Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

How much money do people need to be happy?

qz.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

31–40 of 273 posts

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#31

Post by jadedhacker »

This is a little higher than I remember from a few years ago, but inflation is also a thing.

Many will quip that money doesn't buy happiness, but it certainly helps or some variant of this pithy phrase. Here's the real interpretation of these results: people need their fundamental goods satisfied, beyond that all you can buy are toys.

Fundamental needs are housing, food, education, a social life, a sense of purpose, a sense of control, and healthcare. Notice that nowhere in this is money mentioned. That means that society can in theory be organized around principles of universally delivering these foundational goods and values without needing to produce toys for the rich and we might all be happier for it.

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#32

Post by thedirt0115 »

I feel like this is basic economics... money, like most things, has diminishing marginal utility.

From a common sense standpoint, it's not so much that having money makes you happy, but having to worry about money definitely can make you unhappy.

Probably bad analogy: Eating a meal that I'd rate 9/10 doesn't make me much happier than a meal that's 8/10, but having to worry about whether I'm going to be able to eat today at all would definitely make me sad.

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#33

Post by vinceguidry »

I think people vastly underestimate the happiness potential that convenience offers. Time is our scarcest asset, and wasting it is extremely distressing. Stress is a big factor in perceived happiness. So yeah, spending money to save time can have a large impact on how happy you are.

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#34

Post by Barrin92 »

leggomylibro wrote: post #28
cortesoft wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There might be a fine line there; humans need a sense of purpose, and for many people, purpose is tied up in our job. If you no longer have to work, and you choose not to work because your current job isn't ideal, it can be hard to get the motivation to search for a new job. At the same time, without work, it can be hard to find purpose. So you might be stuck in a situation where you aren't working and struggling to…

That seems like a cultural thing, though - many Western cultures wrap up personal identity in job description, but there's nothing biological to stop people from just laying out a purpose for themselves and pursuing it. There are plenty of financial reasons, but isn't that what we're talking about? If you have enough money that you don't have to work for the rest of your life, you probably have enough money that you…

>That seems like a cultural thing, though - there's nothing biological to stop people from laying out a purpose for themselves and pursuing it.

Purpose without existential risk of failure is not usually perceived as genuine.

If you have enough money and only put a fraction of it to use, you might create things, but you're never really risking anything. I'd wager more people join the military for purpose than the local paintball team, not despite but because the former really puts your life at risk.

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#36

Post by GFischer »

cortesoft wrote: post #23
Nition wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suspect there is another level above that at financial independence, where you have enough wealth that you don't have to work. Where you can lose the fear of losing your job, or go off and work on what you want even if it doesn't make much or any money.

There might be a fine line there; humans need a sense of purpose, and for many people, purpose is tied up in our job. If you no longer have to work, and you choose not to work because your current job isn't ideal, it can be hard to get the motivation to search for a new job. At the same time, without work, it can be hard to find purpose. So you might be stuck in a situation where you aren't working and struggling to…

Indeed, after a point, working is not motivated by wealth - I know several cases of people that are wealthy and don't NEED to work, but they're in high-power positions and they don't want to leave that.

One of them was the president of an insurance company and he was ousted in a Machiavellian political maneuver, because he fully expected to hold that position until his health failed him or he died at the post.

You can see it in the current crop of 80-year old politicians in my country. One of them wants to go up for re-election and he would be in power until he was 90 years old...

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#37

Post by jmelloy »

howeyc wrote: post #17

Kind of makes sense to me, once you get to a point where you're set. That is you can easily afford the main things (housing, food), plus the extras (electronics, vacations, hobbies) you need a much larger income to "move the needle" so to speak. You still need to work 40 hours a week or whatever, and only get X weeks of vacation. Having a 180K salary instead of 150K doesn't change any of these obligations, or change…

There is also a huge difference between $150k with no/manageable debt, and $150k with a lot of debt. Some people can't figure out how to budget even with a high income. "I deserve this, I make good money/work hard/whatever" is a dangerous statement.

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#38

Post by frgtpsswrdlame »

derekp7 wrote: post #4

Is this net income (after taxes, and possibly after 401k [or equivalent] savings)? I would say that having no debt, or at least having manageable debt, along with knowing you are saving enough for retirement, and making enough that you don't have to second-guess if you can afford every purchase you make, is the real cutoff. For example, if you don't have mortgage debt then you are probably renting. So I consider mort…

>Is this net income (after taxes, and possibly after 401k [or equivalent] savings)?

No, it's before tax income.

Income Variables. Participants were asked to report monthly household income rather than yearly income to facilitate responding. Respondents were asked the question, “What is your total monthly household income in [local currency], before taxes? Please include income from wages and salaries, remittances from family members living elsewhere, farming, and all other sources.” Households were defined as a person’s home that had its own cooking facilities, which could have been anything ranging from a one-room flat to a single house.

From the study's supplementary information: https://static-content.springer.com/esm/art%3A10.1038%2Fs415...

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#39

Post by tasuki »

howeyc wrote: post #17

Kind of makes sense to me, once you get to a point where you're set. That is you can easily afford the main things (housing, food), plus the extras (electronics, vacations, hobbies) you need a much larger income to "move the needle" so to speak. You still need to work 40 hours a week or whatever, and only get X weeks of vacation. Having a 180K salary instead of 150K doesn't change any of these obligations, or change…

Agree with most of your points!

Just one thing: you don't need a "buy/rent a jet" income to not have to commute to work daily. Retiring early appears to be surprisingly easy with decent income and good spending habits. Taking a year or two off even more so. Eg with the 80k (the more expensive car you mentioned), you can live handsomely for 4+ years in South-East Asia or Eastern Europe.

Re: How much money do people need to be happy?

#40

Post by Francute »

Does anyone think this may be related to the fact that you don't have a hard goal to seek for the money you are working?

For example; I want a new PC, so I work for 6 months working and thinking on that new pc. Then finally, when I have enough money to buy it and do it, I love it. The effort that cost me gives it an extra value to me. Exactly like when you worked as a kid for the game you really wanted to have. Didn't matter if the game ended being horrible, for you that game was special, and also you could continue playing it after some years with nostalgia feelings.

If I have enough money, this effort is allmost zero. At the moment i get a new need i could satisfy it.

Of course, this is just another hypothesis, and could explain why some people says aren't happier with more money, probably they want something harder to get and still achievable with money/work.

Post reply on HN