An Important Money Lesson That Little Children Taught Me

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I once had the privilege of watching little children play with their toys. They would be extremely happy and excited whenever they receive new toys from their parents. After a while however, they would become largely unimpressed by the same toys they were once excited about (after a verrry short while lol). Of course the kids never realized it, but what they were experiencing is actually some of their early tastes of a concept psychologists call the hedonic treadmill.

The hedonic treadmill (also known as hedonic adaptation) is a theory which suggests that people repeatedly return to their baseline level of happiness no matter what happens to them.

Hamster Things!

Quite frankly, even as adults we are not very different from the children in this respect. We do pretty much the same things that the kids do –but just with bigger toys, at a higher level, and in different ways. I guess human beings don’t really grow up that much. Either that or we don’t grow up at all lol. We just become adult-sized children playing pretend in more grown up settings and environments lol (a really frightening observation if you think about it).

Anyway let’s get into it. As adults we buy things for ourselves that we think will make us happy. We then get a good deal of pleasure when the next kid admires our new toy –especially if the next kid can’t afford it. After a while, we eventually get bored with our “new” toy because it is no longer “new.” It stops exciting us and we pay no attention to it. We thereafter go on to chase even bigger, newer and better toys …Then we repeat the cycle.

The Truth about Happiness

Over the years, an interesting observation has been made about us human beings. The observation is that we are generally happy people as long as we are not comparing ourselves with others. For the most part as an individual, you are generally happy once you have food, a roof over your head, clean water, and something to do. No problems there.

The problems only start when you start thinking about everything that you don’t have. Worse still, your problems multiply when you think of everything that Mr. or Mrs. Jones has that you don’t have (isn’t that a pain).

That’s why philosophers are quite right when they say desire is the cause of all our suffering or unhappiness as humans. If you can get rid of your desires, you will get rid of your suffering and unhappiness. For obvious reasons, that’s easier said than done.

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Self-Reflection

Admittedly, the hedonic treadmill is just a theory and it might be wrong. But close observation and experience strongly suggests that it’s quite accurate. The big question therefore is where do our desires end? Where does the buck stop? Where does our seemingly endless chase of pleasure end?

However, the even more important questions are… If I am happy with where I am in life –even though it’s far below other people’s ambitions and expectations, am I poor? Am I a failure? You need to answer that.

Let me lend you a hand. The answer to the important questions is a resounding “No!” The truth is that if you are genuinely and completely happy with where you are in life, and you don’t long for anything further, you are wealthy beyond measure.

The greatest form of wealth on earth is therefore contentment. Yes, contentment. Being genuinely happy with what you have and completely satisfied with it. If you are truly content with what you have and don’t hunger for more, then you are wealthy. It’s as simple as that. Just make sure that your perceived happiness or contentment is actually contentment –and not complacency. For you might live to regret it.

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A Surprising Takeaway

Generally, most people tend to become content with their lives as they get much older. However, others keep reaching for a lot more no matter how old they become. Watching both groups of people is entertaining, puzzling, and enlightening. It is also a good reminder of the fact that everybody is different and has different ambitions …and that’s perfectly okay. The important thing is to figure out what matters to you –and what you consider important in life.