Folium: Spend Money on Experiences Rather Than Things via Quartz
Folium: Spend Money on Experiences Rather Than Things via Quartz
Folium: Spend Money on Experiences Rather Than Thing via Quartz
I firmly and wholeheartedly believe that money can’t buy happiness, but experiences and knowledge will fulfill you completely. In the article “Another reason to spend money on experiences rather than things—the positive benefits of anticipation,” written by Svati Kirsten Narula, it is stated that two psychologists, Leaf Van Boven and Thomas Gilovich have concluded that “doing things makes people happier than having things.” The study that brought them to make this conclusion was titled “To do or to have? That is the question” (2003). After this study was done it states that “many people now recognize” this fact. It seems pretty common sense to me. I don’t know what I disagree with more, the fact that a study has to be done for people to see the value on experience over materialism or, the fact that people have to read an article to realize that life is not about quantity but quality.
So this is how I view the whole situation. People are far too materialistic, and it really sucks. I prefer an experience over a tangible item. Tangible items are often update, ruined, lost or even worst stolen. When you compare those items to knowledge and experience, those two things can never be stripped away, stolen, damaged, or updated. You can have several experiences, each building off the last and making for a whole slew of stories to pass on for generations, and pictures to show.
Study Abroad@FLCC
2015 Flickr Gallery
In the article, Boven and Gilovich surveyed subject’s and their memories of a time that they were standing in line making a purchase based on either experiential, or material items. Per the subjects regardless of purchase price, the items that were of experiential value caused for the subjects to be in much better moods, and in better behavior than those purchasing solely material items like an iphone, or other items that will eventually be upgraded to “the next best thing.” This just goes to show that people are generally never happy and require bigger and better things to be fulfilled in life. When does this cycle end? Is this what we are teaching our future generations, to never be happy and only bigger and better things will fill the void?
I like to believe that my children will be fulfilled, and have the ability to use their imaginations and creativity to make them happy, go out into this beautiful and vast world and experience what it has to offer and the beauty within each individual versus the value of objects that they have. It’s evident that our society has embedded this into our children already, from gaming systems to cell phones, clothing and shoes, kids nowadays want to have the newest of everything, and name brand at that, it’s rather disturbing. I believe that people need to seek personal fulfillment and enjoyment in experiences so that they can have that mind and body balance. Having knowledge of different cultures and countries in person, and hands on versus the ability to view it all on a laptop, through a social network is far more enjoyable. What will it take for people to make this change? If this article having hundreds of views has changed the perception of one or two people than maybe it has contributed to what should already be common sense.
Lucy Couvertier
LEAF Contributor
…
