Thread: Money Buys Happiness

hmm, i think in a way it does though. I used to work construction and i hated it for 2 years. Tired, not alot of money saved.. and just same old routine every day and only looking forward to the weekends...but dreading monday. I finally said this is not my life and i ended that scenario. I havent worked since then and that was 4 years ago and things have turned out well for now...and the plans i have now shall hopefully take me to that millionaire status by next year...but anyhow i do have enough money now to do what i want pretty much, when i want within my means. I cant go out and buy a lambo, but i mean i have a nice place,family, bills are all taken care of and i can wake up when i want which is a bonus too haha. i would say money buys FREEDOM, which then buys hapiness. But running/starting your own business can definitely take a stress toll on you, but its all on the person you are...for me i love money and thinking of ways to make it. If your working for someone though its very tough to get that freedom...

cliqflip i whant to share with you something i readed and made sense to me "money works in the areas money are suposed to work and love works in the areas love is supose to work try it go to a bank and ask the teller to deposit love in your account" T. Harv Eker The millionaire mind.
its the reverse of what you said buying love or can you go to a restaurant and pay the bill with love?

thank you

Great discussion. This is a subject I've studied deeply.

The factors that cause happiness have been studied quite a bit. Money does indeed play a role up to around $70,000/year. After that the relationship sharply plateaus.

Research shows that we are consistently wrong about our forecasts on what will make us happy. Winning the lottery, moving to a place with great weather, getting a promotion etc are all examples of things that are not shown to raise long term happiness by any significant level.


Here's a great presentation on the subject by economist Dan Gilbert:

Dan Gilbert asks, Why are we happy? | Video on TED.com

Dan Gilbert on our mistaken expectations

I have a cousin who has said it best this way...

"Money may or may not buy happiness, and it's indeed possible to be rich and miserable, but I would rather be sad and miserable while rich than sad and miserable living broke."

And I agree with that. I also believe that happiness is a state of mind and can be achieved at any time, place, or in any situation.

"An international team of researchers led by Jordi Quoidbach report in the August 2010 issue of Psychological Science that, although wealth may grant us opportunities to purchase many things, it simultaneously impairs our ability to enjoy those things."

Scientific American

Somewhat obvious, but a good quick read.

Lack of money may cause unhappiness.

Money does not buy happiness all you have to do is look at Charlie Sheen and all the rest of his lot.


BUT money can RENT happiness by the hour and her name is Candy

I will say 100% for sure than if I happen to wake in the middle of the night I no longer think about if I have bills etc which I can not pay. So in that sense for me money certainly does bring peace of mind.

I was happy when I was poor with no a/c and no heat and I am still happy now that I have that plus more.

Originally Posted by Iqen

Great discussion. This is a subject I've studied deeply.

The factors that cause happiness have been studied quite a bit. Money does indeed play a role up to around $70,000/year. After that the relationship sharply plateaus.

Research shows that we are consistently wrong about our forecasts on what will make us happy. Winning the lottery, moving to a place with great weather, getting a promotion etc are all examples of things that are not shown to raise long term happiness by any significant level.


Here's a great presentation on the subject by economist Dan Gilbert:

Dan Gilbert asks, Why are we happy? | Video on TED.com

Dan Gilbert on our mistaken expectations

yeah, i agree, a friend of mine told me he saw an article that said similar. About $60,000/year, the relationship between money and happiness shallows out quickly. I guess after all the bills are taken care of and one can afford small things here and there, it doesn't matter. I think our happiest moments are when we are with the people we love and care about. There was a woman who sold her company and made millions of dollars but when looked through her phone to try to find someone to celebrate with, she couldn't.

All this said, although money can't make you happy, being poor doesn't make you happy either, so might as well be rich.

Many things can be bought with money but not friends and family, so don't forget about them on the way to the top.

Whether or not money can buy happiness is 100% subjective...it's relative to the individual person. The End.

Stupidity as it's highest form. No, money doesn't bring me happiness. It brings me financial security to do what I want, but what I want is free. It is all relative to each person, and I rather be a homeless version of "me" than you. I dreamt of going homeless in Detroit in fact, but I don't want that right now.

Happiness depends on what the person wants, and if you feel rich then that's all that matters. I want millions so I can retire, but it's not for the material goods I get. Material goods are nice, but one is only poor if they choose to be.

A yacht is only nice if you like water and sun, and to me; I HATE THE SUN. I hate the sun because it will make me old and ugly, and so I avoid it as much as I can. See, it's relative.

Well if you want PROOF about the 60,000 myth then listen up. I for example made more than that and I still want more and more and it still makes me happy... Your telling me that if you looked at your bank acct and it said 1,000,000 you wouldn't care as much because someone told you about the 70,000 rule? Get real people. The day I go and BUY my gallardo I will be one happySOB. could I get that gallardo without money? No! I think money to happiness is subjective but for the most part people who say it doesn't buy you happiness are probably broke... Also the lamest statement I have ever heard is that " I know millionaires who are miserable"... DUH, I bet every single person on this planet can name 10 miserable people... Rich or not.....lol

Lights- I would rather be old and ugly and lived a great life in the sun on a yacht, then sit inside my house out of the sun trying to "look" young only to get hit by a bus one day....

Originally Posted by Kid Money

Lights- I would rather be old and ugly and lived a great life in the sun on a yacht, then sit inside my house out of the sun trying to "look" young only to get hit by a bus one day....

It's subjective. I could argue, I rather leave behind a beautiful corpse, I could party all night long/sleep all day.

Literally, my room has thick blankets shading me from the sun, and I wear SPF zinc on my face inside/outside. I avoid the sun in my daily life as much as I can, plus I just hate it. Let's not even get into my skin care techniques.... I could write a book about the chemical peels I do, the Retin A, I drink a gallon of water. I am going to look hot for very long time. The copper peptides... I am better than any dermatologist when it comes to my skin.

But I have to stay hot, my life depends on it. Old and decayed is not for me. This is what makes me happy. This is not you, and so MONEY doesn't bring everyone happiness. I am not going to be 45 yrs old crying that I look old, no I am going to laugh at all the ugly faces with my wealth. When I go to my high school reunions I am going to look at all their wrinkled faces, and it's going to be like, "Wow you're trap in time... you look the same". Well I deserve to look the same.

---

Then there's the supplements I take to keep my mind young; piracetam, omega 3 pills, the caloric restrictions..... Vampire. Excercise is good too, so I am adding that to my regime, but it's not anti-aging just good health.

Good Health is worth more than a Million Bucks. Ask any rich old man in his wheelchair as he mumbles about 1965. It's hilarious.

I am very selfish person, indeed.

Lights, we're going a bit off topic, but scientists now all agree that not getting enough sun is much worse than getting a lot of sun. If you really avoid getting any sunlight exposure your vitamin D (particularly D3) level will most probably be dangerously low. A lack of vitamin D3 poses a serious risk for your health, not in the last place your heart health.

Now, on topic.
In my opinion money as such does not bring happiness, but it buys the freedom to pursue happiness.

Originally Posted by Lights

It's subjective. I could argue, I rather leave behind a beautiful corpse, I could party all night long/sleep all day.

Literally, my room has thick blankets shading me from the sun, and I wear SPF zinc on my face inside/outside. I avoid the sun in my daily life as much as I can, plus I just hate it. Let's not even get into my skin care techniques.... I could write a book about the chemical peels I do, the Retin A, I drink a gallon of water. I am going to look hot for very long time. The copper peptides... I am better than any dermatologist when it comes to my skin.

But I have to stay hot, my life depends on it. Old and decayed is not for me. This is what makes me happy. This is not you, and so MONEY doesn't bring everyone happiness. I am not going to be 45 yrs old crying that I look old, no I am going to laugh at all the ugly faces with my wealth. When I go to my high school reunions I am going to look at all their wrinkled faces, and it's going to be like, "Wow you're trap in time... you look the same". Well I deserve to look the same.

---

Then there's the supplements I take to keep my mind young; piracetam, omega 3 pills, the caloric restrictions..... Vampire. Excercise is good too, so I am adding that to my regime, but it's not anti-aging just good health.

Good Health is worth more than a Million Bucks. Ask any rich old man in his wheelchair as he mumbles about 1965. It's hilarious.

I am very selfish person, indeed.

you're forgetting that sun exposure is natural way for your body to create vitamin D which is waaaay better than taking supplements or god forbid vitamin D fortified milk. avoiding sun exposure is a bit extreme imho and it doesn't guarantee that you'll be healthy and forever young. to each his own, if that makes you happy go for it.

but I digress.

I don't think that money can buy happiness but not having any will definitely make you unhappy. from my personal experience, past few years have been very unfortunate for me and now I'm basically working just to pay my bills. it's a struggle, I work a lot, don't have much time and I can't say that I'm happy. where is my threshold of happiness? probably somewhere around 60K. I know because that's how much my ex girlfriend and I were making years back and we were extremely happy! of course, if we had more money we would've been even happier because we wouldn't have to work or we'd work less and spend more time enjoying our life. 60K was enough to pay our bills, decent apartment in Chicago, a car I always wanted paid in cash, some money put on the side and plenty of time to travel and enjoy the life together. we never cared about expensive hotels, we preferred to randomly decide when to stop and where to spend the night, even if it was just a cheap motel. we mostly traveled by car not because we couldn't afford airfare but because that's what we wanted to do. we dined wherever we wanted to, never cared about how expensive some restaurants were. our roadtrips were spontaneous, random and priceless! some of the happiest moments in our life were free. like unforgettable, totally random and unexpected night in central park NYC, january, freezing cold, we were walking, the park was deserted, suddenly it started snowing, dimmed street lights, no footprints in the snow, muffled sounds of a sleeping city in the distance... I can't find the words to describe it but everything about that night became so surreal and in those 20-30 minutes we both experienced happiness like never before, absolute nirvana. that is something no money can buy and having too much money could prevent from ever happening (because people with that much money would probably be enjoying muai thai somewhere in hawaii instead of walking in central park in freezing cold weather). I'd give a fortune if I could go back in time and experience it one more time.
my goal has never been getting rich, just having financial security and plenty of free time. my bare minimum is having enough money to pay my bills, and not having to worry about spending money for my travels. turns out that 60K is just enough for that. of course having more would give me more opportunities to travel and do other things I love but that's just because I know what makes me happy and more money wouldn't change the way I look at things. for example, more money could put me in the first class but I really don't care about it so instead of traveling first class I would travel more often.
it's late and I'm rambling... good night

^ Do you have kids to raise? If you do, then I can understand why you are struggling. If you don't... then you are probably living above your means. I don't own a vehicle, since that's way expensive/on gas too. Be creative, and you'll get by.

I get enough Vitamin D when my *chemical* sunscreen isn't strongly applied. I take a multivitamin pill with it too.

Originally Posted by Rickson9

More accurate to say that money buys temporary happiness. Stay in the Ritz for a year or two and your happiness will decline towards baseline within that timeframe.

this is what's known in microeconomics as the indifference curve. the more you get of something, the less and less happy you are with it.

I've had times where money is plentiful and times when money is scarce. While money may not buy happiness is does eliminate the stresses that detract from happiness therefore I am always happier with money.

Originally Posted by GlobalWealth

I've had times where money is plentiful and times when money is scarce. While money may not buy happiness is does eliminate the stresses that detract from happiness therefore I am always happier with money.

The lack of money can motivate you for great success...