Chris: Most clients come to us because of their financial health, or that pursuit of financial health. But this book talks about so much more than just the financial side. It's about not ignoring your social health, your time health, your physical health, your intellectual health. When you're putting all of your time and energy into that one thing and ignoring the others, that one thing you're trying to achieve actually becomes less possible.
Bruce: It's important that they all weave together. I lost my house in the Palisades Fire, and I had so many people offer to help: "Come stay with us, come stay with us." I went to Spain, I went to Key West. My daughter said, "Dad, you're just so lucky you have so many great friends." It really shows how a life can be well-rounded.
Chris: Bruce, I was looking forward to this conversation because today we're talking about a book I recently read, The Five Types of Wealth by Sahil Bloom. This is sort of a follow-up to Die with Zero, which I covered with Kevin. What fascinated me about it (and I know you love self-help books, which we'll get into) is that most clients come to us focused purely on financial health. But this book is about so much more than that as it relates to being happy, confident, and getting the most out of your life and what you've built. We're talking social health, time health, physical health, intellectual health.
Bruce: Intellectual wealth, yeah.
Chris: Exactly. So we'll walk through all five types. But first, what were your overall thoughts on the book, both personally and as an advisor?
Bruce: Well, as you know, I'm not really a self-help book guy. I actually took the cover off so people wouldn't think I was still trying to figure my life out at my age. (laughs) But I loved the stories in the book. Once I got past a few things that initially bothered me, which we'll get to, I really appreciated it.
Chris: I didn't suggest you read it because I thought you needed to improve your life. I actually thought about you throughout the whole book, because as it describes the five types of wealth, I feel like you genuinely represent all of them. Even through the setbacks and challenges you've faced, you've persevered and found real control and happiness. And it's not all tied to the financial side.
Bruce: Right. And it's important to blend the intellectual, the physical, the mental, and the time. Making sure you carve out time for yourself, your family, your friends. I read a lot. I go back into antiquity, the old classics, and it's amazing how modern those ideas still feel. And I don't just keep it to myself. I'll send my daughter a paragraph from something written 2,500 years ago that's perfectly applicable to something she's going through right now. That's how you blend it all together, and it's fun.
Chris: It really is. And what I found interesting in this book is the idea that when you pour everything into one area, financial health, career success, and neglect the others, that primary goal actually becomes harder to reach. So the key insight is: on your path toward financial health, you need to tend to the other areas too. I'll be honest, for several years I let the gym slide because I told myself I needed that time for my career. Now I'm 46 with a six-year-old and a three-year-old, and I'd better start stretching before I pull a hamstring playing duck-duck-goose.
Then there's social wealth and time wealth, having real control over how you spend your time, which is really what most people are ultimately after.
Bruce: That brings to mind a story from the book: the fisherman. He's somewhere in the Mediterranean, catches just enough fish each day to cover his family's needs. A Westerner on vacation says, "Hey, you could scale up, build a fleet, become really successful, and then retire and spend all your time with your family and friends." And the fisherman says, "But I already have that."
It's about knowing what "enough" looks like for you. And another point I liked: people have a baseline level of happiness, and it's different for everyone. Achievements give it a temporary boost, but you eventually return to your baseline. I remember hearing about a famous director who said his actors all believed winning an Academy Award would make them happy, and it did, for a while. Then they drifted back. The one thing that can sustainably raise that baseline? Curiosity.
Chris: I love that you brought up curiosity, because anyone who's been in our office knows Bruce is always asking questions. That idea of "if I just win that award, then I'll be happy" really resonates. I was a former professional golfer. Wasn't good enough to stay on tour, which is why I'm sitting here today. But I remember talking to Phil Mickelson before he won his first major. The press was relentless: "Why can't you win a major? Tiger's winning and you're the second-best player in the world." And Phil just said, "I'll win when my time comes. But I love what I do, I'm focused on getting better every day, and I'm not consumed by what you all are worried about."
That's the lesson from the book. Most of us are in this "when this happens, then I'll be happy" cycle, whether it's a house, a car, or a promotion. But your true happiness has a baseline, and it's the social wealth, physical wealth, intellectual wealth, and time wealth that actually move it, not the reward itself.
Bruce: Right. And the author, Sahil Bloom, was in his 30s, doing really well financially, but completely consumed by work. He had this realization: his parents were on the other coast. If he only visited once or twice a year, he might only see them 15 or 20 more times in his life. That shifted everything for him.
The one thing that initially bothered me about the book: it felt a little like that old Steve Martin line, "How to become a millionaire, first get a million dollars." It starts from a place of already being successful. But once you get into the stories, you get past that.
Chris: I can see how that framing would put off someone like you. Sahil's actually a pretty humble guy. He was a pitcher at Stanford, and his Twitter bio has a line about throwing a pitch in a World Series game that still hasn't landed yet. He built a great business and following, and he's become more of a life philosopher than anything else. His whole framework around "how many times will I actually see this person again?" is something I think about all the time in our work.
Because what clients really want, at the core, isn't just money. They want more time with the people they love. They want to be in good enough shape to do the experiences they're after. That connects directly to Die with Zero: if my goal is to climb Everest, I can't do that at 65 the way I could at 45. So how do I make decisions now that preserve those options at the right time in life? I can take an Alaskan cruise at 65, but Everest is now-or-never. What were your thoughts on that section?
Bruce: One thing I took from the social wealth piece: staying consistently connected to people over time. What I do is subscribe to The New Yorker. Every week I flip through, spot a cartoon that reminds me of a specific friend or one of my kids, snap a photo, and text it to them. That one text can spark five or six more interactions. I've been doing this with friends I've known my whole life, and it really paid off when I lost my house in the Palisades Fire. Offers came in from everywhere. I went to Spain, Key West, Lake Tahoe. My daughter said, "Dad, you're so lucky to have so many great friends." Those relationships didn't happen by accident.
Chris: And you ended up at my house too, Bruce.
Bruce: I did. And the first night I walked into the guest room, there were framed photos of both my daughters on the nightstand. I completely broke down.
Chris: I'm glad it meant something. I actually borrowed that idea from a friend who did it for me on a trip. But that's what I mean, you've done a great job tending to your social relationships over the years, so when something catastrophic happened, you had a whole network ready to show up for you. That's social wealth in action.
Chris: So here's a bigger question: how do you think social wealth, time wealth, physical health, and intellectual wealth actually help someone become more financially successful?
Bruce: If you're doing all of those things, you become more interesting. If you're curious, you're constantly learning, and that shows up in your work and in your conversations. People want to do business with people they genuinely like and find engaging. It just opens doors.
Chris: I think about our role as advisors in exactly that way. We help clients gain financial clarity, sure, but through that we're also giving them back time, expanding their knowledge, and freeing up mental space. We've got a team that handles the research, runs projections, figures out income strategies, automates things, and serves as a connector, helping clients find CPAs, attorneys, contractors, solar installers, whatever they need. That frees up their time so they can spend it on what actually matters: the people they love, their health, their experiences.
Bruce: They're really delegating a lot to us.
Chris: They are. So, do you think you can ignore one or two of these five types of wealth and still find overall happiness and success?
Bruce: Maybe in theory, but I think they really need to weave together. You need the full tapestry, all the colors. Leave one out and you notice it.
Chris: I know a lot of people who've been in full pursuit mode, financial success, intellectual achievement, time optimization, and completely let their friendships and family relationships slide. Then they retire, step away from work, and suddenly realize they're lonely. Their old colleagues are still buried in meetings and emails and don't have time to grab lunch. And that person is sitting there asking, "What was all of this for?" I think social wealth is the one that gets neglected most by people driven toward financial success.
Bruce: It's a trap, the hamster wheel. There's that Harry Chapin song, "Cat's in the Cradle," where the father works all his life and never has time for his kids. Then the kids grow up and say, "Sorry, Dad, I'm too busy." Following right in his footsteps.
Chris: That hits close to home. So, would you recommend the book, even to someone who isn't into self-help?
Bruce: I would. Honestly, about half of it is checklists and action steps. If that's not your thing, feel free to skim. But the other half is genuinely great storytelling, and it shows how a well-rounded life and financial success aren't at odds with each other. You can pursue financial health and tend to all the other areas. In fact, you probably have to.
Chris: Well said. And your fisherman story reminded me of something Nick Saban shared. There's a guy fishing on a dock, and he catches this huge fish and just throws it back. Catches another big one and throws it back. The guy fishing next to him is watching in disbelief. Finally he asks, "Why are you only keeping the small ones?" The fisherman says, "I've only got an eight-inch frying pan. These are the only ones that fit."
Bruce: And that connects to one of the key messages in the book: your pursuit of wealth and happiness shouldn't outpace your actual financial reality. You can aspire, but if you're spending beyond what you can sustain, that's a recipe for chronic stress. You want to avoid that.
Chris: Live within your means and know your limits. Bruce, thank you so much.
Bruce: Thank you.
