Redefining Riches: My Takeaways from Sahil Bloom’s The 5 Types of Wealth

I recently finished reading The 5 Types of Wealth: A Transformative Guide to Design Your Dream Life by Sahil Bloom, published in early 2025. The subtitle already gives you a strong hint: this isn’t just another finance book. Bloom’s goal is to expand our understanding of what “wealth” really means. Instead of centring everything on money, he argues convincingly that a deeply fulfilling life depends on multiple dimensions of wealth—time, relationships, health, purpose, and money, all working together.

What follows is a review of the ideas in the book, how I’ve tried to apply them, and how I believe others might use the framework to enrich their lives.

Overview: What The Book Covers

Bloom divides wealth into five types. The structure of the book is fairly consistent: he first defines each type of wealth, then breaks each into “pillars” or sub-components, illustrates with stories, interviews, and research, then offers actionable ideas for growing that type of wealth.

The five types are:

1. Time Wealth – having control over how you spend your time; committing to moments that matter.
2. Social Wealth – the quality and depth of relationships, community, and connection.
3. Mental Wealth – meaning, purpose, mental clarity, learning, curiosity.
4. Physical Wealth – health, vitality, energy, longevity.
5. Financial Wealth – money, yes, but more importantly how you use financial resources to enable freedom without letting money become the only goal. Defining “enough” is a big theme.

Bloom’s underlying message: to live well, you need more than just financial wealth. Neglecting any of the other types tends to create imbalance or regret. He also emphasizes that “wealth” in each type is a matter of design and intentionality, not just something that happens if you get lucky.

What I Found Most Valuable

Reading this book was enlightening in many ways, but a few parts stood out for me—ideas that I’ve already tried to put into practice, and which I think many people find hard to see or act on until they’re pointed out clearly. Here are some lessons that resonated:

1. Reframing Money as One Among Many Wealths

I appreciated how Bloom repeatedly pulls us back from thinking that financial success is the benchmark of everything. It’s easy in modern society to chase promotion, income, possessions, wealth by traditional metrics—and lose sight of the other things that actually make a life meaningful. Defining what “enough” means for you (not someone else’s benchmark) is powerful. It shifts the question from “how much more can I get?” to “how much do I need to live well, and what trade-offs do I accept?”

This reframing alone gives relief: pressure to keep chasing more fades somewhat when you realise you don’t have to win everyone else’s game.

2. Time Wealth as Foundational

I found the treatment of Time Wealth especially useful. Bloom’s idea of guarding time—choosing what deserves your hours, saying no to commitments that drain energy, being fully present in the moments that matter—this struck a chord. A few practical tools from the book:

• Doing a time audit: seeing where blocks of time are going, including what’s being wasted.
• Prioritising “energy-creating” tasks over mere busywork.
• Delegating or even eliminating tasks that don’t contribute much to the things you care about.

After reading, I tried reworking how I schedule my week: I blocked off “non-interruptible time” for family or rest, and asked myself before committing: does this add to one of my five types of wealth, or does it distract? It made a difference—even small gains felt meaningful.

3. Social Wealth Can Be Neglected but Is Deeply Nourishing

Bloom’s exploration of Social Wealth—depth in relationships, breadth of meaningful connections, and what he calls “earned status” (the respect, trust, role you hold in relationships / community)—reminded me how much we often assume relationships will “take care of themselves.” They don’t. They need attention, repair, nurturing, presence.

One story that stuck: older people he interviewed often say at the end of their life, they remember shared moments and friendships more than material success. This trend comes up repeatedly. Listening to that made me want to be more intentional: plan rituals of connection, check in with friends more deeply, not just superficially.

4. Physical and Mental Wealth: The Habits That Back Everything Else

Physical health often feels like something to catch up on, or something “I’ll get to later.” Mental wealth likewise—so easy to say, harder to implement. Bloom doesn’t shy away from the fact that these aren’t glamorous or instant fixes. They are built incrementally.

Some particular practices that I liked:

• Movement + rest + nutrition: not perfection, but consistency. Even small changes (more walking, better sleep routines, small dietary shifts) have cumulative impact.
• Mental wealth via curiosity: choosing learning, reading, reflecting; cultivating purpose. Also, creating space (quiet, solitude, reflection) rather than being always “on.”

5. The Interconnectedness & Seasons of Life

One of the strengths of the book is reminding the reader that different types of wealth interact. If you neglect your health, you may lose time or degrade mental wealth. If you chase financial wealth at the cost of social relationships, you may have regret or loneliness later. The message is: balance matters—but that doesn’t mean “do all five perfectly” at all times. Different seasons in life demand different emphases. Being aware of your current phase helps in adjusting priorities.

Where the Book Was Less Convincing / What I’d Watch Out For

No book is perfect, and while The 5 Types of Wealth offers much to admire, there are a few caveats or limits, especially as I reflect on how others may or may not be able to apply its ideas.

• Privilege and context matter: Many of the suggestions assume a certain level of financial, social, and temporal privilege. For someone working long hours in two jobs, or facing systemic constraints (care responsibilities, lack of flexibility, financial scarcity), implementing some of the “time wealth” or “mental wealth” ideas may be harder. Bloom acknowledges some of this, but readers might need to adapt the ideas to their own context.
• Overlap with existing self-help or life design content: Some insights are similar to themes in popular life design or wellness books—mindfulness, defining purpose, taking care of health, etc. If you’ve read many books in this genre, some concepts may feel familiar. What makes Bloom’s book strong is the framing: putting all five together and offering tools. But originality is less in the ideas themselves than in the integration.
• Scalability for “busy lives”: For people juggling many responsibilities (jobs, family, caregiving), finding time for reflection or implementing many habits may feel overwhelming. Some suggestions, while powerful, require incremental adjustments rather than wholesale changes.
• Cultural differences: Certain norms of relationships, rest, mental health, “enough,” vary across cultures. What feels right in Bloom’s stories (which are largely US-centric / Western, though with some global interviews) may need translation or adaptation locally (job norms, family expectations, etc.).

These aren’t failures per se, but things I think readers should keep in mind—take what works, adapt what doesn’t, and don’t compare your journey to someone else’s story.

How I’m Using the Framework in My Life

Reading ideas is one thing; acting on them is another. Here are some of the changes I’ve made since reading The 5 Types of Wealth—not huge, but meaningful—and which I think others could try too:

1. Weekly Wealth Check-in
   I set aside one evening a week to reflect: how did I spend time? Which relationships did I nourish? Did I move my physical and mental wealth forward? Did I stay aligned with what feels sufficient financially? These check-ins help catch when I drift.
2. Defining My “Enough”
   Instead of chasing the next raise or upgrade, I tried to define what level of financial wealth feels “enough” for me—enough to meet needs, enjoy some comforts, and have freedom. That helps reduce some of the pressure and comparison-itis.
3. Prioritising Deep Relationships
   I started scheduling more “front-row people time” (those people I would most want by my side at the end of life). It means sometimes saying no to more social events, but making the ones I attend more meaningful: deeper conversations, being present, fewer distractions (phones off, etc.).
4. Small Physical Habit Changes
   Rather than aiming for gym-perfect, I added small changes: more consistent sleep, daily short walks, better hydration. Not huge leaps but steady deposits.
5. Mental Wealth through Curiosity and Space
   I’m carving out time for reading, journaling, quiet reflection—some mornings or evenings where I simply unplug from notifications and get clarity. Also revisiting big questions: what work aligns with purpose, what gets me energized vs what drains me.

Who Will Benefit Most From This Book

I believe The 5 Types of Wealth will be especially helpful for:

• People who feel driven or busy but dissatisfied—that sense that you have many “successes” but still feel something is missing.
• Early or mid-career professionals who have some options but haven’t paused to evaluate what they really want.
• People going through transitions: becoming parents, changing careers, moving countries, entering a new life phase where priorities shift.
• Those interested in personal growth / wellness but wanting a more holistic, less “salesy” framework; something that doesn’t just tell you to hustle more or get richer, but to think bigger about value in life.

Less helpful might be people who are in very constrained circumstances (financially, time constraints, health limitations) in ways that make even small changes difficult—though even for them, some ideas (mental wealth, social connection, small physical habits) may still be helpful if adapted.

Why Others Should Consider Reading This

Here are some reasons I strongly recommend The 5 Types of Wealth, based on having read it, thought about it, tried applying some lessons, and seen how it shifts perspective:

• It reorients your values. We so often accept society’s defaults—what success “should” look like—without examining them. Bloom gives you a lens (his five wealth types) to ask better questions: What matters to me? What am I chasing simply because others told me I should?
• It equips you with both mindset and practical tools. Many books talk purpose or health or relationships, but fewer structure those ideas into action-oriented frameworks (audits, priorities, rituals, “life razors,” etc.). Bloom does both.
• It encourages long view / seasonality. It’s not about optimising every minute of every day but recognising that life has stages, priorities will shift, and one wealth type may need more attention at one time than another. That flexibility makes it more sustainable.
• It’s inspiring. The stories and interviews (with older people, people who made big changes, etc.) serve as reminders that regret is often over neglected relationships, health, or time, not over financial scarcity per se. That kind of reminder can shift how you act today.

My Rating & Final Thoughts

On a scale of 1 to 5, I’d give The 5 Types of Wealth about 4.5 / 5. It loses half a point only because some parts felt slightly idealized (less acknowledgement of extreme constraints) and some overlap with what I’ve read elsewhere. But the positives far outweigh those.

If you’re willing to reflect, make some changes, and live intentionally, this book can be a game changer. It doesn’t promise overnight results, but if you commit to small shifts, over months or years, you’ll likely feel richer—in ways more durable and fulfilling than just financial gains.

Key Takeaways & Questions to Ask Yourself

To wrap up, here are a few of the biggest lessons I took away, and some personal reflection questions (which Bloom encourages, and which I believe help apply the ideas):

Key Takeaways

• Wealth is multidimensional: time, social, mental, physical, financial. All matter.
• You can’t let one type dominate to the cost of others. Balance matters.
• Defining your own “enough” is liberating.
• Time is finite and non-renewable—treat it with care.
• Relationships and presence often outlast material achievements.
• Physical health and mental clarity are foundations for flourishing.

Reflection Questions

• If you imagined your funeral, who would be in the front row? Are you investing in those relationships today?
• What would your life look like if you had control over how you spend (and guard) your time? What would you cut out?
• Where are you spending mental energy on things that don’t matter long term? How might you redirect it toward curiosity, learning, or purpose?
• What small physical habit could you build now (sleep, movement, diet, rest) that you can sustain?
• What does “enough financial wealth” look like for you—not society? What trade-offs are you willing to accept?

Conclusion

The 5 Types of Wealth is one of those books that challenges more than informs. It gently, but firmly, invites you to re-think what you measure, what you strive for, and what you might regret overlooking later. Reading it has shifted how I think about success, and more importantly, how I try to live.

If you’re someone who’s chasing goals but waking up sometimes wondering, “Is this really what I want?”, or someone who wants to build a more meaningful life rather than just a more lucrative one—this book is for you. It’s not a magic formula, but it offers a map. And maps, when used intentionally, can get you off the treadmill and into a life you design.