People who don’t have much money often think that they would be happier if they just had a little bit more. And individuals who do have a lot of money often find that they aren’t any happier than when they had less. That relationship is a seeming paradox. But, if you work it through to its logical end, you can at least find out where you fit concerning your ways to relate money to happiness.
Regarding comparative value, you can reference depression, research lottery winners, look into the science of happiness, and then reflect personally on your own experiences. By seeing in each of those instances how money correlates with happiness, you can begin to find your path to proper balance in your life.
By Referencing Depression
When people are depressed, money takes on a different meaning. You might be able to spend money to try to feel better, like going on spontaneous shopping trips or choosing lots of things on Amazon to get delivered to your doorstep. Or, you might budget back severely, and feel like the less money you spend, the happier you will be. But you’ll find that depression does not have a direct correlation to money, and the better you look at each one independently, the better you will see how they interact with each other on a pragmatic scale.
By Researching Lottery Winners
Everybody wants to win the lottery. But if you start doing further research into lottery winners, you’ll find all sorts of crazy statistics. People lose all their friends. They buy houses that they can only afford for so long. Random people ask for money. They have to deal with all sorts of additional regulations concerning taxes. Winning the lottery, it seems, does not make people happy. The people that do figure out how to add enjoyment to the lives are the ones who approach resource management very differently.
By Following the Research
Researching the science of happiness is another interesting way to see where money fits in. There are lots of studies that survey people at different points in the economic spectrum and ask them to judge how happy they feel. The results can be quite surprising, and change situationally and culturally. You might be able to find how much money you want to make in your career by noting where the highest happiness factor is with people similar to yourself.
By Personal Reflection
Ask yourself when you are the happiest. How much money did you have at that point in your life? You may find that the point where you have the most money does not indicate that’s where you enjoyed your existence the most. Money and happiness interact, but it’s not a straight line equation that many people believe it to be.