Travelling vs. Material Things

[Pinnacle]

"Money doesn't buy happiness"

Common misperception of society, yes.

Most of us know that human beings are enriched by experiences, not things.

In other words, money buys more of the experiences that make you happy.

So, what are your thoughts on this article?

 

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[Olimac21]

I would say Lack of money makes you unhappy. And also it depends how you use it, if more money means more expenses and less freedom (time wise) then of course it becomes counter productive.

Experiences are richer because they are more difficult to compare and last longer according to research but they can also lead to hedonic adaptation in the long term.

 

[GoodluckChuck]

As with everything, it depends.

I just spent two years traveling so I can relate.

Selling all my crap and hitting the road was amazing. I lived out of a suitcase for a long time and I was very happy with it.

It's not like it didn't have it's downsides. It was a trade off. I had the freedom to do whatever I want wherever I want. My marketing business funded it so money wasn't an issue which made it enjoyable. Traveling with no money would be stressful.

I can not count on two hands the number of times my gf and I dreamed about having our own place with all our "stuff". Traveling is sweet, but so is having a full wardrobe and being able to open the garage and ride my bike out of it.

In the beginning of the journey I would have said traveling >material belongings. By the end I would have said it's relative.

If you're trying to find happiness in materials or travel, you're doing it wrong. Happiness is a state of mind that comes from experiencing things. Good experiences make us happy. Bad, unhappy.

If you have been stuck in a job for 10 years and you are used to having lots of toys, traveling my seem better. It goes the other way too. After traveling for 2 years, having a place and toys seemed really exciting.

To speak directly to the article I think most people would enjoy some travel after living the normal 9-5 lifestyle for a while. It might not be the traveling part that they like the most (traveling can be challenging as hell), but the freedom that open ended traveling brings is a breath of fresh air.

 

[Kevin88660]

Depends on what value you perceive from travel.

I really have no interest in natural sceneries.

I like to see different cultures and different through an an Economist lens.

Is the life here fast paced? Are people more relaxed or hustling hard. I get into the cab and talk the driver about the local economy.

Are they open to chatting a lot with strangers? Is this a high contextual culture or low contextual culture.

What is the property price here? Rental yield and mortgage interest. I like to grab a quick coffee with the realtor there even though I personally have no interest in property investment.

Fashion? How do they dress?

Demographic at rough glance. Aging population? Percentage of people of overweight? What kind of jobs do young people do? Are they done by locals or foreigners?

What is the bank outlet like? How do they do financial service here?

With internet you can know a lot about a country even without visiting. But there are still plenty of surprises when doing the ground work.

I always behave like an undercover Economist/social scientist when I travel. I find a lot of joy in doing that.

 

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[simplymoto]

I run a fairly successful tech business, there is adrenaline everyday and I want to wake up and start the day. But sometimes frustration sets in and you just want to sit idle and do nothing, that is when I ask myself if the "satisfaction of running a business" is stronger than "satisfaction of travelling" still, if not I might just quit and travel full time for a year, and do something else. Money is not really a motivation for me, most people can actually live by with a 2M asset, which is attainable in the first world if we save, save, save.

 

[StellaArt]

Money can't buy us happiness, but they give us a lot of possibilities. I believe that without money you can be 100 percent happy. If someone says that money doesn't matter, then whether he or she is lying, or money is not a problem for that person.

 

[Kak]

What if you travel in your material things?



The choice doesnt just come down to material things or chill lifestyle. There is a third option, the least selfish and most fulfilling option. Legacy.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs lays this out pretty well.

 

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