What Does True Wealth Really Mean?
After hours of checking off packing lists, both of our backpacks are finally ready. As I look at them waiting by the stairway, I’m flooded with gratitude and reflection. Tomorrow, we fly to Pisa, Italy, to begin our eight-day pilgrimage along the Via Francigena, walking from Lucca to Siena through the timeless heart of Tuscany.
This journey began more than a year and a half ago when Kevin decided to refresh his Italian for his proficiency recertification. What started as a simple motivation soon grew into something much deeper — a journey of self-discovery. We had once planned to walk the Camino de Santiago first, but as it became increasingly commercialized in recent years and with Kevin immersed in his Italian studies, our hearts turned toward a quieter, more contemplative path — the Via Francigena, a pilgrimage steeped in history, faith, and simplicity.
Our intention is to one day walk the entire Via Francigena from Canterbury to Rome when time allows and, eventually, to fulfill our original dream of walking the Camino de Santiago. For now, this Tuscan stretch feels like the perfect beginning — a gentle step into a longer journey toward deeper self-discovery.
The Story Behind the Via Francigena
The Via Francigena is one of Europe’s oldest and most revered pilgrimage routes — a living thread that weaves through more than a thousand years of history. Its name comes from the Latin “Iter Francorum,” meaning “the road through the land of the Franks.”
Dating back to the early Middle Ages, the route once guided pilgrims, merchants, and messengers from Canterbury, England, across France and Switzerland, all the way to Rome, the eternal city. In the year 990 A.D., Sigeric the Serious, Archbishop of Canterbury, famously recorded his return journey from Rome after receiving his pallium from Pope John XV. His notes, outlining 79 stages, became the foundation for today’s modern path.
Unlike the Camino de Santiago, which has grown vibrant and crowded with modern pilgrims, the Via Francigena remains quieter and more reflective — a path through rolling Tuscan hills, vineyards, medieval villages, and timeless churches. For many, walking it is not only a journey across landscapes, but a pilgrimage inward — a sacred rhythm of breath, step, and reflection.
For us, it represents more than travel. It’s a physical expression of our shared belief that life’s truest riches are found in purpose, simplicity, and presence.
Living Mindfully in an Affluent World
As I learned more about the pilgrims who once walked this path, I began to see the parallels to our own lives — not just as travelers, but as seekers. Every pilgrimage is, in its own way, a search for balance and meaning. In today’s world of abundance and constant motion, that search often brings us back to a simple question: what does true wealth really mean?
We live in one of the most affluent neighborhoods in the country, surrounded by symbols of financial success – a place where wealth is often measured by the cars in the driveway, the square footage of a home, or the designer names that fill a closet. By those standards, we’re not “wealthy.” We live comfortably, but we make choices. Yet I’ve learned that affluence and wealth are not the same.
Every purposeful travel plan, like this pilgrimage, requires thoughtful trade-offs. Instead of frequent dinners out, we cook most meals at home. Instead of impulsive purchases, we allocate intentionally for what truly matters. We give generously to causes we believe in and choose experiences that nourish our spirits over possessions that clutter our lives.
Our decision to prioritize this pilgrimage wasn’t a splurge — it was intentional. A choice to live deliberately, to align our spending with our values, and to invest in something that enriches our souls rather than our status.
Through this intentional way of living, I’ve come to realize that true wealth has less to do with how much we have and more to do with how aligned our money is with our values. That, to me, is the foundation of Purposeful Prosperity — the ability to use your resources intentionally to design a life that feels aligned, not just impressive.
The WISE360 Philosophy: Redefining True Wealth
The idea of true wealth I defined years ago in my practice — “We never achieve TRUE wealth until (1) we possess the ability to live mindfully with purpose and (2) are committed not only to advancing the quality of our own lives and happiness, but to helping others find theirs through the use of the wealth we created” — has become the cornerstone of what is now the WISE360 True Wealth Philosophy. It’s a model that views wealth not as an end goal, but as a living ecosystem of purpose, prosperity, and impact.
The 5 Dimensions of True Wealth (WISE360 Model)
Over the years, this philosophy has evolved into what I now call the 5 Dimensions of True Wealth — the foundation of WISE360’s approach to financial and personal well-being. These dimensions reflect how we grow into wealth from the inside out — through mindfulness, purpose, relationships, impact, and wholeness. Together, they form a living cycle of awareness, alignment, and contribution, reminding us that real wealth is not measured by what we have, but by how we live, give, and grow.
| Dimension | Core Essence | WISE360 Perspective |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mindful Living | Awareness, presence, and alignment between values and choices. | True wealth begins with being, not having. Awareness creates clarity; clarity creates alignment. |
| 2. Purposeful Prosperity | Using money to fund meaning and design a life of purpose. | Prosperity is purposeful when money serves life — not the other way around. |
| 3. Relational Wealth | Deep, authentic connections and shared growth. | Wealth is enriched through relationships; love and community are its true currency. |
| 4. Generative Impact | Giving back and creating positive change. | Wealth matures when it moves outward — lifting others, empowering change, and leaving legacy. |
| 5. Wholeness | Harmony among all dimensions — living with inner peace and outer balance. | True wealth is a continuous flow — a circle of alignment, gratitude, and growth. |
How the WISE360 Philosophy Differs from Other Models
Many frameworks define “true wealth” as having multiple life domains — financial, physical, relational, spiritual, etc.
The WISE360 approach goes deeper in three distinct ways:
- It begins with being, not having.
Other models start by defining external assets; we begin with internal awareness — the ability to live mindfully and act intentionally. - It extends beyond the self.
True wealth isn’t fulfilled until it becomes generative — shared to uplift others and enrich the collective. - It integrates rather than segments.
Instead of separate pillars, WISE360 views all aspects as a circular flow — each influencing and sustaining the others in harmony.
WISE360 not only emphasizes balance, but also seeks evolution — a 360° integration of money, purpose, and mindful living.
The Journey Toward True Wealth
Standing on the eve of our pilgrimage, I realize that the path to true wealth is much like the Via Francigena itself — a series of intentional steps toward a destination not defined by arrival, but by transformation. Each choice — how we spend, give, rest, and grow — reflects what we value. Each act of mindfulness turns money from a tool of transaction into a tool of transformation.
As we prepare to walk the ancient path from Lucca to Siena, I’m reminded that true wealth unfolds step by step, guided not by speed or status, but by intention. Every mindful choice becomes a step on that path. The road may change, the terrain may rise and fall, but the purpose remains: to live fully, love deeply, and use what we have to bring more light into the world. That, to me, is what it means to be truly wealthy.
I’ll be sharing more reflections along the way as our journey unfolds, but for now, I’d like to leave you with a simple invitation — to pause and reflect on your own path toward purposeful prosperity.
You can begin with our free Mindful Money Check-In Worksheet, a guided exercise to help you reconnect your financial choices with what truly matters to you. It’s a small step, but like every pilgrimage, meaningful change begins with just one intentional step.
