They conclude, “Despite the weak relation between income and global life satisfaction or experienced happiness, many people are highly motivated to increase their income. In some cases, this focusing illusion may lead to a misallocation of time, from accepting lengthy commutes (which are among the worst moments of the day) to sacrificing time spent socializing (which are among the best moments of the day).
An emphasis on the role of attention helps to explain both why many people seek high income--because their predictions exaggerate the increase in happiness due to the focusing illusion--and why the long-term effect of income gains become relatively small, because attention eventually shifts to less novel aspects of daily life.”
And, I have to say, I've heard money can't buy you love, either. So, we just have to focus on the right things, right?
Wrong again, Sparky. You can try all you like, but the problem is you won't be able to sustain it. Physiologically it is impossible because of the way we adapt to our circumstances, whatever those circumstances happen to be. Also known as "habituation," we simply get used to our circumstances so that what gives us pleasure today becomes ordinary and loses its luster tomorrow. This is the same premise behind double scent plug in air fresheners. Just when your nose gets used to one scent and stops noticing it, a second scent takes its place, grabbing our renewed attention.
Now that I've thoroughly depressed you, let me give you some hope.
Whole hosts of people have been solving this problem all through the ages, and if you sincerely are motivated to crack the nut for yourself, it is possible. It's not easy because you are continually targeted by marketing geniuses. Let's face it, the economy is fueled by keeping you a little bit unhappy. Still, happiness is possible.
The Little Prince knew it. The Grinch figured it out. Tiny Tim knew how to roll. And many a human being, often coming from an Eastern spiritual tradition, but not exclusively, has been talking about this for eons.
When considering happiness, you have to understand the difference between pleasure and joy. Essentially, pleasure is satisfaction of the senses. As we already discussed, senses are fickle and they don't stay satisfied by any one thing for very long. They can't, they won't, and they never will. An endless quest to change this fact of our physiology is a fool's errand.
Article comments
1 - Baronius
Laura, do you think many people really confuse wealth (or belongings) and happiness? I always hear that, but no one I know thinks that way. Some people collect a particular item, but otherwise, items are viewed as conveniences.
Your salary example confirms it. People would rather have a sense of accomplishment than more money. Pay is a barometer of job performance in the real world, so people definitely want that next raise. I just don't think it's necessarily for the money (it could be for the financial cushion I guess).
I suspect there's a bad assumption behind your theory. People have more things every year, both personally and en masse. People idealize their youths, and feel like every year is busier, more expensive, less satisfyiing. I don't think that fact one is linked to fact two. Fact two can be explained by the universal phenomenon of idle complaining.
2 - Laura Young
Hi Baronius, You know, I'll agree with you that asking people if they think money will make them happier almost never gets a 'yes' response. On the other hand, I can't say that I've had anyone ever site money as a measure of accomplishment either. You do hit an interesting issue here, though.
There may well be more than one definition of happiness interwoven here, or maybe it's a matter of focus on whose happiness we're trying to achieve. In the Chicago area, I see a lot of people striving incredibly hard for money and insanely huge houses, huge boats, second homes, lavish weddings for children, fine food and wines, and so forth sometimes because they are trying to make others (spouse, kids, guests) happy.
While we may say 'no, I don't think money will make me happy' on one hand, we may simultaneously feeling obligated to pursue the money and materials we hope will fulfill the desires of others in an attempt to make/keep them happy.
For example, any children's playroom I walk into these days is absolutely mind-blowing with the sheer mass of toys and games and costumes (not just for Halloween anymore!) and such. Aren't we equating "stuff" with happiness for young people? Or maybe we're just appeasing their demands hoping to end their (and our) suffering due to unmet desires.
Interesting line of thought. Thanks for the comment!
3 - Chris Gribble
What a great comment on the subject of happiness. I love Victor Frankl's observation that "happiness is never achieved as an end in itself. Its always the product of giving yourself to a worth cause or by giving yourself to another in love".
It follows on from the observation that you noted, "we may not know what makes us happy as much as we'd like to think we do, and what we focus on at any given time may lead us to make some spotty conclusions about ourselves."
Just shows that all that money spent on self help is really pursuing the quest from the wrong space. Perhaps the first book we should read is how to help others and then we may start experiencing happiness as a natural by product?
4 - Laura Young
"Perhaps the first book we should read is how to help others and then we may start experiencing happiness as a natural by product?"
I love this, Chris. Maybe the whole "self help" movement has a fundamental flaw?
5 - ezeofor ifesinachi
happiness is that,that sneeks in and out of the door that you don`t know you left open while joy is that,that enters the door which you opened and watches over it day and night that one couldn`t close without your consent
6 - Gary Phelan
Helping others will not bring you happiness. Well, not if you rely on the false assumption in a comment here that as long as you help others it will bring you happiness. As mentioned in this article, 'It is the struggle to repeat and perpetuate pleasure, which turns it into pain', even the pleasureable act of helping others. Because you depend on it for pleasure and happiness. So yes en'joy' a moment of helping another, but don't expect repeating any act of pleasure will perpetuate and guarantee your happiness.