£45,000 a year can buy you happiness

The cost of happiness? Around £45,000 a year, it seems.

New research presented to the American Psychological Association found feelings of happiness and wellbeing rose with higher incomes – but only to a level equivalent to £45,000 a year.

Beyond this point, the feeling of wellbeing stalled, with frugal behaviour and a move away from materialism resulting in greater happiness.

Dr Miriam Tatzel, from Empire State College, State University of New York said:

“Emotional well-being rises with income, but there is no further progress beyond an annual income of about $75,000 (£45,000),

“A society in which some people are idolised for being fabulously rich sets a standard of success that is unattainable and leads us to try to approach it by working more and spending more.

“Cooling the consumption-driven economy, working less and consuming less are better for the environment and better for humans, too.”

It’s for these reasons that Financial Planning is about more than just, well, Financial Planning.

If you’re looking for some reading material this weekend, to start your quest towards working less and consuming less, here are a few of my favourite websites on the theme:

–The 4-Hour Workweek

–The Minimalists

–Zen Habits

–Mark’s Daily Apple

–Lifehack

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