DD avatar
SoWal Expert
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Would more money make you happy(ier)?

Replies

42
scooterbug44 avatar
SoWal Expert
#2
I don't think it would make me happier in the long run (once Canoehead and I finished the Pretty Woman style shopping spree in NY) - but it would definitely make me lazier/less ambitious.

IMO you don't appreciate the stuff that comes easy.
30ABandMan avatar
Beach Fanatic
#3
I don't need a ton of money, I just want to be comfortable. Scoot, you are right, having a job makes me happy.
Lynnie avatar
SoWal Insider
#4
I would still be ambitious, just in different areas. Money doesn't make me happy, however.......that comes from within. Would solve a few issues, though.
KISH7374 avatar
Beach Fanatic
#6
If yuo are truely happy, more money will not make you happier, it will however make things easier in some respects but also create more headaches. You do not have to be rich toi be happy.
Scooter avatar
Beach Fanatic
#7
Abso*******lutely!
NoHall avatar
hmmmm......can't remember
#8
Would more money make you happy(ier)?

Hail, no.

I've spent the last 2 weeks confirming my theory about materialism, too. My school has everything I could ever want, from $10,000 tubas to sound equipment to spotlights that are too powerful to use in my theater to all the print resources I could ever want. It's eating up my entire life trying to inventory, clean, and repair all that stuff.

Meanwhile, my stuff at home is also a mess, and I didn't think I had enough stuff to be so messy.

I'm ready to go live in a cave and eat only the nuts and berries and ice cream that can be found in the wild.

Edited

audie avatar
fartblossom
#9
i don't think it would make me happier, but i sure would like to be out of debt :D
Poodleone avatar
Beach Fanatic
#10
If it meant I could quit working- yes.

Otherwise, probably not.
picky
#11
No no no. For a million reasons. You need enough to live comfortably (to your standards of comfort :lol:) and anything beyond that is asking for trouble!
Minnie avatar
Beach Fanatic
#12
Make you happier, definitely does not guarantee you would be any happier but as KISH7374 said it can definitely make things easier and less stressful.

For example when our daughter has moved during college, we go and help to save money. My wealthy friend simply calls a mover and pays to have it done. They don't fret over the cost of things, don't have to worry about saving money to purchase a new air conditioner, or stolen vehicles and such. They take the most fabulous vacations.

It would make me very happy to be able, as they do, to write my Mom a huge check for her expenses, since she is struggling.

So yes definitely would make things easier.

Edited

aggieb avatar
Beach Fanatic
#13
Make you happier, definitely does not guarantee you would be any happier but as KISH7374 said it can definitely make things easier and less stressful.

For example when our daughter has moved during college, we go and help to save money. My wealthy friend simply calls a mover and pays to have it done. They don't fret over the cost of things, don't have to worry about saving money to purchase a new air conditioner, or stolen vehicles and such. They take the most fabulous vacations.

It would make me very happy to be able, as they do, to write my Mom a huge check for her expenses, since she is struggling.

So yes definitely would make things easier.
minnie, we just spent a whole lot of moolah for our move, did we want to? hell no. did we have to? yes. sometimes you have to do it, not because it's easier to hire a moving company but sometimes you don't have a choice. did i want to bite the bullet and sell my car for a whole lot less than i wanted to, just so someone could come get it. no, but i had to. it's not about stuff like that, just like someone else said i can't remember who, happiness comes from within. i try to remember this everday.:wave:

Edited

Minnie avatar
Beach Fanatic
#14
I agree Aggie, as I said it would not guarantee happiness, but it sure can make things less stressful, when you have the cash to do things that many of us worry over.

So would it make me happy, No, less stressed, Yes.
ItzKatzTime avatar
Beach Fanatic
#15
Would more money make you happy(ier)?

Definitely YES! If I had more money I could help more people...and that's what makes me the happiest.
Scooter avatar
Beach Fanatic
#16
:wub:for ITZKATZTIME!
NoHall avatar
hmmmm......can't remember
#17
I agree Aggie, as I said it would not guarantee happiness, but it sure can make things less stressful, when you have the cash to do things that many of us worry over.

So would it make me happy, No, less stressed, Yes.

I was talking to a therapist friend about this a few years ago. I had just started a business, bought my grandmother's house, etc., and I was stressed out over money.

He said, "Why is this upsetting you so much?"

I answered, with an edge of irritation, "Because it's all I can do to pay my bills!"

He asked, "Well, what's the worst that can happen?"

My irritation grew: "I could have my electricity turned off! I could lose my car! I could lose my house!"

"And..."

"And then I would have to move to an apartment, a trailer, or back in with my parents!"

"I thought you said you like your parents. That doesn't sound so bad to me."

He went on to point out to me (as one evangelical crazy to another) that if I claim to trust God then I won't stress about losing my home, even if it means living in a cardboard box under a bridge.

I can honestly say that I have not had any real anxiety over money in the years since that conversation. The bills always got paid, even the unexpected ones, and I'm genuinely comfortable on a salary that most people would laugh at. I have debt, but it's controlled and manageable--I don't live above my means, and hope to have it paid off in a set amount of time. Before that conversation I never went anywhere because I feared couldn't afford it. Now I enjoy finding deals on vacations and traveling with friends. I'm a much happier person since I realized that I would be okay even if I lived in a box under a bridge, and the likelihood of that happening seems ridiculously remote now that I don't fear it anymore.

Worry will not add a single day to your life, and it will greatly diminish the days that you have.
NoHall avatar
hmmmm......can't remember
#18
p.s. I just spent half my pay from the show I'm wrapping up this weekend on a month of kickboxing lessons. I'll admit that it makes me happy. :boxing: :biggrin:
Lynnie avatar
SoWal Insider
#19
I was talking to a therapist friend about this a few years ago. I had just started a business, bought my grandmother's house, etc., and I was stressed out over money.

He said, "Why is this upsetting you so much?"

I answered, with an edge of irritation, "Because it's all I can do to pay my bills!"

He asked, "Well, what's the worst that can happen?"

My irritation grew: "I could have my electricity turned off! I could lose my car! I could lose my house!"

"And..."

"And then I would have to move to an apartment, a trailer, or back in with my parents!"

"I thought you said you like your parents. That doesn't sound so bad to me."

He went on to point out to me (as one evangelical crazy to another) that if I claim to trust God then I won't stress about losing my home, even if it means living in a cardboard box under a bridge.

I can honestly say that I have not had any real anxiety over money in the years since that conversation. The bills always got paid, even the unexpected ones, and I'm genuinely comfortable on a salary that most people would laugh at. I have debt, but it's controlled and manageable--I don't live above my means, and hope to have it paid off in a set amount of time. Before that conversation I never went anywhere because I feared couldn't afford it. Now I enjoy finding deals on vacations and traveling with friends. I'm a much happier person since I realized that I would be okay even if I lived in a box under a bridge, and the likelihood of that happening seems ridiculously remote now that I don't fear it anymore.

Worry will not add a single day to your life, and it will greatly diminish the days that you have.


Ditto, NoFunn! Trust and faith are both pretty amazing. As I continue to pull out of this mess, I look forward to my set goal having everything paid. And, I have still managed to travel, play, have fun. I have brief moments of panic, then something happens that makes me realize how fortunate I am, fundamentally lucky and blessed. The panic dissipates pretty quickly.

Right now, I've overcommitted myself. Am trying to get my yard in good shape this weekend, have work to do in my basement, converting my garage to an art studio, finish a painting this weekend, go to a birthday party, work out, drink too much and relax. All of this because while you have the summer off, this is one of the first summers in a very long time I'll be working my fanny off.

It's gorgeous and I'd love nothing more than to sit by the pool, however. Hmmmm.......maybe I'll do that instead. The rest will get done when it gets done. And, I want a pair of Old Gringos......
NoHall avatar
hmmmm......can't remember
#20
Ditto, NoFunn! Trust and faith are both pretty amazing. As I continue to pull out of this mess, I look forward to my set goal having everything paid. And, I have still managed to travel, play, have fun. I have brief moments of panic, then something happens that makes me realize how fortunate I am, fundamentally lucky and blessed. The panic dissipates pretty quickly.

Rebuke that panic! Panic is useless. I refuse to allow it, and demand that you do the same.

Right now, I've overcommitted myself. Am trying to get my yard in good shape this weekend, have work to do in my basement, converting my garage to an art studio, finish a painting this weekend, go to a birthday party, work out, drink too much and relax. All of this because while you have the summer off, this is one of the first summers in a very long time I'll be working my fanny off.

It's gorgeous and I'd love nothing more than to sit by the pool, however. Hmmmm.......maybe I'll do that instead. The rest will get done when it gets done. And, I want a pair of Old Gringos......

I think I misspoke--I don't have the summer off. I just don't have to go to work during the summer.

I spent the morning at the DIY home improvement retailers. While I'm "off" for the next two weeks:

  • I'm getting rid of the old, ugly wallboard in my bathroom (not the master bath, not the guest bath--THE bathroom!) and tiling around the tub and shower.
  • I'm replacing the 50-year-old spigots and the handles I got from the hardware store a few years ago and am putting in a wonderful new shower head. (I'll still have to use the rubber plug in the tub drain, since I'm not springing for a brand new bathtub right now.)
  • I'm replacing the $20 sink faucet I got a few years back.
  • I'm installing a pocket door. (Actally, I'll have help for this one.)
  • I'm replacing the ancient light/fan in the ceiling.
  • I'm putting in crown molding. (As was the custom of the day, the "molding" in the bathroom consists of quarter-round in every corner. Tacky!)
  • I'm putting up one of those fancy curved shower curtain rods--upTOWN.
  • I'm painting the walls to coordinate with the row of seaglass in the shower tile and the stained glass window in the bathroom.
  • I'm painting and rehanging my kitchen cabinet doors, and hopefully they'll be level when I'm done.
  • I'm painting the ceilings and the woodwork.
  • I'm making new cushions for the daybed in the guestroom.

How does this tie in with this thread, you ask? I bought all that stuff for under $600 this morning! I'll have to pay someone to do the pocket door, but I'm doing the rest of it myself, as soon as I finish re-roofing my garage on Monday.
Lynnie avatar
SoWal Insider
#21
I just accomplished some relaxing in my bikini on the deck. And, now I am behind.

My guy did a great job with my pocket doors, BTW. If something happens and you need someone, let me know.

You have a lot going on; don't forget to relax! :biggrin:


I added this part later: LynnieFunn Drudge Report - I am doing a lot of adjusting and not sure I am digging it, but am trusting and really trying to go with this new flow as well as believe that this is the right path and I am doing the right thing.

Back to that yard now! <sigh>

Edited

SHELLY avatar
SoWal Insider
#22
No...you'll just be as miserable (or as happy) as you currently are, but able to do it in better surroundings drinking premium gin.
Miss Critter avatar
Beach Fanatic
#23
No...you'll just be as miserable (or as happy) as you currently are, but able to do it in better surroundings drinking premium gin.

. . . both of which are highly underrated, imho. ;-)
NoHall avatar
hmmmm......can't remember
#24
I just accomplished some relaxing in my bikini on the deck. And, now I am behind.

My guy did a great job with my pocket doors, BTW. If something happens and you need someone, let me know.

You have a lot going on; don't forget to relax! :biggrin:


I added this part later: LynnieFunn Drudge Report - I am doing a lot of adjusting and not sure I am digging it, but am trusting and really trying to go with this new flow as well as believe that this is the right path and I am doing the right thing.

Back to that yard now! <sigh>

Thanks! I have a friend who's a builder that I'm hiring. I have concrete plans in the works for some really intense power-relaxing in a couple of weeks. :clap:

Have funn out in the yard...that's on my list somewhere...later. After 13 years as a landscaper, it's hard for me to get excited about weeding.

Lynnieolium! Variety is the spice of life. I don't know what you're going through, but I hope that you will see it as an adventure and just run with it. Don't think of it as a "right" thing or wrong thing--it just is what it is so you might as well have some fun with it. If it turns out to not be the best thing, make some adjustments. You have too much life in you to let life stress you out.
Lynnie avatar
SoWal Insider
#25
Yard done.......funny, I love to garden and haven't been excited about it since our drought. There is about 10 min. left to do, but am getting my worker to do it cause even with my wellies on, it's getting deep in the mulch bin and pulling some vine thang off the garage :blink:. Creepy things back there, which wouldn't normally scare me, but if I had to escape quickly, I would trip over the many Christmas Trees and such thrown back there. I think the bug/snake would win that battle.

You're right.....have funn, embrace and enjoy. It's all good; and, I am excited as I just passed a really difficult exam. God has always worked squirrelly in my life and I wonder if He's doing the same now. I believe there aren't any mistakes, just little (funn) diversions!

Enjoy your projects and your much deserved relaxation!! ;-) Your house sounds groovy!
Gidget avatar
Beach Fanatic
#26
In many ways yes, money can buy happiness. We sponsor 2 little girls. One is in Guatemala and the other in the Dominican Republic. We have also helped sponsor a community center where they have dental checkups and games, gym, etc... Brenda, the little girl from Guatemala, poses ever so happily next to some of the items she buys with our sponsorship. Her FIRST bed! And other very basic items that make her life more comfortable and in turn happier. AND a huge plus is how happy it makes me to see the photos and receive the letters from both girls.

I've often thought if I came into a huge amount of $$ that spreading ideas and necessities to people (Money Talks!) would be a great way to make a lot of people happy. :biggrin:

I've lived in a 2 bedroom house that we built on our land - never had a mortgage - we've been very frugal. Focused on fresh air, sunshine, growing our food, etc... But now, we are going to leave this behind, move to Blue Mtn and stick with our plans to live frugally and within our means. Solar, energy efficiency, community garden, etc... I realllllllly look forward to SoWal! (but I am gonna miss it here too :cry:)

G

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