Wealth has many sides.
Essays on money, freedom and the life in between.
Wealth & identity
How does wealth change the way we see ourselves? On knowing what is enough, new roles and goals that keep moving.
How much is enough?
A particular bank balance is supposed to bring security and make life easier. Yet as wealth grows, our idea of what we still need often grows with it. Is there any reliable way to recognise when we have enough?
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When money becomes part of who you are
Wealth changes what someone can afford. Sometimes it also changes their answer to the question of who they are. But self-image, social expectations and a sense of personal worth involve rather more than the balance on an account.
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Am I still the same person since becoming wealthy?
Moving up financially changes your options, your habits and sometimes the people you spend your days with. Your background comes with you all the same. How much change can we accommodate while still feeling like the same person?
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The next million: when more becomes an end in itself
First, a particular sum is supposed to buy freedom. Once you reach it, the next number suddenly seems just as important. Why do financial goals keep shifting, even when their original purpose has long been fulfilled?
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Being rich without wanting to be
A business becomes valuable, an investment grows or an inheritance changes what you can afford. But what if the new wealth seems to belong to a life you never wanted? On other people's expectations, personal values and the freedom to be rich without making a personality out of it.
Read articleLife after success
The big goal has been reached. On new freedom, missing responsibilities and everyday life after success.
You have sold your company. What comes next?
Selling a business can be the successful conclusion of years of work. But signing the contract changes more than the ownership structure. On leaving a role that has shaped much of a founder's life, and why relief and loss can comfortably coexist.
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When you reach the big goal and surprisingly little changes
You spend years working towards a particular success. The sale goes through, the money reaches your account and the goal is achieved. Then comes an ordinary morning. Why we sometimes expect milestones to feel more dramatic than they do, and why that does not diminish the achievement.
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Financially free, and suddenly without a purpose
When work is no longer financially necessary, your diary finally belongs to you. That sounds like freedom. Everyday life then raises a surprisingly practical question: what gives your days shape when nobody needs anything from you?
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Why success can also bring a crisis
A major goal has been reached, the figures look good and everything seems to be at a high point from outside. Yet some people feel exhausted afterwards, unfamiliar to themselves or unexpectedly lost. How can both be true without turning every success into a crisis?
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Life without financial pressure: freedom or a loss of direction?
No longer having to earn a living brings remarkable freedom. But where do drive, direction and a sense of acting from your own wishes come from then? Motivation research offers more than one answer.
Read articleMoney, happiness & the mind
What money does to our experience of life. On satisfaction, adaptation, fear of loss and the demands of wealth.
Can money make you happy? The boring answer: it depends
Researchers have spent years debating whether money makes life happier and at what income the effect weakens. The debate is interesting because its participants measure different kinds of happiness. Looking at the studies reveals what money can genuinely change and what remains unsettled.
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Why luxury eventually becomes normal
The first evening in an extraordinary house, the first drive in an expensive car, the first trip without worrying about the bill. What initially thrills us eventually becomes everyday life. Why does that happen, and does familiarity really mean luxury loses its value?
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Why you can feel rich, or not, even with millions
A bank balance says something about financial possibilities. Feeling rich also depends on your surroundings, expectations and the form your wealth takes. Even people in exceptionally strong financial positions can be surprised by how they classify themselves.
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Fear of losing money when there is already more than enough
Substantial wealth can provide security. Thoughts of losses, poor decisions and uncertain developments can still persist. Why does the number on paper not always quiet a sense of threat?
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Wealth fatigue: when wealth becomes exhausting
Substantial wealth opens possibilities but can also create work. Decisions, administration, expectations and protecting privacy sometimes demand more attention than outsiders imagine. What does "wealth fatigue" mean, and when does ownership become a burden?
Read articleRelationships, family & trust
Closeness, expectations and boundaries when wealth has a seat at the table. On friendship, partnership and family.
Can I trust you, or my money?
If you own a great deal, new and old relationships alike can occasionally set you wondering. Is someone interested in you, or in what you can do for them? Psychology explains why trust always involves a certain amount of risk, and why constantly searching for hidden motives can make closeness just as difficult as genuine financial expectations.
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When friends start treating you differently
The friendship is the same; the bank balance is not. Suddenly an invitation becomes complicated, a holiday too expensive or a generous offer awkward. Financial differences can change old relationships without anyone having to be envious, ungrateful or calculating.
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Should I tell people how much money I have?
A bank balance can be a harmless piece of information until someone else knows it. Then expectations, conversations or the sense of closeness may shift. When does openness build trust, and when is it wiser to keep your figures to yourself?
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When your family expects money
In many families, people help each other without making much of it. When one member suddenly becomes very wealthy, that unspoken habit can turn into a difficult question: what counts as voluntary support, and when does it start to be quietly expected?
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Wealthy parents, adult children: how much help is too much?
Buying a home, starting a business or getting through a difficult stretch of life. Wealthy parents can open doors for their adult children that others cannot. But when is support genuinely helpful, and when does it start to override their own decisions?
Read articleSudden wealth, inheritance & change
When your financial possibilities change suddenly. On unexpected wealth, inheritance and personal transitions.
Sudden wealth syndrome: what does the term mean?
People who suddenly come into a lot of money can feel overwhelmed. Since the late 1990s, the phrase “sudden wealth syndrome” has been doing the rounds to describe this. It sounds like a recognised mental illness. Its history and the scientific evidence, however, tell a different story.
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Suddenly rich: why a windfall can be overwhelming
A large sum of money can make life easier. But it can also, at a stroke, raise questions that never needed asking before. What happens between the first rush of joy and the new everyday reality?
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A large inheritance and the feeling you have not earned it
If you inherit a fortune, you did not have to build it yourself. Some people find exactly that hard to square with their sense of who they are. What does “earning” mean when money becomes part of a family's history?
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When money and grief arrive together
An inheritance can open up financial possibilities while the person who left it is no longer there. Between memories, decisions and family expectations, a situation arises that a bank balance does very little to explain.
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Earned or inherited: does the source of wealth matter?
Two people have the same amount of money. One built it over decades; the other inherited it. Does that mean they experience their wealth differently? Research offers a striking finding, alongside some good reasons not to generalise too quickly.
Read articleGiving, letting go & impact
Why people pass wealth on and what it means on both sides. On motives, recognition and voluntary decisions.
Does giving money away make you happier than spending it?
Spending money on others can feel surprisingly good. But how reliable is that effect, when does it occur, and what do small psychological experiments really tell us about giving away a large fortune?
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Why people give wealth away
People give money out of affection, responsibility, conviction or a desire to change something. With substantial wealth, several motives often come together. Research shows how little the simple opposition between selflessness and self-interest explains.
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Giving while you are still alive
Passing wealth on during your lifetime lets you see what becomes of it. That opens up possibilities, but also changes relationships, expectations and your own role. What makes the timing of a gift psychologically significant?
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Giving anonymously or wanting to be seen?
Some people give discreetly; others deliberately allow their names to be mentioned. What does that say about their motives? Research shows that publicity can change giving, but not always in the same direction.
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What happens when money changes hands?
A voluntary gift changes a bank balance. Its effects on freedom, expectations, gratitude and the relationship between two people are harder to calculate. A look at both sides of the transfer.
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