Can Money Buy Happiness?

Back when I was in school we were told to write quotes every day on the blackboard. I would really get excited and patiently wait for my turn. Till then I would diligently search for numerous quotes. One such quote that grabbed my attention read like this:-

“ Money can buy you a bed, but not sleep”

“ Money can buy you food, but not hunger”

“ Money can buy you clothes, but not fitness”

“ Money can buy you medicines, but not health”

“Money can buy you books, but not knowledge”

Etc etc. 

You catch my drift, right! My tiny little brain couldn’t comprehend it back then! But I found it very fascinating and I did write it on the blackboard for which I was applauded, thus becoming the teacher’s pet! 

Isn’t it funny that we all understand this from a theoretical level but we still believe that once we have enough money only then can we have all of the above! 

Be it beauty, intelligence, attention, name, fame, sex, love, respect, recognition, honour, dignity, power etc. You name it and money can get you that! And there’s no human on planet earth who is immune to the charms of money! 

We believe that money is the antidote to our misery. It is a shortcut to our happiness. Or whatever it is that we are wanting to achieve in our lives. This is definitely true to some extent but is also debatable at the same time. So what is it? 

Can money buy or not buy happiness? Or the x,y, z thing which we so badly want. And even if we somehow do manage to get it is it a sure shot way to put an end to all the worries of our life? 

Money is just a resource. A very powerful one especially in today’s world. But it doesn’t mean that you cannot have enough of it. In fact, it is a very smart move to have it in Abundance! Money can buy you all the things in the world but can never fill the void within. 

The idea that once we have enough money to be or do something is what causes us suffering. But it is not entirely our fault, to begin with.

We live in a world which is purely transactional. And where money is highly worshipped. As we start getting older we begin to realize that people value us based on that very thing. Our sense of worth is determined by what we have to offer to others, predominantly money. 

Ever since childhood, we are made to believe we need to achieve something in order to be loved hence valued.

We get the love and attention of our parents when we behave a certain way. So we start doing that very thing in order to get love and approval from our parents. But if we do the opposite we do not get it.

If we get good grades we are loved and appreciated, but if we flunk the test we are punished or shamed. 

Our self-concept is developed based on how we see value in ourselves and what we have of value to offer the other person. 

E.g. Harry is very good at maths. But he is shy and introverted. He has no friends. He scored full marks on the maths test and was praised by the teacher. Whereas Lyla barely passed it. Lyla is a bubbly chirpy girl. She thought of taking harry’s help to get good grades in maths. She started taking tuition from harry. And soon many of Lyla’s friends also joined. Harry is on cloud nine. He not only became popular but also made many friends. He soon realized that his value is based on how valuable he is to other people. That is how his self-concept was determined. 

What harry really wanted was friendship but nobody was wanting to be friends with him. Only when others found out he was good in maths and could be of value to them did they happily agree to become friends. Though nobody can be called “selfish” in this example because everything that happened, was on a subconscious level. 

In the same way, each one of us learns it in different ways. It is sad but true. We basically get the message that we will be valued only when we have something to offer. 

Though as human beings we want to be valued, we don’t want to feel used or as if our value depends only on whether we have something of value to offer to the other person. And every person holds immense value. 

When we are not valued, accepted, or validated for who we really are, our confidence diminishes. Our self-concept is based on those very things. And as we grow up to become adults that message is already imprinted in our subconscious. But we still believe that message which we received in childhood by our parents or peers. Especially parents. We think that something is seriously wrong with us that is why we are not loved for who we are.

As money is the ultimate symbol of value so we run after it. But what we are wanting is something else. As I mentioned in the case of Harry. But there is an upper cap when it comes to deriving happiness from money. It can surely buy you everything that is tangible also non-tangible things many times. Money provides you comfort, convenience, and security. But it can never be a substitute for human connection. 

Money is such a versatile tool. It can give you what you want whenever you want. 

I kind of am humming Ariana Grande’s song, 

I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it!

I really like the song! But it is so very true. Isn’t it? 

What we need to be aware is of the fact that it is the experience of having a specific thing or feeling a certain way that we are wanting to experience which we think we will be able to achieve when we have enough money.

I.e If we want to feel relaxed, money can buy us a vacation or you could go to a spa. 

But if you don’t have something appropriate to wear for a party in that case money can buy you a dress. 

You see in both the examples money is fulfilling a need. One is a mental need and the other is a physical need. 

But the opposite is also true. 

If you’re having a really bad day, say you just broke up with your lover and you received an insane amount of money the very same day. Would you still be happy? Though you may be grateful but not happy. Because no amount of money can heal a broken heart! So it is safe to say that, 

Money cannot buy you happiness!

Many believe that money is the cause of all evil. It is untrue. But the lack of money is. This negative belief that we have towards money is what keeps us from having enough of it. 

Tomorrow if money was replaced by say crystals. Then would you still think the same in terms of “money” being evil? 

I can literally write essays after essays on how this stupid belief about money has corrupted mankind. And is making our life miserable. But I’d like to stop here. 

We live in a capitalist society. People are valued according to the amount of money they make. Honestly, it is very cruel. It is de-human to look at someone in terms of the value they offer which totally depends upon the needs and wants of the person judging it. Which has nothing to do with that person in the first place, to begin with. It is as if their entire worth is dependent upon how resourceful they are to us! 

The sad thing is many of us don’t even realize that we are doing this. 

We tend to value things more than people! 

So is the power of money. Nobody can deny it. 

But out of all the things money can buy there are plenty lot of things that money can never even compete with. 

And those are feelings such as peace, true love, happiness, loyalty and respect. For which all the wealth of the world will run short if you measure it in terms of monetary value. All the chaos that has ever happened is happening and will happen is to achieve those very things! Money is just used as bait to get it!