, to have hobbies, to learn new things, to challenge yourself, etc, he'd just think "oh cool, now I can do more of those without having to spend X hours a day working".

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#32
Perhaps you should consider exploring the path of religion or spirituality. Faith has a way of providing inner peace and grounding. As humans, we are inherently designed to seek meaning through connection, building a family, and raising children. Watching them grow can bring a profound sense of purpose and fulfillment that no material success can replace. This might be the key to rediscovering what truly matters in life.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#33
I don’t get it… you can do whatever the hell you want now. What’s the problem? Surely you like do _something_?

And if you only want to do something for 4 weeks at a time then do that. Where’s the despair coming from?

Also, this person loves capitalism so much because it worked for them. But then the way they say like it’s the greatest gift ever seems so out of touch.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#36

Therapy. Wealth and success is one of the most massive crutches there is. It can make it almost impossible to be truly in touch with your insecurities and pain because its simply too easy to hide in your victory. Your toughest challenge now is to, despite your wealth, find a way to contact the pain that drove you to your hunger for success. As the bible said, it's easier for a camel to get through the head of a needl…

"eye of the needle" refers to a small gate or passage in ancient city walls, used after the main gates were closed at night. A camel could only pass through this narrow opening if it was unloaded of its baggage and possibly crawled through on its knees.

Not as hard or impossible as it first appears but still harder.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#37
Work on affordable housing tech. There is a huge need for housing at all levels, and I really believe the lower end could be revolutionized by new materials and techniques, along with novel approaches to land use. You could make a real meaningful contribution and choose to make money or not along the way.

Or whatever you want really. I recently contemplated what I would do if I won the lottery and arrived at that conclusion. Hopefully you arrive at yours.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#38
post #36

Therapy. Wealth and success is one of the most massive crutches there is. It can make it almost impossible to be truly in touch with your insecurities and pain because its simply too easy to hide in your victory. Your toughest challenge now is to, despite your wealth, find a way to contact the pain that drove you to your hunger for success. As the bible said, it's easier for a camel to get through the head of a needl…

"eye of the needle" refers to a small gate or passage in ancient city walls, used after the main gates were closed at night. A camel could only pass through this narrow opening if it was unloaded of its baggage and possibly crawled through on its knees. Not as hard or impossible as it first appears but still harder.

Even better, thanks for that explanation

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#39

> NPC coworkers I very much dislike the trend of calling other people NPCs. When you feel tempted to see someone else as an NPC, it might be helpful to remember the concept of "sonder": > the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness—an epic story that continues invisibly around you lik…

Yeah. Red flag for sure. Therapy is this arm-chair doctor’s recommendation.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#40
Peak, peak HN.

"I am rich and yet find it to be unfulfilling and not the ultimate goal of human existence"

and yet,

"I am a big fan of capitalism" and repeat wholesale its most puerile, naive ideological propaganda mantras (see his about page) which are meant to justify _exactly_ that.

Bud, seems like you have some more thinking to do if you think those two positions are perfectly congruent.

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