In light of the recent scandals involving exorbitant sums of money – the Bernard Madoff conviction a few months back and now the conviction Anthony Marshall, son of NYC socialite Brook Astor – it occurs to me that neither of these men got the memo on money and happiness. Granted, it’s not a simple relationship. A certain amount of money ensures peace of mind; it is hard to maintain physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing when you are trapped by extreme poverty. And that makes it appealing to extrapolate and conclude that if a person is ungodly wealthy they should be reporting loads of joy as well. Alas, not true.
The research suggests that the relationship between money and happiness is more complicated. For example, a study in 2006 showed that those with incomes over $100,000 were tenser than those who made less than $20,000. The researchers also looked at mood and money, and the surprising result: Those who made more spent 32% of their time in a bad mood: those who made less spent 12% brooding.
Apparently, the more you make, the more time is spent on gruesome and tiresome tasks - driving, commuting, running errands, and working - to support your lifestyle. While Madoff and Marshall were schemin’ and cheatin’, their housekeepers, valets, cooks and manicurists were using their free time for more pleasurable activities. Say, watching a good flick, making love to their sweeties, or going for a walk in the park.
But the problem is that we are still under the illusion that accumulating personal wealth is the answer to accumulating happiness. The result is that the average seeking of happiness is doing what actually doesn’t work – chasing after money instead of spending time with loved ones.
When does money buy happiness?
What are better predictors of happiness?
A person’s temperament (optimists are happier), amount of recuperative sleep, and the number of happy people you surround with matter more than money. Being grateful for the blessings in your life, creating intimacy with your loved ones, finding ways to forgive, and spending time on things you enjoy doing all make a greater impact.
Now Marshall will have plenty of time to think about the millions he swindles from his mother while she was dying of Alzheimer disease. Maybe the courts will have mercy and put him in a cell next to Madoff. Then they can commiserate together.
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All Modern Love Examiner articles ©2009 by Tinamarie Bernard; reposts permitted with link back to original article. All other rights reserved.
Comments
I must concur with your assessment about people with more money being more tense. As a professional massage therapist for the wealthy I must say that the wealthy tend to have far more knots, a greater inability to relax, and tend to talk all the way through their massages. It is sooo sad that they tend to not even be "still" with their mouths for 50 minutes....sad.
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