“Being frugal means having a high Joy-to-Stuff ratio.”

—Vicki Robin, in Your Money or Your Life

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Over six years ago, I wrote my first post for the Quotable Coach series. The initial thought-provoking entries included this one from Art Buchwald:

“The Best Things in Life are not Things.”

For me, the best things are the people, the experiences, the learning moments, and yes, the journey, that makes my life rich.

Regarding “stuff,” though, I am a bit of a minimalist. I look for a high Joy-to-Stuff ratio, which I suppose makes me frugal.

I do, however, own a lot of books, which have brought me much pleasure and delight over the years. One caveat is that I buy more than 75% of my books at a steep discount on either amazon.com, or at half.com, which is my favorite site for slightly older books.

EXERCISE:

What things bring you the greatest joy? Which items in your life have the highest Joy-to-Stuff ratio? How might you pursue more happiness by being more frugal today?