CHALLENGES
The Worst Advice About Money I Have Ever Heard
Spiritual Warrior
A 20-year old research on the topic was conducted by Dr. Thomas Gilovich, a professor of psychology at Cornell University. It reached a strong and clear-cut result: Do not spend your money on things, because your supply of happiness will quickly fade away.
There are three crucial reasons for this:
- We get used to spending money on new things. What once seemed exciting and new, quickly becomes the standard.
- You will raise your bar, trust me. Soon after the purcahse you will find yourself expecting more and more. There is always a better alternative.
- The buddy problem. Until someone you know buys a better version of the product, let it be a car or any other thing, you are happy with your posession. That often changes rapidly, when you find out all the better features of the better version.
One of the most “lethal” enemies of happiness is ADAPTATION, explained Gilovich. We buy things that make us us happy, and we triumph, but only for a short period of time. The real paradox hides under our assumption that the happiness we get from buying something will continue as long as we will have the item. It seems intuitive that investing in something we can see, hear or touch on a permanent basis delivers a great value. But it’s simply just not true.
All Science research recently discovered that experiences—as fleeting as they may be—provide more lasting happiness than things.
Spiritual Warrior
EXPERIENCES HAVE “MAGICAL” POWERS
They become a part of our identity.
We are not our properties, but we are the collection all the spots we have been, the things we have done, and the accretion of everything we have seen. Our experiences are a larger part of ourselves than our material goods. You can truly enjoy everything you have and you can think that a section of your identity is linked to all those things but no-mather how hard you try, they will stay separated from who you are. In contrast, your experiences really are part of you. We don’t compare experiences in the same way as we compare things.
A Harvard study
When people were asked if they would rather possess a salary that was lower than that of their peers or a low salary that was higher, lots of them cold not decide. When they were asked the same question in regards to the amount of a holiday, most people picked a longer holiday, despite the fact that it was shorter. It’s challenging to quantify the comparative value of any two experiences, which makes them that much more pleasing.
Anticipation issues
Anticipation was also analyzed by Gilovich. He Discovered that expectation of an experience causes enjoyment and excitement, while anticipation of receiving a possession causes impatience. Encounters are gratifying from the very first moments of planning, all the way through to the memories you cherish forever.
Experience me, now!
I am sure it already happened to you, that you have purchased something that wasn’t as cool as you thought it will be? And It’s sitting right there all the time, reminding you of your disappointment. In case your purchase does fulfill your expectations, buyer’s remorse is likely to set in: “Sure, it’s cool, but it probably wasn’t worth that kind of money.” All these “problems” of buying things don’t show up in our minds when it comes to experiences. The very fact that every experience last only for a brief moment of time is part of what makes us value them so much, and that value has a tendency to increase as time passes.
John Keats
At the end…
Think about it. When the end will be close and you will try to remember all of these great moments you have experienced in your life, are you really goin to regret the fact that you had that Iphone 4S, while everyone else have long ago moved to a brand new Iphone 6? I think you won’t even think about that, not even for a second. You will only remember all the crazy, hilarious and most loved memories you have experienced. That short but strong moments of your life, that shaped you.
Don’t try to be famous, try to be happy
Even though we live in a society obsessed with consumption and all the advertising companies try to sell their promise of happiness with their products, we are better off spending our money somewhere else.
Here are 6 reasons why you should spend your money on experiences:
Experiences can’t be turned into numbers
I have already explained a bunch on this topic, however to emphasize. Purchase only the things you need to live your life normally. You need a roof over your head, some quality food to eat and a car to drive around. You need some technology, but that depends on your work and way of life. Before you invest your money into another unimportant thing, remember to ask yourself if there is an experience you could spend your money on.
They will help you define your purpose and passion
Discovering your purpose and passion is one of the best things I have gained from travelling. They don’t need to be all big and extreme and it is best that they are aligned with your life. That simply means that if you enjoy travelling and you believe your purpose of life is build around freedom, you should invest into those kind of experiences.
They show the world through the eyes of a completely different person
I am sure there is no better way to learn about different views on life than traveling. It is the greatest way to embrace and experience different cultures, social norms and customs. When you meet someone with a completely different outlook on the world, it surely changes yours too. You don’t have to go far, start exploring where you are and you will be amazed with the results.
They teach you important lessons for life
One investment in a new experience can result in a much bigger outcome – life lessons that you won’t be able to get anywhere else. Those experiences will teach you how to be patient, how to accept differences, how to organize your day, trip and life. Often you will come across to a specially meaningful experience, which will completely transform your life. So go, start to explore the world right now.
Experiences help you practice your gratitude skill
When you will fill up your world with these meaningful experiences you will start to be happy and gratefull for your existance. One of the main syptoms of depression – deactivation, we can see that the main advice of therapist is to force your activation in life. You have to become actively, physicaly and socialy engaged in life and you will be able to reach happiness. It could be easily correlated with gaining new, meaningful and joyful experiences.
They create long lasting memories
Experiences are often not pleasant at the current moment, because they challenge you to overcome your comfort zone. Climbing to the highest mountain in the world is both physically and mentaly challenging. Accepting a challenge of learning a new instrument or language could be quite hard, but incredibly rewarding to someone who is invests enough time and energy.
To Sum up…
Most of scientific findings today shows us that if you want to seek happiness, you need to invest you time, money and energy into seeking new and meaningful experiences. Sure, you can be happy because you just bought an awesome car or a brand new phone, but that kind of happiness will evaporate quickly.
What are the craziest things you have done so far?
We would love to hear some of your experiences, thoughts and opinions.
Write in the comment below!
Spiritual Warrior
Author
I was always curios. The waves of euphoric exploration on the newly-discovered topics carry me deeper into the ocean of knowledge. And then i start to write. As a psychologist and enterpreneur i developed a critical view of the world which offers unlimited possibilities for improvement. Because there is too much "false" teachings and personal growth guides out there, i decided to build my own knowledge base with science proven information and recent discoveries. I invite you to create it with me. Only with helping each other and spreading love through the Universe, we will all grow and raise our frequency of existence.
