Wealth in happiness By Ranbir Singh Dhatt
What role does wealth play in happiness? We can approach this from two angles. One, happiness related to material belongings. Most people in this world today believe that being happy can be in proportion to your economic power. The amount you can spend on chips a week without facing any loss whatsoever is happiness for them. Sure, this does make sense. Being able to afford whatever you want, without being hounded by worry and anxiety of just how much you’re spending is a pretty good feeling. But is it real happiness? In a majority of the cases that I’ve come across, people who have a buttload of money aren’t the most content in life. Crazy, right? You can leave your house one day, buy three supercars and a helicopter just for fun, but the moment you get home and the rush of being wealthy leaves you, you feel empty. A shell, as if something within you is missing. The work that an individual must put in to be wealthy and rich is, in summary, a lot. Non stop working, signing contracts, getting leases, attracting potential buyers, all of that plays a toll on your mind. There’s no scope left for you to do the things you love. There’s no happiness in your life because all that’s happening in your life is work, work and more work. You live and breathe for money. And that isn’t called being happy.
Now, the second angle from which we can approach this is called being just happy. You’re content with yourself. You’ve embraced who you are as an individual and know your strengths and weaknesses. You find your passion and work hard for it. You use that realisation to push yourself to boundaries set by you. You work to your own capacity, and the output of this work ethic and effort makes you happy, because everything you’ve done, you’ve done for yourself and no one else. You are your own happiness. Stuff like money, being loved by everyone, caring what others think about you doesn’t affect you. Because you’re proud of who you are. If people think you aren’t cool enough for them, that’s okay. You’re cool enough for you. If people think you shouldn’t be invited to parties, awesome. You make your own party at home, because you don’t need anybody else. You’re self reliant, efficient and sufficient. You make your own fate, and stuff like money doesn’t bother you. As long as you’re sustaining the life you’ve made for yourself, you’re happy.
Now, you tell me. Do you wanna be rich and unhappy or well off and content/happy? I already know my answer. What’s yours?