How to raise your standard of living

I am yet to meet anyone who does not want to raise their standard of living. Yes, even I want to.
The world - people, internet, books etc. - is overflowing with tips on how to raise our standard of living. Funny enough, the focus is more on standard of living and the standard of life is ignored.

Before we dig in, let's step back to look at what "standard of living" and "standard of life" mean:
The former is a term used to define one's social and economic well-being and an objective measure. On the flip side, standard of life is subjective and relates to one's level of happiness i.e. quality of life.

When people talk about raising their standard of living they focus more on how to become richer versus how to make their lives and others' lives richer. Becoming rich is a lofty goal but there's more to life. The Bible is very rich...and tells us how to raise our standard of living and standard of life.

Isaiah 33: 15-16 - The answer’s simple: Live right, speak the truth, 

despise exploitation, refuse bribes, reject violence, avoid evil amusements.

This is how you raise your standard of living! 

A safe and stable way to live. A nourishing, satisfying way to live. (MSG)

When we align our standard of living to the word of God, our standard/quality of life will improve.

Zig Ziglar put it this way: 

If standard of living is your major objective, quality of life almost never improves, 

but if quality of life is your number one objective, your standard of living almost always improves.

Our standard/quality of life is evidenced by being a channel of blessing as Proverbs 11:25 tells us - 

The generous man [is a source of blessing and] shall be prosperous and enriched. 

And he waters will himself be watered [reaping the generosity he has sown]. (AMP)

Bottom-line:

Each of us will one day be judged by our standard of life, not by our standard of living; 
by our measure of giving, not by our measure of wealth; 
by our simple goodness, not by our seeming greatness. 
~ William Arthur Ward

We must strive to improve the lives of others around us and our standard of living will follow.