In the End - The True "Bottom Line"

Financial success is important, but only one aspect of living. One hundred and fifty years ago, Ralph Waldo Emerson asked, "What is success?" and provided the following memorable answer:

to laugh often and love much;
to win the respect of intelligent persons and the affection of children;
to earn the approval of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
to appreciate beauty;
to find the best in others;
to give of one's self without the slightest thought of return;
to have accomplished a task, whether by a healthy child, a rescued soul, a garden or a redeemed social condition;
to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sung with exaltation;
to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived, this is to have succeeded.

Money and wealth are not included in Emerson's definition of success. Money is a means rather than an end. Its importance is in helping us achieve the kinds of things listed above. Asset-class, passive management is a way to be more efficient in managing the mundane responsibilities all of us have. It is a way of liberating the time and energy required to "laugh often and love much." on your own path to success.