Material wealth brings happiness, but that happiness is temporary. When people have money in their wallets they go shopping immediately. But after a few days the feeling they had when shopping (pleasure, excitement, enjoyment) begins to fade.
Soon after you buy something and attach yourself to it, pleasure, enjoyment, and excitement begin to diminish. So you get a new craving for shopping so you can enjoy the same feeling again. The cycle constantly turns in a circle.
You are trying to buy happiness. Money can make you happy but it’s all temporary. You have no pleasure that will last long.
Buying stuff won’t work …
There is a way to stop a cycle that temporarily makes us happy, says a study conducted at Cornell University. Gilovich, a professor of psychology, says people are just as happy when traveling or buying anything they want. According to him, happiness that is not fulfilled when we buy something decreases and disappears over time. But the memories of a trip have long been in our heads along with the hormones of happiness.
Thomas Gilovich, a professor of psychology at the university, found that people experience the same amount of happiness when they make the purchase they want and when they travel. And here’s the most important part, as the happiness you get from your purchase decreases over time, memories of your journey still linger with hormones of happiness.
Why is that? According to Professor Thomas Gilovich, adaptation is an enemy of happiness. You buy something and it makes you happy in the short run. That happiness will soon be gone and you will feel nothing more.
What’s the secret to long-term, sustainable happiness?
The secret is in the experience.
Buying new things adds to the novelty of your life, but it lacks the key ingredient for long-term and sustainable happiness.
According to research from the University, your experience is more important and valuable than the material possessions you own. Journeys make you more experienced and make you who you are.
The richest and most cherished memories you have are not from what you bought. Those memories are from the experience you have had in life.
Happiness stems from relationships
By traveling you will be able to get to know new places and new cultures. Everything around you is richer.
Robert Waldinger explains that the results of a study done at Cornell University showed that some people who are very attached to family, friends and other people were the healthiest and happiest. In doing so, your relationship with the people who make you happy should be strengthened and maintained. Experiences in life are worth more than any material thing you buy. And some of the most important experiences in life, according to Waldinger, are the experiences gained through travel. Traveling helps you to get closer and feel different with your family and close friends.
Other things that can bring you lasting happiness
Practicing extreme sports (though dangerous for those who don’t know), attending events, learning new things will bring you happiness and joy in your daily life. The new car that you want one day will become old. But still the memories you create by doing something are a real and lasting source of happiness. From time to time, you will share your experiences with your friends, partner, family, remember the memories that still make you happy and satisfied.
You should strive to gain as many experiences as possible, to invest in them. So your happiness and pleasure will last long.
Source: dailyhealthpost.com