How I Found True Financial Freedom by Choosing Rich Experiences Over More Stuff

How I Redefined Richness (And How You Can Too) By Taresh Bhatia, Certified Financial Planner & Coach at The Richness Academy

I didn’t wake up one day and decide to change everything. It happened gradually. Silently. Somewhere between the endless Amazon deliveries and the growing stack of unopened courier boxes at home, I felt it—that quiet, nagging feeling that I was spending too much money and energy… and not really feeling any richer. As a financial planner, I was helping others simplify and grow—but I was slowly drowning in my own “too much.” Not just in rupees. In objects, emotional baggage, cluttered rooms, jammed calendars, and drawers filled with forgotten things.

And then, it clicked: Real richness isn’t about more. It’s about less—but better. This is the story of how I redefined richness. And how you can too.

1. The More I Owned, The Less I Could Breathe There was a time when I believed:

• More stuff = more security
• Bigger space = bigger success
• Just-in-case shopping = smart planning But each new purchase brought more:
• To-do lists
• Maintenance
• Mental clutter One evening, while preparing for a client session, I looked around my study—unopened mail, tangled chargers, boxes on the floor. It hit me: I wasn’t living in a home. I was living in a storage unit. What I Changed:
• Started with one corner: my desk.
• Cleared everything except essentials.
• Committed to one mantra: “If it doesn’t add peace, it doesn’t belong.”

2. I Was Buying to Impress People Who Weren’t Even Looking Let’s be honest—we’ve all done it. I once bought an expensive Bluetooth speaker, claiming it was for meditation. But really, I wanted someone to say: “Oh, you’ve got the Harman Kardon too?” No one noticed. And I barely used it. What Shifted: Before every purchase, I started asking:

• “Am I buying this for myself?”
• “Or for someone else’s approval?” This mindset helped not just me, but my clients too—those stuck in:
• EMIs for cars they don’t need
• Gold jewelry they barely wear
• Luxury vacations they didn’t enjoy (but posted about online) Now, I only buy what satisfies me. And it’s liberating.

3. If I Haven’t Touched It in a Year, I Don’t Need It Opening my wardrobe one weekend, I saw a kurta I hadn’t worn in two years. Still, I kept it. “Maybe later,” I thought. “But what if?” My Solution:

• Turned all hangers the other way.
• Each time I wore something, I flipped the hanger. After 6 months? Over 60% of my clothes were untouched. So, I let them go. Now, my wardrobe is:
• Small
• Intentional
• Full of pieces I love and actually wear

4. Fewer Things Made Me Love What I Had More I had a favorite watch—classic, reliable. But it got lost under a pile of other watches I barely wore. When I decluttered:

• I noticed and cherished it more.
• I wore it more often.
• I took better care of it. When you have less, you appreciate more. One of my clients said it best after clearing her kitchen: “I love cooking now. Earlier, I couldn’t even find my spices.”

5. The Pile of Clutter Was a Pile of Postponed Decisions That drawer in my study?

• 50 business cards
• Random receipts
• Old to-do lists
• Dried-out pens Why was it still there? Because I hadn’t made a decision. Clutter isn’t mess. It’s indecision. Clearing that drawer was like ticking off 50 mini to-dos. Now I tell clients: “If something is sitting idle, it’s silently draining your attention.”

6. My Memories Were in My Heart, Not in Old Objects This one was hard.

• An old diary from my daughter
• Broken glasses from college
• A T-shirt from my first client meet They meant something. But they were just things. What I Did:
• Took a photo
• Wrote a memory
• Let them go Strangely, I felt even more connected to the memories—because they were now a part of me, not just a part of my stuff.

7. When I Stopped Buying Things, I Started Living More The less I spent on stuff, the more I had for experiences.

• Instead of a new phone → Took my wife to Rishikesh
• Instead of a car upgrade → Took a course on digital storytelling And I felt alive. Because experiences:
• Grow richer over time
• Spark stories
• Teach us something real No one remembers the day they bought a new phone. But they remember:
• Family trips
• Spiritual retreats
• Late-night talks

8. Letting Go Isn’t About Losing—It’s About Creating Space Each time I said no to what I didn’t need, I was saying yes to what I truly wanted:

• More time
• More clarity
• More energy
• More freedom It changed everything:
• My money habits
• My emotional health
• My coaching style Real richness isn’t measured in how much you have. It’s measured in how free you feel.

Want to Live This Way Too?

Here’s where to start:
✅ Start small – a drawer, a shelf, a wallet. Let something go today.
✅ Ask before every purchase – “Does this add to my peace or take from it?”
✅ Choose moments over materials – invest in memories, not upgrades.
✅ Make space – in your home, your calendar, your mind. Because in that space… magic happens.

Living the Richness Principles: From Minimalism to Meaningful Wealth As a financial planner, I knew the numbers. But this journey showed me:

• The emotions behind money
• The stories behind stuff
• The wisdom behind simplicity

Why Simplicity Amplifies Financial Clarity

One retired client told me: “My money is fine, but I still don’t feel secure.” The issue?

• Too many accounts
• Half-finished investments
• Property chaos We decluttered:
• Consolidated accounts
• Closed unused folios
• Simplified everything
  
  The result?
  ✅ She felt lighter, confident, in control
  ✅ Her finances became efficient and easy to manage

How Letting Go Brought My Clients Closer to Their Goals

A young couple in Gurugram were earning well, but never saving. The culprits?

• Online shopping
• Fancy dinners
• Subscription traps
  
  What they did:
• Kept their Friday date night
• Cooked on weekdays
• Cancelled 5 unused OTT apps
• Postponed car upgrade
• Took a dream trip to Ladakh Three months later: “We’re saving more, but living better.” That’s richness.

How I Applied the ‘Richness First’ Rule in My Life

A simple rule I now live by: Spend on what energizes you. Eliminate what drains you. What I stopped doing:

• No more unnecessary gadgets
• No more guilt-based hoarding
• No more social comparisons What I started doing:
• Investing in meaningful experiences
• Spending time outdoors with family
• Saying YES only when I meant it Results:
• 30% reduction in non-essential expenses
• Fewer impulse buys
• Spending aligned with values

Why Emotional Wealth Is as Crucial as Net Worth

One wealthy entrepreneur told me: “I have money, but no peace.” We simplified:

• His calendar
• His priorities
• His commitments Three months later: “I’ve made more money… and got my peace back.”

Owning Less Created Room for Purpose Owning less gave me more time for:

• Reading & learning
• Creating new courses
• Deep client conversations
• Writing blogs like this
• Slow, mindful moments with family Absence of clutter = Room for contribution

The Freedom Formula I Now Swear By This simple process became my personal blueprint:

1. Eliminate the noise – physical or financial
2. Prioritize what energizes you
3. Invest in experiences, not just assets
4. Say no to prove your yes
5. Align your money with your life—not society I teach this as part of The Richness Blueprint.

How My Coaching Transformed Because I Did I stopped selling financial plans. I started offering financial transformation. Now I coach clients on:

• What to invest in
• What to release
• When to pause
• How to live aligned One client said: “Your sessions feel like therapy, finance, and life design rolled into one.”

The Most Beautiful Benefit of All: Space Minimalism gave me…

• A calm home
• A clean desk
• An intentional calendar
• A spacious mind And that mind?
• Thinks clearer
• Feels lighter
• Lives richer

Final Reflection

We often chase more—to feel safe, proud, or successful. But sometimes, the richest thing you can do is… Let go. Let go of:

• Stuff
• Expectations
• Noise So you can finally hold what truly matters:
• Time
• Energy
• Joy
• Purpose
• Freedom

Want to Take the First Step?

If something in this blog resonated with you, don’t just scroll past.

✅ Clear a shelf
✅ Cancel a subscription
✅ Review your last 10 purchases
✅ Call someone you love instead of checking for a sale

And when you’re ready to go deeper—I’ll be right here. Because financial freedom isn’t a number. It’s a way of living.