Does money buy happiness?

nj27 · 10-09-2021 4:28pm

I have experience at zero cash and essentially looking for ways to waste money for entertainment. The way it has worked out for me is that accelerating is happiness much more than absolute speed. Heading up to a new level of wealth is not happiness, it is euphoric. You find yourself in a financial position where the maths you did before don’t even apply anymore. Then it goes up again and the equation becomes absurd again.

That’s happiness, no question about it. Hanging around with the levels that rocked your world a while ago absolutely becomes the base level. You need to jump up again to experience the same thing again, and I assume people get caught up in that. I didn’t because I challenge myself with other things. And I have failed so far in other areas, but I’m still looking for that buzz in various investments I guess.

Am I happy now? Yes. Would I be happier if I doubled my net worth tomorrow. 100%. if I showed up broke tomorrow I would be very unhappy, but if I had been living in that space and never knew anything more the I’d be cool for sure. Looking for status beyond your financial position is the real shell game. That is what eats you alive regardless of net worth. I am still chasing the dragon in a sense because I am looking at stonks half the time, but I’m think a straight forward simple life is probably the key to being happy longer term. Just drop the dice.

mailforkev · 10-09-2021 4:37pm

Money buys you freedom. This frees you up to be happy.

If you have loads of cash then you can have an easier life. No worries about paying bills etc. There's also a rich person line for most things, no queuing or waiting like the average Joe if you know how to operate.

Of course, if you were miserable to begin with, money won't change this.

Claw Hammer · 10-09-2021 4:37pm

Money can alleviate misery. It can also bring misery. The problem with some lotto winners is the they are suddenly switched from a position of relatively little wealth into having to manage sums they never had to handle before. One of the early lotto winners in Ireland was a surgeon who said it was not enough to retire on. He threw a party, put the rest into his pension fund and forgot about it. The difference between him and the other winners is that he would not come from a social circle where his relations, friends and neighbours would approach him for money. Some winners have had distant relatives approach them to pay ESB bills. How do they go to the pub and nudge someone to buy their round when everyone knows they are a lotto winner. people who earn the money through business are generally careful to conceal it and not be conscious of it.

I don't do the lotto so it is not a problem I will ever face.

ShatterAlan · 10-09-2021 4:50pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117872747#Comment_117872747

Absolutely. If I won a huge amount I'd have no problem hiding the fact. Nobody really knows what I do or where I am from one day to the next. I live between Dublin and mainland Europe so could easily purchase a big swanky penthouse in Fitzrovia in London complete with Bentley underground and ponce around the city drinking in fancy places and flirting with rich divorcees. Coming back to Dublin to visit the mother would be no different to any other time. I wouldn't be driving up in a Ferrari. Sure I might fly in in a private jet but then I'd just take a taxi to the house or maybe a fancy chauffer driven BMW but no curtain twitchers would suspect anything. My dublin flat is in the city centre so I'd pull out of there and buy a nice pied-a-terre around Stephen's Green or somewhere. I'd be completely anonymous...just loaded. I don't do drugs even though I can afford to in my current capacity so an 8 or 9 figure bank balance isn't going to change that. I'm fond of beer so would probably just go on benders in fancier places. I'm probably a bit long in the tooth to being an international playboy so I'd have to settle for pastimes like travelling, photography and try to stay fit because without the routine of work I can easily fall into a sedentary lifestyle. Keep fit and active and eating well and getting plenty of sunshine will ward off the demons of depression and loneliness that can come with suddenly being completely different to your peers.

This Loughrey woman seems to have been a bit nasty what with that whole cricket club business and bullying an employee. When you go from the breadline to being minted like she did you need a lot of advice and counselling to make the adjustment. How the hell can you expect to still live in the same sh1thole one horse town in a council house surrounded by scratchers when you've suddenly 27 mil in the bank. It's not possible.

MSVforever · 10-09-2021 5:16pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117872531#Comment_117872531

100%. Once on the bike I can leave all the issues behind me. Riding a motorbike is one of the best therapies for your mind :)

10-09-2021 5:20pm

Can money buy happiness? No.

But it can buy jet-skis and I've never seen an unhappy person on a jet-ski.

MSVforever · 10-09-2021 5:22pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117872747#Comment_117872747

That's why you shouldn't reveal your win.

jrosen · 10-09-2021 5:29pm

Money affords you choice. So while I dont think money itself can make you happy having it gives you the choice to live your life in a way that does make you happy.

10-09-2021 5:34pm

If someone's unhappiness is caused by being broke/in debt, yes. And all they need is to be no longer struggling, not rich.

Stress and long hours is causing me to look for a job with fewer hours, which would obviously mean less money, but I've done the sums and I'd still be comfortable.

Can wealth buy happiness? Depends on the person I suppose/how long they've been wealthy.

BorneTobyWilde · 10-09-2021 6:01pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117873446#Comment_117873446

It's probably possible to hide a lotto win, as it's really not that large amount usually. But hard to hide a euro millions win.

Itssoeasy · 10-09-2021 6:36pm

No IMO it doesn’t. Yes, money can bring you peace of mind and relief from the many stresses of everyday life, but money doesn’t help you with two very important things, which are health and happiness. As is often said “ your health is your wealth” because being ill trumps any wealth.

Capt'n Midnight · 10-09-2021 6:51pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117839211#Comment_117839211

Turns out that more money does bring more happiness. They use to think it plateaued at $75,000 a year.

But it's diminishing returns once your have enough to remove the worries for you, your family and friends. At that stage money brings freedom.

A lot of us are going to be very unhappy at the increased taxes to pay for the pandemic.

The world’s billionaires have a collective net worth of $13.5 trillion ―up from $8 trillion at the beginning of the pandemic, a gain of nearly 69 percent. That's enough to give the poorest 5.4 billion people on the planet $1,000 each, life changing money as even the richest of those are on $10 a day. Half of humanity is living on less than $5.50 a day

If we left Jeff Bezos with billions of dollars more than Branson we could take take everyone worldwide out of extreme poverty for a year. Or if we took all their money and gave it to Jeff he still wouldn't have enough. Money doesn't bring happiness to those who won't ever have enough.

B.A._Baracus · 10-09-2021 7:20pm

To quote Only Fools and Horses...

Grandad: Money isn't everything Del Boy..

Del: well, yeah, but it takes the Sting out of being poor....

0ph0rce0 · 10-09-2021 7:43pm

The god honest truth, I have a mate that has 40 - 50 + million after selling a successful company. Maybe 2-3 years ago. Married has kids has everything they could ask for. Anytime we're out, the first thing always said is "I'm miserable" we try not to go on about it but the chap hates everything about his life. It's mad really.

It's also mad thinking even if some people had 0.1 % of it could bring some happiness and get them out of a hole.

Mad_maxx · 11-09-2021 11:47am

No ,because it can't change the past

Of course if someone is happy already, more money will probably increase their happiness

xhomelezz · 11-09-2021 12:11pm

Money probably can't buy happiness, but nice sum would make my live a lot easier.

bnt · 11-09-2021 3:55pm

Money can't buy happiness, but it can buy out many causes of unhappiness. What's left after that are the things that money can't fix.

B.A._Baracus · 11-09-2021 4:16pm

I say being minted would make you fairly happy.

No need to worry about money. No need to save for anything. Anything you want you get. Like what are most of us going to do tonight? Maybe have a few beers, maybe a takeaway? If you're rich you can just fire up the private plane and go anywhere. No Chinese chicken balls for you. You can sip an overly priced wine off the Spanish coast.

Motivator · 11-09-2021 4:23pm

I know a couple who sold a company for around £40m in 2004. They had worked their arses off for years to get the company established and never enjoyed themselves. They sold out when they were mid 40s and kicked back and enjoyed life. Had the absolute best of everything - built a 10,000sqf house, apartment in Marbella, the best of cars, husband bought racehorses etc.

Long story short he blew the whole lot by 2016. Bad investments were doubled down on and everything unravelled. He had some money stashed but not enough and they have the house left but they’re currently trying to offload it.

In the pub recently the wife was asked if the pandemic has made them appreciate their health and to be fair she was fairly quick to come back with the line that when they had the money the pandemic wouldn’t have bothered them. They had as she called it “fück you money” and didn’t have a car in the world and got to do and see things that you can’t do without money. They’re unhappy people now because that lifestyle is gone and they were the architects of their own downfall. Long story short, absolutely money can make you happy. Money makes the world go round.

Strumms · 11-09-2021 5:10pm

Money doesn’t bring misery or happiness.... what you do with can bring either....your choices with money can enable both.

a cousin of mine in the US is minted, like seriously so from his work.. he’s a lawyer, he’s 61 and semi retired, he keeps as part of his retirement deal, one mid size corporate client, owned by a friend and is for something to do...he owns a nice mansion in New York and has an apartment in Florida...

hes generous but responsible, he thought about building a home gym but decided to just join one instead, didn’t want to just be stuck at home, goes to an Irish bar to watch the premier league, coaches an underage soccer team...

he spends money on savage holidays, a new car, a Mercedes most years,

money buys security....health, wellbeing and peace of mind... happiness

11-09-2021 11:05pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117873752#Comment_117873752

Better off having poor health and enough money (I don't mean being rich) than having poor health and also struggling financially though.

But very good point by Mad Maxx I think - wealth doesn't change the past for those who have experienced trauma. It does pay for therapy however - and you could leave a stressful job, do things you could otherwise only dream of.

In short, the same problems could be faced by a poor person or a well-off person, but the poor person has more things to worry about due to their financial situation, and fewer possibilities in life.

Money may not buy total happiness but it buys some comfort at least.

Potential-Monke · 12-09-2021 7:49am

I really wish RTE would do a crap documentary where they got some billionaire to give €100 million to some random lad and record what happens. I volunteer. It will make for terrible viewing.

I don't know if it would buy happiness, but I really want to find out. I'm not terribly unhappy, but I can't say I'm happy. And the root of most of my problems is money. So yes, money can clear all my debt and let my buy things that make me happy, or brings happiness to me in other ways, then the saying is BS. And I'd love to know what too much is... I don't think there's such a thing. But I would never have the drive to become a billionaire, i'd be over the moon with a lotto jackpot. If you see a brand new AMG GT driving around Limerick at any stage, I've won the lotto. Call me over, I'll tell ya how happy I am.

riclad · 12-09-2021 9:58pm

Rich people tend to be more healthy, they don,t wait 12 months to see a consultant. they dont worry about paying bills .rich people live in certain area,s , with big gardens .Most hollywood stars have a team of specialists, dieticans ,fitness trainers ,private doctors.the trick with investments is investment in a wide range of products, sectors, stocks,bitcoin, low risk funds .if banks or tech stocks fall, you,ll still have most of your investments.

i don,t think being a millionaire is a big deal when an ordinary house is now 400k.

15-09-2021 4:53pm

"The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money.

Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles.

But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that'd still be keeping his feet dry in ten years' time, while the poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.

This was the Captain Samuel Vimes 'Boots' theory of socioeconomic unfairness."

RIP Terry Pratchett

neris · 15-09-2021 5:04pm

Rather be looking at it then looking for it. It mightnt give happiness but can make life more comfortable and pleasurable

Tell me how · 15-09-2021 5:05pm

Kanye West was close to being right on one thing. 'Having money isn't everything, not having it is'

Easy to see why it would be very difficult for it to make you genuinely happy. It could buy you the best healthcare, but that doesn't guarantee full health. If you struggle in personal relationships, you being rich is unlikely to bring the type of people around you who will be good for you if they were avoiding you in the first place. Not having to work is no guarantee of happiness. A lot of people need the routine and forced social interaction of work.

Think money will only help resolve the issues you currently have in which money is the problem, not being able to afford to buy a house and having to rent or not being able to afford to rent and being homeless, not being able to afford a car, a holiday, education etc etc. But if this is the case, having just enough money to resolve that issue is probably best rather than having so much that that itself becomes an issue.

Be very easy to see how if someone has lived their life in a semi-detached house in close knit neighborhood and they move to an isolated property in a different location that there could be any number of issues which go along with that which become stressful. It's not guaranteed to be unpleasant, but it is not guaranteed to be happy either.

lisasimpson · 18-09-2021 4:40am

Monry up to a certain point can make you happy but not 100%

That why ive always said lotto plus win would be enough for me. Would set you up comfortably possibly pay your mortgage off but you would still need to work all be in a less stressful job with more family time.

18-09-2021 6:55pm

Not happiness, but being financially comfortable does help your wellbeing. You are not penny pinching when it comes to food, you can enjoy eating out, going to the cinema with ease. You can plan for your future to a certain extent. You do not worry that you'll be a burden on others or seen to be taking advantage of others.

Hego Damask · 18-09-2021 7:43pm

Only people who don't have financial issues could come out with that tripe "Money doesn't bring you happiness" -- It **** does!!!

At least it will maximise your chances of being happy,

18-09-2021 8:04pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117909062#Comment_117909062

So true, I doubt John Lennon would have wrote, 'imagine there's no money', whilst working a low income job, and worrying that his landlord would kick him out 🤣

Does money buy happiness?

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