Arthur C. Brooks explains how money actually buys happiness: experiences with loved ones, buying time for meaningful work, giving to causes you care about, and saving for security. Material stuff doesn't work. Neither does borrowing.
There is a narrative that money doesn't bring you happiness. Correct. I've interviewed thousands of people. I would say it can bring you happiness. I know rich people who are really happy. Mm-hmm. And I know very poor people who are really happy. It often has little to do with actual money. But the ones who have money who are happy say, it just bought me security not to have to worry about things that having no money made me worry about.
Yeah, that's correct. Now, money does eliminate sources of unhappiness. And if negative emotionality is getting in your way because of you don't meet your caloric needs, you can't pay your rent, your kids can't go to the doctor, when you eliminate that, you eliminate those sources of unhappiness and your life is better. And you conclude, "I got happier." At one point I was so poor, I was a musician, I couldn't go to the dentist. And then I had enough money at 25 to go to the dentist and I filled 12 cavities and I concluded that money bought happiness. But the point is that I made the wrong conclusion. I was eliminating unhappiness and I thought it brought me happiness. That's wrong. Now, when you do have money, there are ways that you can buy happiness. And your rich friends were happier doing these following things. You don't get happiness by buying stuff. You get happiness by buying experiences and having those experiences with the people that you love. That brings real joy. Or buying time and using that time in a way that's really productive, not scrolling Instagram for Pete's sake. Giving the money away to causes that you care about brings happiness. Saving for the future brings happiness because that's future success, whereas borrowing money ruins your happiness.
