Everyone seems to think that having more money will make them happier. Clearly,
everyone needs a sufficient amount of money for food, shelter, health care, education of
their children and so on, but do they need to be rich to be happy?
To the contrary, Sophocles, the Greek philosopher warned of the perils of money: “Of
evils current upon earth, the worst is money. Money ‘tis that sacks cities, and drives
men forth from hearth and home; wraps and seduces native innocence, and breeds a
habit of dishonesty.”
In his book Your Money and Your Brain (Simon and Schuster, 2007) Jason Zweig, writer
for Money Magazine, quoted the results of a survey of 800 people with a net worth of at
least $500,000: 19% agreed with the statement that “Having enough money is a
constant worry in my life.” Zweig went on to say that among those worth at least $10
million, 33% still worried about money. He stated: “Somehow, as wealth grows, worry
grows even faster.” Fewer than half of those with a net worth of $10 million felt that as
they accumulated more money they became happier.
Working people always want a raise but studies show that the satisfaction we get from a
raise is very short lived. After all, in most cases people feel they deserve more than
they are being paid. Therefore, when they finally get a raise they often still have a
feeling that they’ve been short-changed, since raises are seldom, if ever, retroactive.
One of our favorite columnists, Jonathan Clements, just recently decided to leave the
Wall Street Journal. In his final article, he focused on the reason people save and
invest. He says in his article: “You save now so you can spend later.” He goes on to
say: “People dream of endless leisure and bountiful possessions. Unfortunately, after a
few months, endless leisure seems like endless tedium.” And, people quickly tire of the
material things that money can buy. Jonathan goes on to say: “The ’rich life’ of popular
imagination is no great shakes.”
So what does money do for you? Clements points to what he believes are three key
benefits. The first is that if you have money you don’t have to worry about it. The
second is that money can make it possible for you to pursue your passions. And the
third is that having money allows you to spend more time with friends and family.
What is somewhat ironic (and Clements points this out), is that the second and third
benefit of having money don’t really require money to achieve. As we pointed out in our
past article titled “Rethinking Retirement”, if we pursue a profession that we truly love,
then how much we make is less of a concern. If we truly love what we do, we can
continue to work beyond the common retirement age of 62 to 65. Doing so reduces the
amount of money we will need for retirement by reducing the number of years in
retirement and at the same time increasing the amount we will receive from Social
Security. With less stress in our work life and less need to work long hours, we can
spend more time with friends and family.
Regardless of the evidence that there’s more to happiness than being rich. People will
still continue to be slaves of the mighty dollar. Perhaps Sylvia Porter, famed economist
and journalist (1913 - 1991), summed up best the dichotomy of views about money:
“Money never remains just coins and pieces of paper. Money can be translated into the
beauty of living, a support of misfortune, an education, or future security. It can also be
translated into a source of bitterness.”
David C. Patterson, CFP® and Erin Patterson, CFP® are the owners of Patterson Advisors, LLC, a fee-
for-service-only financial advisory firm. Patterson Advisors, LLC is a Registered Investment Advisor,
registered with the State of Michigan, helping clients in Waterford, Clarkston and Royal Oak, Michigan
as well as other Oakland County, Michigan communities . Visit www.pattersonadvisorsllc.com for more
information or call 248-674-2108.
Published in the Oakland Insider, April, 2008, retitled: "Happiness Isn't All About
Money"
Happiness Requires More Than Money
By David Patterson and Erin Preston (formerly Patterson)