The Harsh Truth About Money & Happiness That NO ONE Is Talking About Feat. Sahil Bloom

Here are the top 10 key takeaways from Ed Mylett's conversation with Sahil Bloom about redefining wealth and designing a life of true fulfillment.

1. Time is the most valuable currency

Time with loved ones is finite and countable. Sahil shares a profound story about a conversation with a friend who asked how often he saw his parents. When Sahil answered "once a year," his friend replied, "So you're going to see your parents 15 more times before they die." This realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

This wake-up call prompted immediate action. Within 45 days, Sahil and his wife left their jobs in California, sold their house, and moved across the country to be closer to both sets of parents. This single decision transformed those 15 remaining visits into hundreds. It demonstrated that we have more control over our time than we might believe.

Ed reinforces this point with his own experience, sharing how after his father passed away, his mother revealed that his father had kept every scorecard from their golf games together. These moments meant everything to his father, even though Ed hadn't fully realized their significance at the time.

2. Life has seasons that require different priorities

Your life unfolds in seasons, and what you prioritize should change accordingly. During certain periods, you might focus intensely on building financial wealth or career advancement. In other seasons, your priorities might shift to family, health, or personal growth.

The key insight is recognizing that these priorities operate on dimmer switches, not on/off switches. When focusing on career, you shouldn't completely turn off relationships, health, or mental wellbeing. Keep them at a lower intensity, but still present. If you leave these areas completely off for too long, you may never be able to turn them back on.

Many people use the word "later" when thinking about important aspects of life outside their primary focus. "I'll spend time with my kids later" or "I'll focus on my health later." But as Sahil points out, "later" often becomes "never" because those opportunities won't exist in the same way as time passes.

3. Anything above zero compounds

Small actions in any area of life will compound over time if they remain consistent. Even minimal effort toward relationships, health, mental wellbeing, or financial goals creates momentum. Sending a quick text to a friend, calling a parent for just two minutes, or taking a five-minute walk all matter.

Many ambitious people allow "optimal" to get in the way of "beneficial." They think, "If I can't work out for an hour, I won't exercise at all" or "If I don't have two hours for deep work, I'll just answer emails instead." This perfectionist mindset prevents progress in important areas.

Recognizing that anything above zero compounds leads to a powerful shift in perspective. The five-minute walk is better than no walk. A brief call to a loved one is better than no contact. Small investments compound over time, creating significant changes and preventing areas of life from atrophying completely.

4. The five types of wealth create a comprehensive life

Sahil outlines five distinct types of wealth that together form a complete, fulfilling life. Time wealth gives you freedom to choose how you spend your time and with whom. Social wealth encompasses your relationships. Mental wealth includes purpose, growth, and space for reflection. Physical wealth relates to health and vitality. Financial wealth is money, with emphasis on understanding your definition of "enough."

These categories provide a framework for evaluating life beyond traditional metrics. Someone with modest financial means might be extraordinarily wealthy in other domains—rich in meaningful relationships, purpose, freedom, and health.

By understanding these different types of wealth, you can make more intentional choices about where to direct your energy. Rather than defaulting to society's narrow definition of success based primarily on financial achievement, you can design a life that balances all five types of wealth according to your personal values.

5. Money needs to become a tool, not the goal

Money isn't nothing, but it can't be everything. In the early stages of life, money directly buys happiness by providing basic needs, security, and initial pleasures. However, this linear relationship between money and happiness eventually levels off, following a curve of diminishing returns.

Beyond a certain threshold, money's role should transform from being the goal to becoming a tool for building other types of wealth. It can create experiences with loved ones, unlock freedom and time, and support investments in physical and mental health. This perspective shift is crucial for continued happiness and fulfillment.

The process of making money is fundamentally about creating value for others. Rather than focusing on getting rich, focus on solving problems for people. Sahil breaks this down into three simple steps: identify problems, create solutions, and scale those solutions. The more scalable your solutions, the more financial wealth you can accumulate.

6. Environment dramatically impacts thought patterns

Changing your physical environment can transform your thought patterns and decision-making ability. When you remain in familiar surroundings, you tend to have familiar thoughts and continue reinforcing existing narratives about yourself and your life. Breaking free from these patterns often requires a change of scenery.

Sahil recommends a monthly "think day" where you leave your normal environment and spend time reflecting on bigger life questions. This practice was inspired by Bill Gates, who would take a week annually to read, think, and gain perspective. Changing locations is crucial because your current environment contains triggers that reinforce existing thought patterns.

For maximum benefit, seek out open, spacious environments. Sahil notes the "cathedral effect," a phenomenon where high ceilings and open spaces promote more creative, expansive thinking. This environmental shift creates the mental space needed to see your life objectively and identify necessary changes.

7. The ABC system builds consistent habits

Consistency is vital for transformation, but few people explain how to actually achieve it. The ABC system provides a practical framework for maintaining consistency even when life gets chaotic. For any habit you're trying to build, establish three levels of engagement: A, B, and C goals.

The A goal represents your ideal scenario—what you'll do when everything goes perfectly. The B goal is your baseline for normal days. The C goal is your minimum viable action for chaotic days when everything goes wrong. For example, with exercise, your A goal might be a one-hour workout, B goal a 30-minute session, and C goal a five-minute walk.

This tiered approach acknowledges life's unpredictability while eliminating excuses for complete inaction. On difficult days, you still move forward with your C goal, maintaining your habit streak and preventing the complete abandonment that often follows perfectionist all-or-nothing thinking. The system embodies the principle of "holding yourself to the fire in the act, but giving yourself grace in the amount."

8. The energy calendar reveals what truly fuels you

To identify activities and people that energize or drain you, create an energy calendar. At the end of each day for a week, color-code your calendar activities: green for energy-creating activities, yellow for neutral ones, and red for energy-draining activities. This visual representation reveals patterns about what truly fuels or depletes you.

After a week, patterns emerge that guide you toward making intentional changes. You can begin shifting more time toward green activities and people while finding ways to delegate, modify, or eliminate red ones. Even in structured work environments, small adjustments can make significant differences in your energy and satisfaction.

Sahil shares a personal example from his finance career, discovering that phone calls and Zoom meetings drained his energy, but taking those same calls while walking outside created energy instead. By converting half his calls to walking meetings, he completely transformed his experience of work without changing his actual responsibilities.

9. Strong relationships build on high expectations and high support

Meaningful relationships combine high expectations with high support. High expectations mean believing in someone's capabilities and potential. High support means actively helping them meet those expectations through encouragement, assistance, and presence.

Sahil illustrates this through his relationship with his father, who attends his book tour events, sits in the front row taking notes, and provides thoughtful feedback afterward. This combination of believing in his potential while actively supporting his journey creates a powerful bond. In contrast, high expectations without support leads to resentment.

This principle applies to all relationships—with children, partners, friends, and colleagues. When people know you believe in them and will be there to support their journey, they're inspired to reach their potential. This creates the deep connections that form the foundation of social wealth.

10. Resume virtues versus eulogy virtues

There's a critical distinction between resume virtues and eulogy virtues. Resume virtues appear on your professional biography—achievements, titles, awards, and financial success. Eulogy virtues are what people will remember and speak about at your funeral—your character, how you treated others, your faith, and your role as a parent, partner, or friend.

Modern culture celebrates the pursuit of resume virtues, often at the expense of eulogy virtues. We chase professional accolades, status, and wealth, sometimes sacrificing the relationships and character that will ultimately define our legacy. This pursuit can lead to a pyrrhic victory—winning the battle (career success) but losing the war (a meaningful, connected life).

Building resume virtues isn't inherently wrong. However, achieving them shouldn't come at the cost of developing eulogy virtues. True wealth includes both professional accomplishment and personal character. As Ed notes from personal experience, when his professional achievements are read aloud at speaking engagements, they feel increasingly hollow compared to being known as a good person, parent, and friend.