Brooks TalentCONNECT TALENT · INSPIRE CHANGEOUR PHILOSOPHY / XINGFU ZIZAI
Create wealth with purpose. Make time for the people who matter. Care for your body and mind, so you can appreciate the life you are building.
What kind of life
are we working towards?
01 / Our philosophy
Xingfu zizai means happiness and ease in living. While building a career and caring for others, we can gradually create more choice. Wealth gives us room, time makes connection and experience possible, and wellbeing helps us appreciate them.
Different stages of life call for different priorities. Notice when things fall out of balance, and leave room to adjust.
02 / Three dimensions
Income supports life today. How we arrange assets and cash flow affects our room to manoeuvre tomorrow. Understand spending, responsibilities and risk, and gradually reduce dependence on working every day.
If I paused work, how much breathing room would I have?
Review household income, essential spending, debts and accessible reserves.
Have a part of your time that you can direct: towards meaningful work, family, learning, rest and exploration. Some experiences fit particular stages of life, and deserve a place in the calendar now.
What might be different if I waited another ten years?
Reserve uninterrupted time with someone important to you.
Care for your body, emotions and relationships. Give yourself space to recover and people to talk to, while accepting that stress and difficult days are part of life. Begin with less comparison and more awareness.
Have I been caring for my body, emotions and relationships?
Choose one small, restorative activity and make time for it.
03 / Life in practice
Illustrative situations, with different responsibilities and circumstances in every life. Start with the one closest to your own.
Work begins to feel steadier, while rent, learning and social life compete for your income. Comparing lives can make enough feel far away.
Understand monthly spending, leave room for unexpected needs, and invest time and resources in abilities you value.
You want to do well at work, see friends and explore. Fear of missing out can leave little room to ask what matters to you.
Choose one experience that matters at this stage and give it a date. Allow other possibilities to wait.
New work, relationships and responsibilities arrive together. Late nights become routine and signs of strain go unnoticed.
Build a sustainable rest habit and make time for an honest conversation with someone you trust.
A promotion brings more income, but housing, education and family costs rise too. Your calendar is full and taking a break feels impossible.
Define what enough means for your household. Separate essential spending from spending driven by comparison.
The team grows, yet every decision still waits for you. The family holiday you promised keeps moving back.
Choose one task to hand over with clear responsibility and decision boundaries. Put a shared activity in the calendar.
You are home, but your thoughts are at work. Despite what you have built, you often feel behind.
Notice what prompts comparison, create a boundary at the end of work, and talk with someone you trust.
Retirement or reduced hours comes into view, while family responsibilities remain. You want to understand what will support everyday life.
Review future needs, available resources and responsibilities with your family, leaving room for different work arrangements.
Children grow independent and parents may need company. A shared trip or a new interest need not wait until full retirement.
Choose something to do with someone important, with a first step that fits your energy and schedules.
Work and family roles begin to change. Beyond familiar busyness, everyday life needs connection and things to look forward to.
Keep a comfortable rhythm, reach out to friends and try an activity that helps you feel involved.
04 / Ideas & reading
Classics, author perspectives and research can inform everyday choices. The practical reflections below are our own applications.
In its original context, knowing where to rest relates to the pursuit of the highest good. The cover shown is a collected edition of The Great Learning and The Doctrine of the Mean.
A practical reflection：Clarify the life you consider worthwhile before deciding where to direct your effort.
Read the source ↗Geshe Michael Roach draws on his experience in the diamond business to discuss Buddhist ideas of generosity and care in work and life.
A practical reflection：Ask who your work can help today, and connect the value you create with care for others.
Read the source ↗Eric Jorgenson gathers Naval Ravikant’s ideas on wealth and happiness, including specific knowledge, leverage and judgment.
A practical reflection：Consider how your abilities can create lasting value, and what life you want that value to support.
Read the source ↗Oliver Burkeman explores the limits of a human life and the choices involved in facing an endless to-do list.
A practical reflection：Accept that you cannot do everything. Deliberately choose the people and commitments that matter most.
Read the source ↗Bill Perkins uses time buckets and memory dividends to explore when to have experiences and the enduring value of remembering them.
A practical reflection：Plan experiences within your means and responsibilities, while the people, energy and opportunity are present.
Read the source ↗Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz draw on the Harvard Study of Adult Development to explore how good relationships relate to health and happiness.
A practical reflection：Give important relationships regular attention through time together and genuine conversation.
Read the source ↗05 / Everyday actions
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A LIFE OF FREEDOM
Let wealth support your time, and time nurture your wellbeing.
Connect your effort to the life you value.
