Practice Management

Now I figure out why I have been miserable all of these years.  The old wives tell that money does not buy happiness is wrong.  In fact, money can buy happiness according to an article in Wall Street Journal Bog.

The WSJ looks at the findings of two economists from the University of Pennsylvania who conclude money does indeed bring happiness, even if it doesn?t guarantee it. The findings run counter to a widely-cited 1974 happiness study that found gains in income, which provided more than basic necessities, didn?t make people happier ? it just re-set the bar for them wanting more. This has become known as the Easterlin paradox. ?To put it in today?s terms, owning an iPod doesn?t make you happier, because you then want an iPod Touch,? the piece says.

Well, I have always said that money cannot buy you happiness, but lack of money will almost guarantee unhappiness.  I guess that is right.  And, the research has also found that some of the things that make people happiest ? short commutes, time spent with friends ? have little to do with higher incomes, the article points out money can facilitate such things.

The catch-22 for parents seems to be that they give up the time to earn that money, which takes away time from the family, when spending more time with the family might be the reason for making more money.

Oh, what a tangle web we weave.