3 Things Money Can’t Buy—Naval Ravikant

Have you heard of Naval Ravikant? He’s a famed early-stage investor who’s become one of the most rabidly quoted for modern-day wisdom. I caught a video clip of his recently that, while only 52 seconds long, contains weeks’ worth of wisdom on the notion of true wealth.

By the way, true wealth is distinguished from the blander version of wealth we’ve settled for in the 21^st century. It harkens back to the original meaning of the word, which was less about loud accumulation and more about quiet contentment. True wealth isn’t a number, but a state of being. True wealth is…Enough.

Before answering the question about what money can’t buy, Ravikant offers a concise summary of what it can and the best way to acquire it.

Noting that we “have to have some leverage in the physical world,” money is highly effective at caring for our material needs, mirroring the research that suggests money can buy happiness, at least to the point of basic sustenance, but less so beyond.

So, how do we get some—money, that is? “You have to create something that society wants. As a byproduct of that, and the knowledge accumulated, you can make some money.”

I love that he references the inherent value of the knowledge accumulated in pursuit of creating a good or service that society wants here, too.

Then, almost as an aside, Ravikant serves up the world’s best definition of money, as “stored up value” that “frees up your time to help others and go do what you want.”

This notion that money is time purchased in advance is one of the main themes of the book the financial industry likely doesn’t want you to read, by hedge fund manager Bill Perkins: Die With Zero. Perkins introduces us to the notion of ROE—Return On Experience—as a greater good than ROI and recommends bucketing our time the way we bucket our money.

So, what other things do you want out of life that you can’t get with money?

“A fit body, a calm mind, and a house full of love,” Ravikant says. “These things cannot be bought; they must be earned.”

What I find so powerful about this trio of unpurchaseable, uncommodifiable, unmonetizable gems that money can’t buy is that they tend to be the most often sacrificed in pursuit of, well, money. Sad, isn’t it?

Oh, and there is a fourth thing of value Ravikant suggests money can’t buy—but with a hefty disclaimer: respect.

“But don’t chase respect, because that becomes fame, and the best way to be someone not worthy of respect is to chase respect.”

And maybe that’s why Naval is so well –respected yet relatively under the radar.

So, to reiterate:

• What’s money good for? Material needs, helping others, and buying time.
• How do we get money? Provide a good or service society wants.
• What can’t money buy, that must be earned? A fit body, a calm mind, and a house of love.
• And how do we earn respect? By not chasing it.

Herein lies some of the best, most practical financial life planning advice you’ll find—all in 52 seconds. (Or however long it took you to read this.)