Britney’s Antics Spark the Question: Would $100 Million Make Me Happier?

Science magazine last year on this issue. A couple of their findings:

•    Money does make you happier, if it lifts you out of poverty. However, there are diminishing returns after that. Those with family incomes over $90,000 were nearly twice as likely to report being “very happy” as those with incomes below $20,000. However, there is hardly any difference between those in the highest income group and those in the $50,000 to $89,000 bracket.

•    There are several reasons more money doesn’t make you happier. First, relative income impacts happiness more than actual income. So, if you get promoted at work and move into a fancier neighborhood, your new peers (at work and socially) are as likely to have as much or more than you do. Therefore, you don’t feel any richer and aren’t any happier. Second, people get used to material goods quickly, so the happiness generated by a new car, for instance, is fleeting. Finally, an increase in income doesn’t usually equal a shift in time toward doing more fun stuff. In fact, people with big jobs tend to spend more time working, commuting, and participating in obligatory networking activities.

So money isn’t the answer. I guess Britney could have told us that. Other research I read offers tips on how people can make themselves happier. One is to make changes necessary to reduce a long commute, something that consistently makes people unhappy. Second, spend more time with friends. Finally, take time each day to be grateful for what you have. Maybe even write it down. This ritual will help you focus less on what you want, if only you had just a little more money.

Okay, so (wait, let me grab my journal!) here goes. I am grateful for an income that puts my family above the poverty line, if slightly below Britney’s tax bracket. I am grateful that I can go out to breakfast on Sundays with my family. We like Goldberg’s in Atlanta—not as fancy as the Mondrian Hotel in Los Angeles, where Britney reportedly has been hanging out poolside in a blonde wig, but pretty tasty. And I am grateful for lots of other stuff I won’t bore you with here.