Can Money Really Buy Happiness?
The saying goes that you can't buy happiness. This is true to a certain extent. After comforts such as food and shelter are taken care of, there is remarkably little difference in how happy an extremely wealthy family is over a middleclass family.
Money can't buy us happiness, but it can give us opportunities to be happy., but a luxury vacation in the tropics provides us with the experience of walking through white sands, swimming in tropical oceans, and feeling that salt spray on our faces. This experience is something we'll carry with us for the rest of our lives, and look back on with joy when we're older.
It's for this reason that psychologists recommend investing our entertainment dollars not on material items, but experience instead. The value of these experiences are just plain higher. Here are 3 reasons why experiences tend to make us happier:
It brings us together
Although being alone has its benefits, we tend to go on vacations or indulge in experiences with other people. The people we take along are the people we like best to be around, such as our family and friends. This opportunity for connection is one we seldom get in quite the same way in our normal lives. Time with family and friends is precious. Experiences make the most of that time.
Happiness from material goods are short lived
You might be thrilled to get the newest cellphone out there, but in just a year you will probably view that cellphone as old and outdated. Studies show that while new items do make us happier, that happiness doesn't last. On the flipside, the joy you get from experiences lasts much longer.
Experiences can be relived
You won't get to live that wonderful experience just once. In the months and years after the experience is over, you can relive the experience again and again in conversation. A good story enriches everyone who hears it, magnifying everyone's happiness. A lively story brings back the memories of the event, and makes you even happier that you experienced it.
The next time you have money to spend, choose an experience over a material item. You'll be much happier. Even if you don't have a lot of money to spend, you can still make the most of it. An experience doesn't have to be a vacation in a far away place. It could be as simple as a picnic with your friends, or a trip to a local winery.
The important thing is to focus on what really matters, and to remember that life is not about how big your TV is or whether you have the fastest internet. What's more important is who you are with, what you do in that time, and whether you'll be able to look back on your life with pleasure. After all, no one remembers what model their cellphone was 2 phones ago, but they will remember the first marathon they ever finished.
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