Why life experiences are worth more than buying things –
Introduction 👋
Have you ever found yourself thinking – “If I buy new clothes that will make me happy“? 🤔💭
Maybe you really want to buy something new like:
- jewelry 💍
- the latest phone 📱
- clothing 👕
- a fancy car 🏎️
- furniture 🛋️
But did you know that research has shown that you’re more likely to be happy if you spend your money on experiences instead?
Today we’re explaining why life experiences are worth more than buying things. ✨
Disclaimer: This website provides information for guidance and educational purposes only. The Grown-Up School does not provide regulated financial advice. You can seek independent financial advice from a suitably qualified and regulated professional advisor. Check out our disclaimer policy for more information.
The research 👩🔬
Studies by the University of Texas at Austin showed that people who spent money on experiences were happier than those who spent their money on objects. ✨
They even tested different types of experiences against different objects –
experiences still won on the happiness scale for every single category. ☀️📈
Expensive things vs. experiences 💸
But what if you buy something really expensive? 💸
Surely that would make you happier, right? 🤔
No! 🤯
According to the University of Texas research, regardless of the price of the object, experiences still won on the happiness scale. ⚖️☀️
Making memories 🧠
Experiences make life happy, by giving you memories to look back on. 💭💞
Do you remember what phone model you had 10 years ago? 📱
Probably not 🤷♀️
On the other hand – you’ll definitely remember the camping trip you spent with your best friends 🏕️💖
The more experiences you have, the more happy memories you have to look back on! 🥰
Even though you probably spend more time using the things you buy –
experiences still create more happiness, because of the memories they give us. 😲⌛
Experiences give us meaning 💖
Have you ever heard about the “Rat Park” experiment? 🐀
Simon Fraser University found that when rats were given an empty cage and no meaning in their lives:
- the rats felt depressed
- they even turned towards eating illegal drugs left in the cage to make them feel happy. ☹️🐁💊
Next, the scientists gave the rats “Rat Park” – the ultimate rat house, filled with lots of activities and other rats to help them find meaning 🏞️🐁🐀
In rat park, the rats:
- were much happier ☀️
- had lots of meaning in their lives 💞
- ignored the drugs, because they had meaning in their lives that made them happy. 💊🙅♀️✨
If you surround yourself with meaningful life experiences, you could be happy like the happy rats in rat park 🏞️⛲🐀
Life experiences give us meaning by:
- making us feel that we matter 💞
- help us to build relationships 🥰
- showing that our actions have an impact on the world around us🌍
- helping us see the world in different ways/perspectives 👀
We value objects less over time 📉
Can you remember the last new phone you bought? 📱
At first, it’s really exciting, and fun to have the new phone. 🤩
But, over time, the phone starts to become “normal”. 🤷♀️🤳
We don’t wake up every day with the same excitement that we had when we got the phone. 🛌🎉❌
We start to value objects less when they become part of our day-to-day lives. 🙄🌅
Suddenly the new phone might become “out of date”. 💔
This doesn’t happen with experiences – we can continue to enjoy our memories every day. 🌄🎉
This is something that millionaires often struggle with – they have a lot of money, but fancy, expensive belongings become meaningless over time, because they’re so used to them. 💸☹️
Experiences can cost less 💸
Not only do life experiences make you happier, but they can also cost less! 💰
Some life experiences can cost very little– or even be free! 💳
Things like:
- making someone smile 😁
- spending time with family/friends 👪
- going for a walk 🏃♀️
- enjoying the sunshine ☀️
- going to the library 📖
- spending time in nature 🏞️🌻
can be completely free, and might make you happier than if you bought something!
Experiences to aim for 📝
So, the next time you want to go on a shopping spree – why not reconsider it? 🛍️
Why not buy an experience instead like:
- Watching sports events 🤽♀️
- Restaurants 🍛
- Comedy shows 🥸
- Family/friend nights 👪
- Hiking 🏞️
- Reading a book 📖
- Hosting a BBQ 🍳
- Music shows 🎶
- Bowling 🎳
- Growing a plant 🌱
- Going on holiday 🏖️
- Drawing a picture 🎨
Check out our article 100+ really cheap days out 🏞️ for cheap experience ideas. 🤩
Conclusion 👍
So that’s it!
You can feel more happy by spending more time getting experiences, rather than buying things. 🎁🏞️
Experiences are great to focus on because they:
- make us happier ☀️
- are more valuable than objects, regardless of the price 💰
- give us memories to look back on 🧠
- don’t lose value over time like objects do 📉
- bring meaning to our life 💞
- can be cheaper 💸
If you know any friends or family members who might benefit from learning about the value of buying experiences, share this post with them!
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