The Purpose of Life and The Accumulation of Wealth - An Alternate View
Daniel Raphael, Ph.D. ~ 2000

The substance of this article is very practical for parents who have children and want their children to become all that they can become. To do that, parents need to have a simple philosophical understanding of how their accumulation of wealth can be a powerful tool for their children’s happiness and personal fulfillment in life.

It is obvious that the accumulation of wealth provides greater material rewards. Larger, more sumptuous homes, expensive cars, and extravagant travel arrangements and destinations are evidence of that. But yet, in the end it is still just more “stuff” accumulating around us. What is not so obvious is how wealth can be used thoughtfully to aid our children’s happiness, success, and personal fulfillment, as they grow older.

The first simple philosophical understanding is that the purpose of life is to grow. (Later in the article, we will briefly talk about the meaning of life.) Growth is an inherent aspect of life whether it is physical growth to adulthood, emotional growth and social competence, intellectual growth and educational and cultural understandings, or spiritual growth. We grow, and when we do not grow we are stagnant which is the first stage of degeneration.

Compassionate, competent and thoughtful parents want their children to grow to express all of their inner potentials. When children make decisions and actions to grow in ways they choose, they give meaning to their lives. (See, that wasn’t so hard to talk about was it?)

An interesting and often disconcerting aspect of growth is that as we grow we come to larger understandings of who and what we are and what we need to further express our inner potentials. For example, many college students major in accounting or engineering or psychology, later graduate and get a job in the field of their major. Before too long, they discover that they can’t stand their chosen field of work. This is evidence of growth. What is at odds is that they cannot give meaning to their life’s potential through their old major field of interest and related career.

For individuals who do not come from wealth, the future of their life may be dismal and unhappy. They will feel unfulfilled because they have to remain in their unhappy field of employment in order to pay off their student loans. This is where the accumulation of wealth comes in really handy.

The accumulation of wealth provides a safe platform for personal change. With wealth, an individual can give themselves a safe “time out” in life to explore other avenues of employment and interest to find fulfillment, where they can enjoyably express their inner potentials. Parents who are sensitive to their children’s growth, (and their own growth!), will provide not only the material necessities of life, but more importantly the safe platforms, the safety nets of life, where they can safely choose new, more fulfilling avenues to express their inner potentials.

Consider the alternatives those with marginal incomes must do to find fulfillment in their lives. Examples: A single mother of two children works full time during the day and takes evening college classes to earn her degree. A young couple has decided that one of them will work full time to put the other through college, with the college partner working part time. A young, single person joins the military service in order to get training and education for their career after their military experience. An apparently successful middle class couple decides to sell their large home and buy a smaller duplex so they can use the surplus incomes to be unemployed for several months in order to participate in spiritual retreats. And many more examples, as well.

With wealth, individuals can give themselves and their children a safe platform from which they can change directions in their life in order to continue their infinite journey of growth. You can be assured that this growth will allow them to continue an unending expression of our inner potentials as they emerge.

Best wishes on your journey and that of your children.

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Readers are welcome to reproduce this article. Please retain the name and addresses of the author, for those who wish to contact:

Daniel Raphael, Ph.D.
PO Box 3718
Boulder, CO 80307-3718
USA
dr@boulderlifecoach.com

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