Many people want to be rich and famous. As humans, we think this approach can bring us happiness and fulfillment. It seems true… until we don’t achieve it.
After the whole trip, we wake up with the same happiness (or a little less because all this overwhelms us).
So… how to be happy, and why is happiness more important than money?
Be yourself. Be happy. It’s not all about money.
You’ve probably heard numerous times that people you regularly watch, like celebrities, artists, or famous athletes, earn big money. They have everything they want and lead the lives they’ve dreamed of.
That’s great, but you don’t have to follow them.
You can be yourself. If you’re happy with the minimum salary – that’s perfect. It’s completely normal.
Once, when I was listening to Gary Vaynerchuk’s podcast, they mentioned that the most happy people earn less than $100,000/year.
Why?
The reason is straightforward. They don’t have such exhausting responsibilities at work and outside of it.
People who earn a minimum average salary or a little more have passions, hobbies, and time to meet with friends. They may not sleep at the best hotels in the world and may not travel 5 – 10 times yearly, but they have really fun in life.
Some of them earn their whole salaries from their passions, and this can be the happiest group of people in the world.
Some reasons why happiness is more important than money.
Money is essential to meet your elementary needs, such as life comfort and security. But if you achieve it, money won’t give you more happiness.
The change from $0 to $5,000 monthly will be the most significant change in your life. Additionally, jumping from $5,000 to $10,000 will be the second fundamental transformation, but not the same as the first (a little less satisfying).
However, if we talk about $10,000 to $30,000 monthly… our happiness won’t be better even at 1%. It’s all about our business responsibilities. We can go on vacation more often, but also we have more stress.
We sleep at the best hotels… but we also did so when we earned $10,000 monthly.
So, if you exceed a certain earning threshold, you probably won’t be happier than people who earn $5,000 to $10,000 monthly.
If you want to be a truly happy person:
- be yourself,
- have passions,
- enjoy hobbies,
- meet with your friends,
- take care of your relationship.
And… don’t define yourself by money.
“I think everybody should get rich and famous and have everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that that’s not the answer.” – Jim Carrey, December 2005, Quote Investigator.
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