Here’s Why Money Won’t Make You Happier

Apologies for missing a post again last week. This Eurotrip mini-retirement has kicked up the pace, and I’m finding myself with less time to write. After Oktoberfest, I came down with a pretty nasty head cold, and I’ve been moving around a lot more from Berlin to Krakow to the mountains in Southern Poland. Enjoying new cities while trying to get healthy has left me with little physical and mental energy to write.

But here I am, back with another post! And this should be a good one that’ll spark some important thoughts for you….

 

The Money vs. Happiness Debate

People have long been debating whether money can bring you happiness. Some people say that you can be completely happy without any money, and they cite Buddhist monks or citizens of poor, underdeveloped nations. Others say that money can bring you happiness up to $75,000 per year, at which point more money doesn’t give you any more happiness.

And then there are those out there who say that the more money the better! Money can buy whatever you want and solve most of your problems, so accumulating more money should be a life goal.

Personally, I partially believe in two of these points:

• I believe that money up to a certain point, whether it be $75,000 or whatever, will make us happier because it can provide the basic necessities of life that allow us to pursue more important endeavors with our time and energy.
• But I also believe that if you have the right physical and mental state, money does not make you happier. Only you can make you happier. I believe in this point more strongly.

 

So that’s what I believe and also what different parts of society believe. So if deep down many of us know that it’s possible to be completely happy without money, then why do we keep wanting more?

 

Does making more money make you happy?

 

What Does Give Us Happiness?

Recently, I was reading Sapiens by Yuval Nohari, which is a fascinating book that goes into detail about the development and history of humankind (Sidenote: this was one of the most interesting books I’ve ever read, and I’d recommend it to anyone who wonders why humans do what we do). Obviously, a big part of human development and history is happiness, and the pursuit of things that will make us as a society “happy”.

Yuval cites many different groups and scientists on what truly makes us happy, as the pursuit of happiness is such as large part of human existence. The findings were very interesting:

• Many scientists say that it’s our biochemistry that makes us happy. Serotonin, dopamine and other neurotransmitters are simply causing chemical reactions that make us happy. So in order to become more happy, we need sustained output of these happy hormones.
• Psychologists say that our experiences in life that give us purpose and meaning give us happiness. Helping others, having a family and keeping healthy relationships are where we should focus our time.
• Then Buddhists say that we should change our pursuits in order to not expect anything at all. Having no expectations means we never get let down or attached, which in the long run brings us the most happiness.

 

Personally, I believe all three of these points are correct, especially the first point from scientists. Happiness is a chemical reaction, which we can increase through pursuing enriching experiences, managing our expectations, and also doing other things, such eating healthy diet and exercising, in order to increase our happiness.

However, none of this has to do with money.

Money might give us temporary serotonin highs, or make us feel meaningful, but even then, it’s not about the money. It’s about what we could do with the money, like giving it to those in need or investing in a business that cleans up the oceans….

 

So What Should You Focus On?

 

As it was state in Sapiens, where you focus you time and energy is probably the most important factor in determining your happiness. We want to put our resources into the right areas in order to properly support our body’s chemical reactions that make us feel happy. I won’t get into everything we should do in order to be happy, but I will say what we can do with our money in order to make us happier.

Hint: it doesn’t have anything to do with accumulating more of it…

So more money probably won’t make you happier, but we also want to make sure that our money is not making us unhappy. Poorly managing our money can lead us to feel trapped or that life has no meaning, because we can end up stuck in a cycle of going to a job we hate, paying off debt and simply trying to get by.

So here are a few things you can do that have to do with managing your money that could make you happier:

• Stay out of debt – Debt creates STRESS, which is the opposite of happiness in a way. Being in debt can have you feeling trapped and without choices, such as changing jobs and having less free time.
• Have enough saved up for emergencies – Not having a rainy day fund also can create stress if you don’t know how you would handle an emergency, such as a large health bill or car/home repairs.
• Create a life where you can choose the work you enjoy – Work is a large part of most people’s lives, so make sure you have the ability to work on something you find meaningful. Working at a job you hate can suck a lot of the joy from life.
• Ensure you have time for pursuing interests – Money can be used to buy more free time (or cut back on things that aren’t important), which you can use to pursue your interests. Spend time with friends and family, exercise, travel, etc.

 

When it comes down to it, happiness is often about freedom and choices, and being able to live a life full of meaning, however you want to define the meaning in your own life. Having more money is not required to create more freedom and choices in your life but how you manage money is the most important factor.

Check out my Free 5-Day Money Course to get an introduction to managing your money for happiness!

Whether its starting a business that helps others, raising a happy family or being able to volunteer your time with local organizations. This will give you those serotonin and dopamine highs we all crave!

 

Question: Do you think money can bring you happiness? Leave a comment or send me an email!

 

NYPFGuy