I'm not particularly aware of the more subtle differences between riches and wealth, in terms of actual substance backing it.
Both words are used almost interchangeably but usually, it's riches that tends to imply a lack of substance.
A little wordplay here is all wealthy are rich but not all riches are wealth.
I think in a world that's tilted towards superficial appearances and performative success, being or even the process of becoming rich is easily confused with accumulating visible markers, such as the proverbial scoreboard of fast cars and branded clothing.
First Breath
There are lot of "nouvelle riche" out there and one of the underlying compulsions amongst all is this propensity towards busy-ness as status, i.e the need to appear productive, important, and constantly in motion.
This busy-ness operates on multiple registers simultaneously.
On the surface, it's discernable as packed calendars, back-to-back meetings, and "I barely have time to breathe" type of sentences. Yes, time for breathing, the fact that we now discuss respiration as a time-management problem as opposed to an autonomic function tells you everything about how far down the rabbit hole we've gone.
Deeper down, it's a hedge against existential questions about value and purpose.
Think of it like this, if you're always busy, you don't have to ask whether what you're doing matters. The motion itself becomes the meaning.
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Second Breath
Most insidiously, busy-ness has become a form of social currency that's more liquid than actual wealth, in that you can deploy it in any conversation, any context, to establish that you matter, are relevant, winning at the game everyone pretends to understand.
Of course, people do indeed actually get busy as a byproduct of living a modern existence.
Despite of that, it is also the same coin, so to speak, that the hollow man uses to pay his social dues.
It's a universal signal that needs no verification neither proof of reserves. You can be busy and broke, busy and directionless, busy and completely hollow inside, but as long as you maintain the performance, you remain legible to a society that has forgotten how to measure depth.
The wealthy of previous generations could afford to appear idle partly because their position was secure and/or more established. Arguably, today's riches require constant motion to prove they exist at all.
Third Breath
I used to believe it was merely a western culture to flaunt riches but oh well, there's some elements of inherent human nature attached to it. Some just haven't had the opportunity to show their influence with riches until recently, and now globalization has democratized the tools of display.
From where I come from and just a few decades ago, wealth is hidden, it's not flaunted or talked about. You'll just notice the signs and that's that.
Of course, there's always this subconscious urge to respond accordingly in terms of establishing this hierarchy of respect and deference, but it was subtle quality of attention, not spectacle.
Nowadays, the scene is almost entirely different.
Almost everybody wants to show they're winning and on the grind.
Like we're more outside, out there now, extroverted towards constant visibility and validation-seeking. Doing nothing looks like falling behind.
Holding Your Breath
I personally haven't come to terms with this new reality as it's 1) exhausting to maintain the performance and 2) increases the scope for anxiety and comparison with a byproduct of making actual wealth-building, the patient, quiet kind, seem obsolete or naive.
Much of this discussion is inspired from pondering about creating wealth amidst a lack of stability and persistent uncertainty.
Old mental models in patient capital accumulation and delayed gratification are almost laughable when everyone around you is leveraging, hustling, and broadcasting their wins in real-time.
I must not fomo, for fomo is the mind-killer that mistakes motion noise for progressive substance.
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