Redefining Net Worth
When you say “net worth,” what springs to mind? In America, most of us instantly start tallying bank accounts, investments, real estate, and other assets. But why do we define “worth” solely in monetary terms?
If you walked up to a random person on the street and asked, “What’s your net worth?” chances are they’d think in dollars first (or tell you to buzz off and mind your own business).
We’ve all seen the endless stream of headlines: “Top 10 Billionaires This Week” or “How Jeff Bezos’s Net Worth Jumped by $10 Billion Overnight.” In our culture, net worth is equated with a bottom-line balance sheet.
Yet whenever I ponder “worth,” I wonder: what about the lives we’ve touched, the problems we’ve solved, or the hope we’ve inspired? Could human impact instead of holdings measure our actual net worth?
Consider this scenario: imagine reading a weekly list titled “Top 10 People Who Improved Humanity This Week.” What if media outlets highlighted not just how the 0.1% grew richer but also how everyday people did something worthwhile for their communities? Since the wealthiest aren’t always, or even usually, the ones lighting lives on fire with good, isn’t it time we redefined “net worth” to include contributions beyond cash flow?
