Happier With Less

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Forgotten_Man

Well-Known Member
#1
In my random surfing I found this article. the gist of which is that if you slowly rid yourself of all your possessions and limit what you have you will be happier.

Personally I think this is bullshit... well for people like me. The article neglects to highlight one major point. This is something a married couple did. One of my previous roommate's basically lived his life out of his suitcase. He was pretty miserable and still is. Then again he was constantly getting rejected from grad school and being unemployed.

Do you think if you took on the challenges in this article you would be happier.
 

boo

Well-Known Member
#2
Sorry i couldnt help it...

"You're not your job. You're not how much money you have in the bank. You're not the car you drive. You're not the contents of your wallet. You're not your fucking khakis. You're the all-singing, all-dancing crap of the world." - Fight Club :biggrin:
 

aoeu

Well-Known Member
#5
I would definitely agree with it. I don't know how to achieve happiness, but working a high paying, high stress job isn't the way to go. I know that for sure.
 

boo

Well-Known Member
#6
I would definitely agree with it. I don't know how to achieve happiness, but working a high paying, high stress job isn't the way to go. I know that for sure.
It depends, some people have the ability to deal with stress quite naturally. Obviously it's not something you will develop overnight.
I do think material possession does bring happinness. The security that money brings can be quite the life saver.
 

aoeu

Well-Known Member
#7
If it's not stressful it's not stress. A challenging job is probably good, boredom is not so good.

You can be financially secure at any income level, provided your expenses are in line with it. That's what the article is about: a couple living a simple life are secure at $24k/year. I can afford everything I need and then some at a mere $10,000/year (but since breaking my back I can't even earn that -_-)
 

flyingdutchmen

Well-Known Member
#8
im not quite sure, we do tend to believe that more $ will make us feel better, yes that counts for me to, but i do wonder why we have enough high class society suffering depressions and having suicidal feelings just like we middle-class people do. i am also one of those "the grass is allways greener at the other side"-people and get jealouz fast whenever i see someone with a nice new porsche cruising around with his beautifull girl. i guess we cant be sure untill we tried to live like prehistorical caveman can we.
at least can i keep the internet because i sooo need to see that upcoming montana fishburne movie :lol!:
 

Forgotten_Man

Well-Known Member
#9
If it's not stressful it's not stress. A challenging job is probably good, boredom is not so good.
So when you like the job it is challenging. When you don't it is stressful?
It depends, some people have the ability to deal with stress quite naturally. Obviously it's not something you will develop overnight.
I do think material possession does bring happinness. The security that money brings can be quite the life saver.
This I can agree with.
 

johnnysays

Well-Known Member
#11
Live within your means.

But do people need 50 million dollar salaries?

What's the difference between $100,000 and $100,000,000? Should people even be able to make that much?

CEO salaries have skyrocketed in the past 20 years. Are they really worth 400x more than you? 400x better than you?

They just hire workers from china and watch their salary go up and up. Their workers make less and less.

Then when we complain about lack of standards in china the ceo complains that you want to kill his business and kill globalism.

That's just all bulls***. We traded reduced workers rights and more pollution in another country for lower product costs here.

I'll tell you what's happening. We're buying 'peace' with china to give us more leverage in negotiations. We're all paying the price.

It's true you can be happy with little more than the coat you're wearing. It's true we can live with less.

And ya, living without possessions makes a lot more sense for people that're low income.

And the employers will thank you because then they can lower the wages even more. They even let the govt pay health insurance.

The true meaning of "making more with less" is making them work harder for you while paying them less than you did before.

Only thing standing between us and slavery is self-respect and workers rights and unions and democracy. My opinion.

Otherwise, we might live in a world where you're happy making $3,000 a year and your boss is making $40,000,000 a year.

Only person who has self-respect and intelligence in that circumstance is your boss.
 
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KittyGirl

Well-Known Member
#13
I understand the concept as it's a fairly well known practice among Buddhist practitioners. Ridding yourself of all things that you do not need or even of some of those things will lessen your dependence on them. You do not need 'things' to be perfectly happy if you can learn to be happy with the person that you are. You can become self sufficient without having expensive things and filling your heart and your home with shiny bobbles-- I don't think that means that you are guaranteed to be happy if you throw away everything you don't 'need'.

The focus really should be on loving ones-self all on it's own rather than "throw away all your shit and your life will be prefect." lol

-- not even mentioning all of the different job and career options out there; just speaking of material needs in modern day culture. --

Money is important, but so is your happiness and the happiness of the rest of the world.
 

Winslow

My Toughest Problem Has Been Solved.
SF Supporter
#14
Yes, you are right, that is what Buddhism teaches. In my case, the only reason I use the internet at present is to use its research-capabilities in order to enable me to reach my goal. Once I reach that goal, I will quit the internet.
 

Ziggy

Antiquitie's Friend
#15
the only reason I use the internet at present is to use its research-capabilities in order to enable me to reach my goal. Once I reach that goal, I will quit the internet.
Isn't that the key issue, not what you posess but what your possessions are for? I could use the internet to download porn or to do research, I could use my money to buy posessions I don't need or I could give it to charity. I can do without a new phone or a better computer, but should I stop buying books to increase my knowledge, should I get rid of the art and music that makes me appreciate the life I live? (lies) This is the person I am (more lies), not a person who doesn't need things, but a person who chooses things wisely. (even more lies!)
 
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