Does More Money Make You Happier?

I've been spending a lot of time at the Bankrate site because of the possibility of me buying a house. I want to stay on top of interest rates to know what they will most likely be when I decide on a house to purchase.

Anyway, I came across this article about whether or not more money can make you happy. One observation from the article says that going from shear poverty to the middle class can significantly increase happiness, but if you are increasing your yearly income from $100,000 to $100 million a year, the benefits concerning happiness are negligible.

More telling as to whether you are happy with your income or not, is how your neighbors live. The amount of happiness tied to the amount you make is relative to how much the people around you make. If you make more than the people you know, then you will probably be happy, even if you're poor by definition. If you live in Beverly Hills and you are the one making the least, you will most likely be unhappy, even if your income is in the millions.

So when is enough enough? When you reach a point where you realize that making more won't make you happier. If you already the highest earner in your peer group, nothing more will make you happy.

Other interesting observations cited in the article (actually from a Pew Research study) are: Republicans are happier than Democrats, Married people are happier than Unmarried, Churchgoers are happier than non-Churchgoers, and "Sunbelt" residents are happier than people living elsewhere. Contrary findings: Retirees are no happier than workers, and pet owners are no happier than non-pet owners.

So what does "happy" mean? In the Pew study, the respondents could define it however they saw fit. An interesting technique and one that allows a more accurate reading. It recognizes that happiness can be relative, but our own perception of that happiness (and whether we achieve it) is what is compared in the study.

So what is more important than money? According to Bruce Weinstein, after basic needs are met, money and material goods are not what make us happy. Being loved and having meaningful friends and having someone to love are what make people have happy lives.

One important point recognized in the article, too, is that it is not important to be happy all the time. We strive for that, but actually happiness is guided by emotions more than anything. People who try and suppress certain emotions might find it unhealthy. Emotions can guide us and give us appropriate reactions to our environment. If we were happy all the time, then we may miss something that our brain is trying to tell us.

Enough rambling. Check out the article and let me know if you're happy!