Can Money Buy Happiness?

    While I was listening to the radio this morning, the radio anchor said, "Money can't buy happiness, but if you spend money on experience, you can increase your happiness." He explained that if you spend a lot of money to buy new things, such as a new car and clothes, it will be enjoyable but is not related to happiness. However, if you spend money on intangible things, such as experiencing a favorite concert and taking a class related to happiness.

    Actually, I am always happy when I go shopping to malls. The reason why I enjoy it is that I like checking out new fashion, so window-shopping is more exciting than spending money on clothing for me. However, this advice was a good opportunity to think again on how to spend money properly and how to increase happiness. When I have free time, I tend to go shopping for fun. However, walking around the beach and watching sports will be unforgettable happy memory. The article of  "Money Can Buy Happiness If You Spent It Right" by Art Markman states, "By looking at the data in more detail, the authors found that these purchases affected people's satisfaction with the area of their lives that were affected by the purchase. People who spent money on experiences related to their social life saw an improvement in their satisfaction with their social life. People who spent money on experiences related to fitness saw an improvement in their satisfaction with their health. These increases in satisfaction with a particular area of their lives also affected people's overall sense of well-being and happiness." For example, for me, having taken ESL classes needed a lot of money in the past four years. I have spent a lot of money on many textbooks and tuition fee, but I have been able to feel confident by gaining my knowledge. It ended up bringing happiness into my life. Spending money for education was obviously worthwhile in my life.

      However, my husband and I are planing on going outlets mall this weekend. We are definitely going there nonetheless because we like window-shopping. Despite of that, I'd like to talk to him how to spend our money and time to increase happiness from now on.