Wealth, Values, and the Next Generation Part 2- Aligning Money with Personal Values

Welcome back! In Part 1, we talked about the challenges of intergenerational wealth transfer and how to prepare the next generation. Today, we’re exploring the second major trend in finance: shifting your focus from merely chasing the highest investment return to ensuring your money actively supports your personal values and life goals.

This shift means your financial plan becomes less about maximizing every dollar and more about optimizing every dollar for the life you want to live.

Redefining “Wealth”

For many people, the definition of wealth is changing. It’s no longer just a high number in a bank account or a portfolio balance. It involves a deeper, more meaningful discussion: How can I align my spending and investing decisions with my personal values and life goals?

Instead of comparing your net worth to someone else’s, this approach asks you to define what true richness means to you. Wealth means having the freedom to take a year off to travel, or it means supporting a community cause you believe in. When you define wealth by your values, your money becomes a powerful tool instead of just a scorecard.

Values-Based Spending: Conscious Choices

Values-Based Spending is the practice of spending your money consciously on things that genuinely bring you happiness and support the life you want, rather than spending mindlessly.

Think about the difference between passive and active Spending. Passive Spending is buying things because they are easy, on sale, or because everyone else has them. Active Spending means looking at your budget and intentionally allocating funds to what matters most.

Prioritize What Matters: If you genuinely value health and wellness, you might choose to prioritize a top-tier gym membership, quality groceries, or expensive running shoes. Conversely, if you notice you spend hundreds of dollars on things you don’t value—like subscription services you never use or too many fast-food lunches—you can cut those and redirect that money toward your valued goals, like saving for a down payment or travel.
The Time vs. Money Trade-off: If you value family time or career advancement, spending money on services might actually align with your values. For example, paying for a meal kit service or a house cleaner might seem expensive, but if it frees up five hours a week to spend with your kids or focus on your studies, that Spending is fully aligned with what you value most. This conscious choice is the heart of values-based planning.

Ethical Investing: Aligning Money with Beliefs

Ethical Investing (often called ESG Investing) is where your investment decisions meet your ethics. This means choosing to invest in companies that score well on key social metrics, not just those that promise the highest returns.

The term ESG stands for three core areas of responsibility:

Environmental: Does the company work to reduce carbon emissions, use renewable energy, or manage waste responsibly? If you care deeply about environmental protection, consider investing in a fund focused on sustainable energy while avoiding companies known for significant pollution.
Social: How does the company treat its employees, customers, and the community? This includes fair wages, worker safety, and ethical sourcing.
Governance: Is the company run honestly and transparently? This examines aspects such as diverse leadership and anti-corruption measures.

By choosing ESG funds, you are sending a signal to the financial market that you want your money to support businesses that are making the world a better place, not just a more profitable one.

How to Start Planning with Values

Ready to make your money more meaningful? To begin this process, sincerely reflect on these challenging questions:

Identify Your Top Values: Make a list of the three things that are most important to you (e.g., family security, travel, education, environmental protection).
Check Your Budget Alignment: Review your bank statement from the previous month. Do the largest spending categories (after essentials like rent) reflect your top values? Suppose you say you value saving for travel, but your most significant optional expense is entertainment. In that case, your Spending isn’t fully aligned.
Research Your Investments: If you own stocks or mutual funds, do a quick online search to check the companies’ ESG ratings or overall ethical reputation. If you’re not satisfied with what you find, consider a fund that screens explicitly for positive social or environmental impact.

By focusing on values, you achieve a higher quality of life, not just a bigger account balance. This ensures that your money is a tool for achieving your best life, not just an end goal in itself.

Join us next week for Part 3, where we’ll discuss the final piece of the puzzle: mastering tax strategy to protect the wealth you’ve aligned with your values legally.

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Larry Marvin

LifeCrafter Money $ense

Sources

LifeCrafter.org. (2025). Gemini. https://gemini.google.com/app/f84041c46c538967

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Larry Marvin

Larry Marvin is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University and a veteran of the U.S. Air Force. His career spans over fifty years as a corporate trainer, medical administrator, small business owner, income management coach, and public speaker. He has conducted over 300 workshops, classes, and seminars during his years as a corporate trainer on such topics as budgeting, debt elimination, banking, saving plans, budgeting software, spreadsheets, and investing basics.Larry has conducted budgeting and debt elimination seminars at U.S. Steel and UAB Special Studies.
His passion is teaching and equipping people with the financial knowledge they need to act in the best interest of their money and family.

He is passionate about his faith, has been married to his wife for 54+ years, and has three adult children and fourteen grandchildren.

Larry Marvin is the co-founder and Executive Director of LifeCrafter Foundation.