Many of us in the western society try to find happiness in things. We desire the newest technology, designer clothes and all in all we like to spend money. This endless consumption is not actually fulfilling us, what we need id adventure in our lives.
A recent study by psychologist Thomas Gilovich experiences had more powerful effect on humans and boosted happiness even more than any material thing. So next time you want to make yourself feel better, do not bother to look into the shops, but buy plane tickets, concert tickets or go to a museum. These emotion and memories from the experiences will stick with you much longer than any effect of a material thing would.
The study reported that experiences can strengthen social bonds between people, which is quite logical if you think about it. Being in the same situation and experiencing the same things actually makes people closer and gives them something to share. It was also confirmed, that experiences form a greater part of self-identity than material things.
This means that people like to define themselves through travels and things they have seen and lived through. In the end they do not care that much about what they own. The study showed that people evaluate experiences more than things and that the value of experiences gets higher in time, but the value of things decreases.
The study also discovered that as humans grow and change and evolve, the desire and needs change with them. We learn to adapt quickly with new things and they lose their value fast, because we are simply not impressed anymore. But this does not happen with experiences, as mentioned above, their value only increases over time – the memories, emotions and bonds you remember when you think about an experience, are priceless.
So we cannot say that money does not make happy. We all want to feel safe and having some financial insurance will definitely help along. But money only makes one happy to a certain point, but money cannot fill the soul with happiness. The experiences you decide to spend money on, will shape you and you will identify yourself through them, not through material things.
So next time you want to spend money on something decide carefully what is worth your money. Things will only make you happy for a short period of time, but investing in experiences can actually strengthen your bond with other people and give you unforgettable life-long memories.
