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Is it true that more money doesn't buy happiness once you've hit a threshold?

Anything related to matters of the mind

Rodmunch1

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From browsing a few threads here, it seems the general consensus is that although money doesn't necessarily buy happiness, it's definitely better than lacking money. It's definitely better to be rich than to be in poverty

However, I believe there was a study that said that money buys you happiness until you reach around $75K, at which point there will be diminishing returns on higher income. That is, earning $500K a year doesn't buy much more happiness than if you made $100K a year

Do you guys agree with this? If so, why would you guys pursue entrepreneurship instead of a steady job as an engineer for example? Does working for yourself instead of for a boss lead to that much more happiness? Would you say you'd be happier if you made $75K a year working 60-80 hours/week as an entrepreneur than if you made $100K-150K a year working 40-50 hours a week, on projects that are fun and challenging without too much stress, as an engineer or other job? This is assuming in either case you live within your means and save/invest enough money so you can be financially indepenent/retire in a reasonable time frame

EDIT: In the example above, what if in addition to the high salary and not too stressful engineer job, you were also allowed to work remotely? True, I have to do what my boss wants and can't just do whatever I want, but by being allowed to work remotely, I also kind of get to control my schedule
 
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MTF

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If so, why would you guys pursue entrepreneurship instead of a steady job as an engineer for example? Does working for yourself instead of for a boss lead to that much more happiness? Would you say you'd be happier if you made $75K a year working 60-80 hours/week as an entrepreneur than if you made $100K-150K a year working 40-50 hours a week, on projects that are fun and challenging without too much stress, as an engineer or other job?

One word: freedom. This is the principal thing that leads to much more happiness. Money is great, too, but time freedom (and for some, location freedom) is much better.

It's all about owning your life. I'd rather earn less but control my schedule and do what I want and when I want than have a boss. You can't put a price tag on this. There's no amount of money you could give me for becoming someone's serf.
 

Akeem

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Is It True That More Money Doesn't Buy Happiness Once You've Hit A Threshold?

Do you guys agree with this?
Personally, no. The more money you make, the happier you'll be knowing you're making so much. You could have millions in the bank - but another $100K will always cheer you up - or at least, if it was me, I'd be happier. It's not so much about greed (for me) as it is about knowing I'm doing something right. Not only that, but there's also a different type of magical feeling of achievement knowing something you created is so valuable to someone that they don't mind paying you money - regardless of how much I may already have in the bank.

Why would you guys pursue entrepreneurship instead of a steady job as an engineer for example?
As mentioned above, it's a different type of happiness knowing you became successful and wealthy without your academic certificates. I love my job (developing software) - but I love my business ventures more - there's a sense of freedom and it's much sweeter than working for someone else.

Does working for yourself instead of for a boss lead to that much more happiness?
For me, yes, yes and yes again. Sure it'll be frustrating and keep you up at night - but when it pays off, the taste is unforgettable.

Would you say you'd be happier if you made $75K a year working 60-80 hours/week as an entrepreneur than if you made $100K-150K a year working 40-50 hours a week, on projects that are fun and challenging without too much stress, as an engineer or other job?
An interesting question. It all really depends on what the person is like. If $150K is what you think you'll be happy with making whilst being under someone else's wing - then so be it. Personally, I'd rather test the waters and see how much more I could make and where that could take me (not forgetting to mention the experience, the people you meet, where your business could take you in the world etc. - it's just much more exciting to wake up to than the same thing every day).
 
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Rodmunch1

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Yes, that's true as an entrepreneur you get more freedom. But I forgot to clarify that by working for a company, you could also get to work remotely or from home, which is the case for me. Although I have to do what my boss wants, I do get more flexibility in my schedule than typical non-entrepreneurs
 
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minivanman

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I'm asking this as a serious question.... does $75k buy much happiness nowadays? My wife paid $18 for a roast yesterday so I just don't see $75k going very far for the 'regular' person..... does it? $18 for a roast! I could have had hotdogs for 3 months with $18! :eek: We also went to the Rainforest Cafe and spent $105+ tip. Yes, I was freaking out by the end of the day. lmao So how can the average family that was there at the Rainforest afford it if they only make $75k?

But no matter if it's $75k or $125k or $500k at the easy, work at home job where all you have to do is report to your boss.... I'm just not good at... reporting to someone, getting stuff done when others want it done, doing things that I don't want to do, not controlling my own destiny. When I'm not in charge of my own destiny I get so anxious it ain't funny. I mean like freaking the f out anxious. Even when I had a boss, I got anxious about not being in control of my own destiny. By the way, if you had a job where you could work from home, making $100k a year and only had to report to your boss and doing what you LOVE.... oh wait, your boss was fired yesterday and now the new boss has his own guy to fill your job. You will get a nice severance pay though. And please bring your company laptop in within 30 days, thank you and good luck.......
 

NovaAria

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This reminds me of Dennis Felix's book, "How to get Rich". He spends most of the book telling you NOT to try to get too rich.
Becoming a millionaire requires effort, keeping those millions requires just as much effort, making more millions requires even more effort... But how much does a man really need? At some point you will get that sports car, and then what? A third home? A yacht? The list of things that you can buy will pile on but honestly you don't really need any of that.
Outside of buying your own freedom from bosses and worries, making more money is just a waste of time better spent elsewhere.
75k Is probably not enough... But hey, the homeless guy sleeping in my metro station says that he's happy, so...
 
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c4n

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This reminds me of Dennis Felix's book, "How to get Rich". He spends most of the book telling you NOT to try to get too rich.

Yeah, but in the same book he says what he would do if he had a chance to do it all again ;)

If I had my time again, knowing what I know today, I would dedicate myself to making just enough to live comfortably (say £30 or £40 million), as quickly as I could – hopefully by the time I was thirty-five years old.
 

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Another day... Another money buys or doesn’t buy happiness thread.

I will put it simply. If your motivations are acquisitive in nature. If your motivations are stuff and spending. No. Money won’t make you happy for long. It is like a dopamine hit to an addict. They’ll just need more and more. These folks often don’t have net worth at the end of the day anyway.

Now if your motivations are a greater purpose attached to your accumulation, you can have the fun stuff and increased happiness. If you are building for future generations. If you are building to build something that matters. If you are building for a cause you are passionate about. Maybe you want to change the world.

NONE of the worlds billionaires were motivated by cool cars and yachts. There is a reason they kept going LONG after they could afford these things. Hell, many of them don’t even bother with these things. That is interesting to me.

All of this said, you won’t see me hanging it up and retiring.
 
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Megalodon

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As someone who makes well over $75k in a similar situation to you... I’m not happy.

I’ve had a tonne of different jobs across different industries but always found there was something lacking. Once the shine wore off I’d always want something more.

For a certain type of person (plenty of them in this forum), you’ll never scratch that itch until you’re free. Free from time prostitution in any form, free from taking orders.

I once read a quote that went something along the lines of “life is a game, money is the score”. I’ve got almost everything I ever wanted - my Fastlane journey is about leveling it up and winning for myself, not for the money.
 
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minivanman

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As someone who makes well over $75k in a similar situation to you... I’m not happy.

I’ve had a tonne of different jobs across different industries but always found there was something lacking. Once the shine wore off I’d always want something more.

For a certain type of person (plenty of them in this forum), you’ll never scratch that itch until you’re free. Free from time prostitution in any form, free from taking orders.

I once read a quote that went something along the lines of “life is a game, money is the score”. I’ve got almost everything I ever wanted - my Fastlane journey is about leveling it up and winning for myself, not for the money.

It's the same with a business owner lots of times. The shine wears off and on to the next one.... that's me. I was thinking just yesterday what my next personal venture is going to be because it's coming within the next year or 2.
 

biophase

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Becoming a millionaire requires effort, keeping those millions requires just as much effort, making more millions requires even more effort... But how much does a man really need?

At some point you will get that sports car, and then what? A third home? A yacht? The list of things that you can buy will pile on but honestly you don't really need any of that.
Outside of buying your own freedom from bosses and worries, making more money is just a waste of time better spent elsewhere.
75k Is probably not enough... But hey, the homeless guy sleeping in my metro station says that he's happy, so...

Yes, you can keep buying things. But regular people keep buying things too. It's not like you need everything that you buy. Do people really need more than 4 pairs of shoes or 8 shirts? No. But they buy them anyway. A billionaire buying a yacht is the exact same thing. It's only the fact that there are more zeroes that make people feel like it's a waste of money.

"Outside of buying your own freedom from bosses and worries, making more money is just a waste of time better spent elsewhere."

So let me ask you, where would you better spend your time then?
 

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