At Vestia, ongoing learning is woven into how we serve our clients and how we grow as professionals, teammates, parents, spouses, and leaders. Each year, our team commits to reading together and discussing key takeaways in our Vestia Book Club. We don’t just read about finance, but we are intentional to read about character, purpose, decision-making, and the kind of impact we hope to make on others.
This past year, several books stood out for the way they challenged, encouraged, and sharpened us. Below is a brief reflection on five of them and a few key takeaways that continue to influence how we work and how we live.
The 5 Types of Wealth
by Sahil Bloom
Bloom reframes wealth beyond dollars and investments, highlighting five categories: financial, time, physical, social, and emotional wealth. His core message – money is most meaningful when it supports a life aligned with values – deeply resonates with how we approach financial planning.
Key Takeaways:
- Financial wealth is powerful, but it is not the ultimate goal. It is an enabler.
- Real fulfillment (real wealth) comes from purpose, relationships, health, and freedom of time.
- Intentional trade-offs matter. Saying yes to what matters means saying no elsewhere.
What This Means for Our Clients:
- This framework mirrors how many of our clients think about success. It’s not “What am I building?” but rather “What am I building this for?” We call this building Wealth that Matters®.
The Opposite of Spoiled
by Rob Lieber
Lieber offers a thoughtful approach to raising financially confident and grounded children. Rather than avoiding conversations about money, he encourages transparency, values-based decision-making, and age-appropriate responsibility.
Key Takeaways:
- Talking about money with kids helps shape character, gratitude, and understanding.
- Allowances, giving decisions, and goal-setting can be meaningful teaching tools.
- The goal is not wealth accumulation for its own sake, but rather stewardship and generosity.
What This Means for Our Clients:
- Many of our clients aim for their wealth to be multigenerational. This book reinforced the importance of passing down wisdom along with assets.
The Obstacle Is The Way
by Ryan Holiday
Inspired by Stoic philosophy, Holiday reframes obstacles as catalysts for growth. Rather than being interruptions to success, they are often the very path to it.
Key takeaways:
- We cannot control circumstances, only our response to them.
- Discipline, perspective, and perseverance compound over time.
- Challenges often reveal strengths and opportunities that comfort never would.
What This Means for Our Clients:
- This mindset has been invaluable in volatile markets, career transitions, and major life changes many of our clients experienced this year.
Small Acts of Leadership
by Shawn Hunter
Hunter emphasizes that leadership is not defined by titles or big moments, but by quiet daily actions such as listening well, being present, acting with empathy, and investing in the growth of others.
Key Takeaways:
- Trust is built through empathy and consistency, not authority.
- Culture is shaped through small, intentional behaviors over time.
- Leadership begins with character and extends outward from there.
What This Means for Our Clients:
- This aligns closely with our philosophy of serving clients with care, professionalism, and humility.
Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?
by Seth Godin
Godin challenges readers to bring creativity, initiative, and emotional intelligence to their work so they become “linchpins” who add value beyond job descriptions.
Key takeaways:
- Excellence is a choice, not a function of role or hierarchy.
- Emotional labor (care, service, empathy) creates extraordinary experiences.
- The most meaningful work blends competence with purpose and ownership.
What This Means for Our Clients:
- It reinforced our belief that extraordinary client service is built through intentionality and heart, not just process.
