WEALTH BY THE POWER OF SMALL THINGS

BOOK REVIEW:The Wealth Code: Small Habits to Prosperity    

AUTHOR: Ray Brehm

This handy little book – 85 pages, offers a fresh perspective on wealth-building, challenging traditional ideas about money and success.  It is a compilation of articles by people – including our very own Monica Rubombora, talking about their main take on money -- its making, keeping and growing.

While it has more of the same financial literacy lessons we have had over and over again, three of the 13 chapters stood out for me. Not to denigrate the other ten.

It starts interestingly with the chapter “The wrong balance sheet” which author Brehm argues, rather than focusing solely on financial gains, adopt a more holistic view of prosperity—one that includes relationships, health, and personal fulfillment alongside financial success.

In The Wealth Code: Small Habits to Prosperity, Ray Brehm throws out the traditional approach to wealth-building and replaces it with a smarter, more balanced way to achieve lasting success. One of the first things he challenges is how we measure wealth. Most of us look at our bank accounts, investments, and what we owe to determine how well we're doing financially. But Brehm says that’s a pretty limited view. “The way you have been taught to measure Net Worth is flawed,” he writes.

If this has you rolling your eyes, you are not alone. Easy to say for a person who has attained financial freedom.

Nevertheless, the well worn cliché that true wealth is about a lot more than just money should be ignored at your own peril. Think about it as looking at the bigger picture—your relationships, personal growth, and overall well-being. If you're only focused on your financial assets, you're missing the other important parts of life that really make you feel rich. For

 the rest of us in the rat race it is all about money, but the author argues you don’t get money by looking for money, but by adopting the habits that will bring you the money, one of which – surprise, surprise is staying healthy.

“If you don’t have your health, wealth becomes irrelevant,” says Lisa McNair Palmer, the chapter’s author. Straightforward but powerful point. If you’re not healthy, making more money doesn’t really help you enjoy life or even use your wealth effectively. And what is the money for after all, than for its benefits to be enjoyed by you and your loved ones?

Palmer stresses the importance of investing in your physical and mental health just as much as you would in stocks or real estate. If you’re constantly worn out or dealing with health issues, it’ll be hard to build any kind of wealth. So, it’s important to put as much effort into taking care of your body and mind as you do into making money. Exercise, eat well, get enough rest—it’s all part of building a strong foundation for long-term prosperity.

Experts agree that exercise need not be much more than logging a few thousand steps a day.

Many people overcomplicate wealth-building by diving into risky investments or trying to follow complex financial strategies. But Josette Mandela believes the key to success is simple math: save more, spend less, and invest wisely.

“Small habits compound into great wealth over time,” she writes. The trick isn’t to find one big financial win—it’s about making small, consistent decisions every day that eventually add up to significant gains. It’s about being patient and letting time do the work for you. Instead of stressing out over trying to hit it big, Mandela encourages us to stick with simple habits that will help us grow our wealth steadily over time.

What makes The Wealth Code

so impactful is that it shifts the focus away from just chasing money. Instead, it’s about building a balanced life where health, mindset, and wealth all work together. When you stop measuring success by the size of your bank account alone and start considering your overall well-being, you set yourself up for a more fulfilling, lasting prosperity. By investing in small, consistent habits—whether it's taking care of your health or sticking to simple financial practices—you can build true wealth that goes beyond just the dollars in your pocket...

Think of an athlete who wants to run the 100 meters in under 10 seconds to qualify for the Olympics. He doesn’t just go out and try and run under 10 seconds every day. He practices his reaction to the starting gun, his sprinting technique, he lifts weights to get stronger, he charts a competition schedule that will allow him peak just before Olympics, these and many small things he does with the aim of running a sub-10.

It the same with wealth, you do not go out to focus on being a millionaire, but this book through the various perspectives of the authors counsels, that you focus on the small things you do everyday, not all directly connected to money that will allow you eventually become wealthy become wealthy hopefully, but probably more important enjoy the journey while you are at it.

Very enjoyable read. Other chapters on tithing, leveraging expertise and  recognized authority provide much food for thought. This book may very well add new perspectives to your quest for and ease your journey towards wealth.