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Money Does Make You Happy…
There’s an old adage that the rich try to pooh-pooh and say that it’s not at all true and that’s: ‘Money makes you happy’. The rich just don’t want the poor to know what it’s like to have the elated feeling of beaming with happiness, brimming over with joy as the money keeps on ticking over in the bank accounts (notice there are multiple accounts!).
Now though they will have just a little more trouble telling the one’s down below that money isn’t going to make their lives any better. The UK Office for National Statistics carried out a survey on the wellbeing of people in conjunction with the level of income that they have. The survey was carried out in the UK on 8, 000respondents (adults aged at least 16 and over). The richest 20% of those interviewed rated their happiness on a scale of 0 to 10 as being at an average of 7.7. Those in the lowest 20% in terms of revenue rated their happiness as being lower than that at 6.9. Four questions were put to respondents and they were asked to attribute the scale of 0 to 10 to each question:
• Overall, how satisfied are you with your life nowadays?
• Overall, to what extent do you feel the things you do in your life are worthwhile?
• Overall, how happy did you feel yesterday?
• Overall, how anxious did you feel yesterday?
The results also back up a recent Eurofound (2013) survey that was conducted on employees regarding earnings satisfaction.
The outcome overtly shows that “As household income increases, life satisfaction and happiness rise, while anxiety falls. Higher household spending is related to higher life satisfaction, happiness and a sense that things people do in life being worthwhile”. We all know that people who are poor are not only made to feel that their lives are not worthwhile but they are also well aware of that too. Monet does make you happier, therefore. At last, someone wants to admit what we all knew long ago. But, whether anyone will take any notice of it, or whether anyone will change the situation is far from even being a remote possibility.
But, it’s not just money that counts. There is of course a correlation between the amount of revenue one has and the happiness and wellbeing that one feels. But, it’s things like being unemployed that drag the figures down in terms of perception of wellbeing in life. It’s disposable income and household spending that matter rather than being rich or being poor, in fact. The more disposable income we have, the greater the feeling of being happy.
The results showed in the report state that:
• People in households with higher incomes have greater satisfaction with their lives and feel happier.
• They have lower anxiety.
• People derive less satisfaction from their lives when they receive more state benefits.
• They feel greater satisfaction and happiness when they have worked for their money.
• This is true even when the money that is received by those two different types of household is exactly the same.
The study therefore shows that providing people with jobs and a decent wage has a much more positive effect on the individual’s perception of wellbeing than just dishing out money to people in society. But, the study also proved that men derive greater satisfaction than women from cash benefits and the former have a greater sense of doing something worthwhile in life.
But, what is the measurement of wellbeing for an individual? The notion is purely subjective and a very personal experience, isn’t it? We are no longer happy with surviving and we have to be happy today. The trend in fashionable experiences is gauging the level of happiness that a person feels. Back in 1974, Richard Easterlin stated that an increase in the average income did not make people happier (known as theEasterlin Paradox). But, more recent studies are today proving that the paradox is no longer true. Others have stated that when a country has more than a $15, 000 per capita income level, then any increase in happiness is independent of income (Layard, 2003). Does that mean we should stick to $15, 000 per capita incomes across the board?
So, what about you? Would you be happier with more money?
Originally posted: Money Does Make You Happy…
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Wrong! Happy makes you happy; having money makes you "rich," monetarily speaking. Rich folks can be happy or sad, for whatever reason. However, all "rich" people are not happy. They may be happy that they are "rich" but that does not fufull them emotionally and/or pschologically. So to say that money makes you "happy" is pure semantics. I have had money and not had money and I would much rater have it but my personal happiness is not, nor could it be, predicated on it.
Back in 2007 poker boat runs and wingsuiting were all the rage. What are the rich boys doing these days?
Ask a hooker how much happiness the money she earns buys.
Money does not make you happy. It prevents you from being sad about not having money.
Success makes you happy. And many times success comes with money. But you can be relatively without money and be successfull. Say you are a trumpet player at the Metropolitain Opera and the best in your field, you have recognition for your success yet you do not make much money.
In business making money is a mark of success. So there migth be a spurious correlation.
What would be interesting is to compare people who made their money on their own with people who inherited it and see if there is a big gap in happiness between the two yet both groups have money.
Money can make you happy.
It is all these useless consumer products (updated/churned out continuously) that play on our inner narcissistic selves via propaganda that make us unhappy.
Money can't buy the "character" building trait that poverty easily provides.
I've been richer, I've been poorer... Richer is better.
Declare War on Political Correctness!
www.TruthDecals.com
addendum: that thing about giving (for better or worse, take it at face) shit away, aside from the empirical (ugh) evidence is no joke.
I got a chunk of $ from a lawsuit some years ago. Gave 1/2 away- I went to NYC to "just chill". One evening, walking down lower east. I got 20 boxes of pizza and gave the stuff to hungry homeless dudes. I didn't expect people to friggin' cry but it happened. Kinda flipped my script. I suppose these days I'd end up in the jail or prison.
Money can't buy happiness, but poverty certainly sucks.
Yeah, rich people are obviously happier than the rest of us. That's why all those movie stars with a squillion bucks and a 300-acre chateau estate in Provence are always getting divorced because, you know, happy people are the most likely to get divorced so they can share their happiness with someone else.
That's why John Kerry is so happy; he married a whole bunch of happiness and as a bonus, he gets to bang that delightful Theresa Ketchup. Unless she does him with a strap-on, which is more likely.
I don't think there's much of a nexus between money and happiness. You can find rich people happily pissing away their stash on the course at St. Andrews, and you can find poor people fighting bitterly over who gets the last Little Debbie cake in the box. Or you can find hapless construction slobs like me, who just came back from ten weeks in Mexico, only to be boinked senseless by a girl who's a lot hotter than the ketchup heiress.
It's really all in how you define wealth.
Pivot Farm: obviously providing needed AD rev. fer ZH. Doesn't bother me, ZH=Free and so on. However...
What the shit has ALWAYS been pivotfarms' extra shitty brand of...Help me guise...."brand?" Provide something o Pivot, SOMETHING other than sub-CFP/FA tripe. How about a nifty infographic? Kids like those.
I don't have the source but it's not end of world:
was a money/study/happiness deal. It was a biggin' and had an important "left out of pivot blah"
this was 3 years ago, in USD/US. Damnit, I forgot which city was chosen as the "standard model"- obviously not Mid-Town or SF. They did an average cost of living and picked city X, X for average...
so yes, ppl under poverty line were "not happy". The study was based on 1 person+M$...
things were "not happy" until the pay grade started hitting the mid 35k/yr. Nothing radical, but a def "up". Stayed that way until 50k. Happy-ness going up up, line steep. Important- for this study to make things simple/reduce variables, it was assumed that the $$$ was in the free and clear- meaning no debt, living payed off. No kids...
The short of the long of it was around 60k the line started going parabolic. 65k it pretty much was. Here's the interesting and (it makes sense) part:
"Peak" money makes you happy topped out at 75k. That's with payed living, car etc. and for 1 person. Duh.
And as predicted, the line was flat until it got near 100k- the 150k level the line of happy took a plunge. Past 250k, the happiness level was on the same level as 20k>/year. And of course, the reasons are obvious. This site is fight clubby, so ya know, your shit owns you etc...
thought about it, seems valid. If I had that much disposable and shit was about to go boom, I'd (trying to think of the most stupid thing ever ultra-$$$ would pay 75k for) buy...umm, shit...can't cheat and say "diamond iPhone" it's gotta something kinda maybe possible/reasonable...
unrelated to hobby/job-hobby is a rule too...
Ah, just thought of it and it's totally stupid/boring. Probably some super night vision/IR Flir thingy. Or a mega-telescope. Ugh. Sorry guise, someone think of something better/less yawny
more STUFF never satisfies anyone. It is the idea that you are well cared for... and yes, money provides proper food housing and healthcare........ no duh!
This is the real story:
Money does not necessarily make you happy.
Lack of money can make you very sad.
Lack of money makes me hungry.
I don't like being hungry.
Correct Stucky.
Lack of money causes stress, and not all stressors are the same.
For instance, stress related to serious illness is more "stressful" than stress over your lawn mower breaking down.
Financial stress is one of the most potent forms, as it is insidious, and wears one down like the tide. It has people fearful of the future, not just upset in the present.
Fear is worse for the mind than being irritated.
Money is an enabler, it is not the end game. Money may be able to buy you experiences, but it won't make you a better person. Money is not the evil, the LOVE of money is the root of all evil driven by greed and selfishness. It is what money does to a person that matters.
Yup, money makes you happy.
So does cocaine...for a while...and then you need more...and more...and more...
snort and repeat ad nauseam,
Like any drug you take, money changes you.
;-D
If my money had come by scamming people, I don't see how I coud be happy. The missus and myself are pretty happy in our little insular bubble with our wonderful family. It doesn't take a ton of money to be happy. We consider it icing on the cake. And the cake is pretty darn good without the icing.