are you wealthy enough?

This weekend I had a conversation with my brother-in-law about wealth.  My brother-in-law is in sales -- because, as he put it, "I got good grades and I know how to talk to people, but I never had a strong sense of what I wanted to do for a living."  He does pretty well and he knows it, but he also knows he doesn't need most of what he wants.  In his words: "It's funny how people's wants turn into needs.  I don't really need a souped up truck, but I built it and I enjoy it.  And now, if the transmission goes out, I feel like I NEED to buy a new transmission."

The conversation led us both to wonder how much people really need, and how much people have around the world.  We found an online world wealth calculator, where I learned that the average person in the world makes $1,700 -- A YEAR.

It turns out that we Americans -- including you and your family -- are all rich, by global standards.

I hear a lot from students who say they don't have time to read or do research or think deeply about anything because they're too busy working for a paycheck.  Is this true?  Does your quality of life depend on a few hundred bucks, and is that what's really in the way of thinking yourself to a better future?  You may want to have a look at the site and learn about the issue for yourself.  You can see where you and your family stand by using the calculator on the site. 

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