Thread: What are the 2 most important things in life?

If you had to choose 2 of the most important things in life, what would they be?

Select 2 from below (listed in alphabetical order):

Fame
Family
Friends
Good health
Good looks
Happiness
Intelligence
Long life
Respect
Wealth
Work


And while you're at it, you can also tell us what are the two least important things in life.

Hmm hard to pick two, but I think I would would choose wealth and happiness.

Family and Good health.

Wish we could list 3. lol Most important: health and family. It's by process of elimination for me. Superficial things like fame, good looks and wealth don't technically bring true happiness. You could have all the money in the world, but if you're sick and have no family to share it with then what's the point?

So if you have good health and a strong family, nothing beats that and it can fuel other good things. I'm grateful everyday for my health and family. I wouldn't consider myself wealthy but when I started making more money it really put all this into perspective. When I was younger I probably would have said wealth but the things that make me truly happy don't involve money.

Originally Posted by plc90210

Hmm hard to pick two, but I think I would would choose wealth and happiness.

Come to think of it, what I really prefer is financial freedom and happiness. I guess wealth implies financial freedom, but not always.

Yes, wealth means financial freedom. You can't consider yourself wealthy until you are financially free. Some people think they are wealthy if they have lots of houses, cars, etc., but they aren't financially free if they have to pay a big mortgage or loan for everything they think they own (they don't own them till they fully paid for them). People who are up to their neck with debts aren't wealthy no matter how much they "own".

I deliberately ask for just 2, so that it's necessary to think carefully, to narrow down your choice, sacrificing things that you may have thought are important to your life.

Originally Posted by lisa

Wish we could list 3. lol Most important: health and family. It's by process of elimination for me. Superficial things like fame, good looks and wealth don't technically bring true happiness. You could have all the money in the world, but if you're sick and have no family to share it with then what's the point?

So if you have good health and a strong family, nothing beats that and it can fuel other good things. I'm grateful everyday for my health and family. I wouldn't consider myself wealthy but when I started making more money it really put all this into perspective. When I was younger I probably would have said wealth but the things that make me truly happy don't involve money.

Lisa, you chose health and family. Are they more important than ... happiness?

Health and family too.

I have heard a very sad story of a very rich guy. His wealth was something like 500 million dollars but he was very sick. One nigh he wanted to scratch his back, but he couldn't move. He terribly wanted to scratch, but he couldn't do that and there was no one next to him. Then he said: "who would get the 500 million dollars and give me my health back just to scratch my back". At that moment, all the money meant nothing to him. Being able to move and scratch his back was more important. So yes, health is number one.

Without a doubt, my top 2 choices are good health and family. With good health everything else that makes life worthwhile can be achieved or accomplished. Having a family to share everyday experiences with is priceless. You can laugh together, cry together... even acquire wealth together! It would certainly be nice to be happy all the time, but then again, how valuable will that happiness be if you have not experienced sadness?!

Originally Posted by tim-the-traveler

Lisa, you chose health and family. Are they more important than ... happiness?

Not at all. You asked us to choose the two most important, so I chose the two things that I believe actually help fuel true happiness (at least they have for me.) It's interesting though because by choosing those two I never once assumed I was saying happiness wasn't as important -- even though technically I did. I chose the ones that I believe are part of the core for true happiness.

It's really a tricky question if you think about it! It's very hard to answer without doing some assuming. So I guess I cheated a little huh?

See, I told you I wanted to pick 3! lol

Hi Everybody,

Imagine for a moment that the end of the world has arrived. Suddenly a spaceship appears in the sky, the door opens and a spaceman tells us we will all be transported into another world. Each of us can only bring along two "things", leaving everything else behind. And the things are:

Fame
Family
Friends
Good health
Good looks
Happiness
Intelligence
Long life
Respect
Wealth
Work

Which two things should we bring along? Remember this: what we don't choose, we don't get.

For example, let's say I choose good health and intelligence. This is what I will get:

I will always be healthy and smart. However, I will also be a nobody (no fame), all my family members are gone (no family), nobody wants to be my friend (no friend), of course I am very ugly (no good looks), and all the smart things I say, people condemn (no respect), which makes me very sad (no happiness), I am also penniless (no wealth), and jobless (no work). With all that, perhaps the only good thing, despite my good health and intelligence, is that one day a refrigerator will fall on my head (no long life).

Put a "no" in front of all the things you have not chosen, to consider whether you can live without them. Would you still stick to your present choice?

Hmmm, only two

Family and work, I think I'll start with these two.

I will choose Health and Respect.

You've made this question almost impossible to answer, Tim! I would agree with Lisa that family and good health would be my initial picks, but if that meant you couldn't be happy? That doesn't make sense in the real world, of course.. Being happy would probably be one of the ultimate goals in life, and the rest on the list merely means to that end. As such, accepting your premise, I would probably pick happiness and family. I would be happy, and I would have someone dear to share it with. Of course it might not last that long (no long life), and I might suffer from bad health, but at least I would enjoy the short time that I had with people I love. What about yourself, you haven't answered the question yet?

IMO Family and Happiness comes first. It is priceless and no amount of amount can buy this.