Happy and Rich

I get Early to Rise -- which bills itself as The Internet's Most Popular Wealth, Health and Wisdom EZine -- in my email-box every day. Frequently there are nuggets in there that make it worth my while to subscribe. Today there is one from the internationally renowned speaker and best-selling author Brian Tracy: "You were put on this earth with a special combination of talents and abilities that make you different from anyone who has ever lived. Whatever you're doing today, it's nowhere near what you're really capable of doing. The key to a happy and prosperous life is for you to regularly evaluate your strengths and weaknesses, to become very good in the areas you most enjoy, and then to throw your whole heart into what you're doing [emphasis added]."

This is a recurring thread in most of modern success-literature: happiness and wealth come from the same basic source: using your character-strengths. Martin Seligman of "Authentic Happiness" tells us that lasting happiness comes from exercising our Signature Strengths in our daily lives. Marcus Buckingham of Gallup, Inc. tells us that developing your strengths is the key to professional fulfillment (and thence to wealth).

This ties in very well with our philosophy of unschooling -- let the kids play a lot, for it is through self-directed play that you discover your strengths, talents and passions. Happiness and wealth happen once these basics are in place.