Epictetus’s Key to True Joy

What does true wealth entail? Is it more — or less — of the same?

Photo by Jakob Owens on Unsplash

I remember sitting in a conference room in my previous employer, working on a project with my department.

Before we dug into the tasks at hand, one of my supervisors offered an icebreaker question to get us thinking.

“If money was no object,” she asked us, “what would you do with your time?”

The answers spanned much of what you might expect: travel, spend more time with family and friends, learn new skills, take up fun hobbies, and volunteer for charities or causes we’re passionate about.

But one answer, in particular, stuck out to me:

“If money weren’t an issue, I think I would just be happy.”

It’s a simple answer, but it got me thinking. Why is it that achieving wealth is often seen as the key to happiness when it seems like wealth so often leads to unhappiness?

In today’s society, we are bombarded with messages telling us we need more stuff to be happy.

We’re told we need the newest car, the biggest house, and the latest fashion trends. We’re made to feel like we’re not good enough unless we have all of these things.

But what if the key to happiness doesn’t lie in acquiring more stuff, but in having…