Be proud if you’re working on some sort of artistic, cultural, or entrepreneurial project. Even though you’re not rich. You’re entitled to be a tad arrogant. You have skin in the game. Whether we like it or not, risk-takers build the world; and most employees benefit from their courage.

Redefine work as a collection of projects, income streams, and experiments rather than one “safe” 9-5 contract or overambitious business. I own a small branding agency (I only have 3-9 clients I work with); I host retreats about wine, art, and philosophy; I run an online program about entrepreneurship in the Information Age; and I’m writing books

The goal is to build a lifestyle where I can take 200+ days off every year without necessarily getting rich. To figure out what I wanted, I didn’t dream about building the “perfect” career. I started by defining my worst career nightmare. The first step toward learning what you want is being very specific about what you hate. And my worst career

We often discuss issues such as pollution, poverty, or corruption from a global perspective; yet we fail to consider them locally—in our city, neighborhood, or even family. We’re thus trained to be irresponsible: the more we think and talk about problems we can’t control—the more virtuous we feel but—the more we neglect the problems which are in

Outside-the-box thinking requires outside-the-box living.

What does your ideal day look like? Most people love to set “big” goals for the future... But they fail to seize the present moment. Instead of thinking at the macro level, begin by designing your perfect day. Once you’re able to live 200+ such days per year, you’re rich—even though you aren’t rich.

The trick to a better life is to aim for things you can’t measure with numbers. Beauty. Elegance. Peace. Love. Friendship.

Extraordinary people lead ordinary lives. Contrary to popular belief, there’s nothing more complex, meaningful, and difficult to build than a simple life.

By thinking all the time about money, you lose all the spiritual advantages of self-sufficiency. Learn to be happy before you get rich.