Side Effects of Having More Money (Than Necessary)
It makes you lose your commonsense
“If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.” ~ Dorothy Parker
A few years ago, my friend David and I worked in the same newspaper. He was a trainee reporter working in the online section while I was an executive in the administration department. In our free time, we often go to the café of our office building and had long discussions about jobs, life, happiness, money, career, and more.
David would share how much unhappy he was in his position. Less money, no excitement in the work, dull office hours, etc. He told me that he wanted a job that pays more.
I never found David as a complete materialistic man. Because he would often show interest in some philosophical questions; what’s the meaning of life, what he should do with it, and some existential questions that bother everyone at some points of their life.
We would talk for hours — sometimes even outside the office sitting in a coffee shop or restaurant.
Though David was torn between so many things and thoughts, he was ambitious (he still is). So, he finally concluded that a high-paying job would end all his depression about life and living. Because only then will he get more freedom, confidence, and most of all, mental peace.
I would say that David was fortunate. Because within the next six months, he managed to get a new job in an INGO where the payment was six times more than what he was getting then. Undoubtedly, he was very excited.
He joined that INGO as an officer to handle media communication. It’s an organization that works to keep kids away from drugs, especially cigarettes.
Months went by, and life was going pretty smooth. I was happy with my job that time. But it will be a lie if I say that I never wanted a high-paying job like David. The problem was — I am always less ambitious than anyone(and kind of lazy too).
Anyway, one day David came to my office. He needed some documents from the HR department. So, once again, we went to the café to have a chat.
My friend’s look was the same as always — a skinny guy with a simple T-shirt and jeans, unruly hair, and a half-broken smile. I mean, the high-paying job failed to impose changes in his appearance. To be honest, I loved it — as I hate people who show off.
But when we started talking, I noticed my friend was not as happy as he thought he would be.
David was earning more money — far more than he actually needed. And as he had no family, and no responsibilities, he had no obligation to spend his money on something. It is to mention that his parents were still working and his family was quite well-off.
So, David, I don’t know why, started smoking like a chain smoker — most of the time, marijuana. He also developed a drinking habit too. Well, drinking alcohol is prohibited in our country (you need legal permit for drinking) and quite expensive too.
He was spending money like crazy on unnecessary and terrible things — buying whatever his mind wished for as there were no worries about money. He even started to form a small company to earn more money. But he left that after a few months of experimenting.
But was David happy?
He told me that he wasn’t. He said that money made him confident, and now he thinks that he can solve any problems with money. But still — he is not happy.
David is the same unhappy, depressed guy he was a few years ago with a poor-paying job. Now, he just made more money and a few terrible habits that may eventually destroy his health.
Not just David, I know a few other people who shop unnecessarily, drink alcohol like an addict, smoke all the time, — and spend money on stupid things thinking that they are buying happiness.
Well, I’m not saying they should stop getting fancy things and donate their extra money to poor people. That would be too much to ask for. I know that. But at least they shouldn’t misspend their money just because they have it more than necessary.
A Harvard Business Review article writes that making lots of money doesn’t inevitably boost your happiness. Instead, how you spend, save, and think about money shapes how much joy you can get from it.
Also, if you want to be happier, you should spend your money on buying experience(not things), time, and investing in others.
Thank you for reading!
If you want to read more of my writings, don’t forget to check out the following ones.