Essay Money Cannot Buy Happiness

If you won the lottery, and suddenly had $1,000,000 dollars, do you think you would be truly happy? If the human beings of this planet were asked what they believe they need to accomplish true happiness, many of those beings would say that money is the key to their happiness. However, money cannot buy happiness.

My first reason why money cannot buy happiness is that money is not always helpful. In a study done by Robert Kenny, anonymous surveys were given to upper-class people via the internet. These people were asked a series of questions which included questions about the greatest aspiration for themselves, for their children, and for the world. Each of these questions was followed by questions that asked whether money was either helpful or not helpful with this aspiration. The most common aspiration with people taking the survey was to be a good parent. Kenny reported that he was surprised to find that most people said money got in the way of a lot of things. Parents expressed concerns

Habituation, as Shahram Heshmat says, is, "...the process of adjustment to new or changed circumstances." Heshmat is an associate professor who teaches at the University of Illinois at Springfield. He says, "As humans, we get used to things. After working hard to get what we want, we routinely lose interest in the object of our desire (e.g., material goods, status). Rather than feeling satisfied, we feel a bit bored and begin forming a new desire." Of course we want new items at the store. When you got that new video game you really wanted or that game you begged your parents to buy you for Christmas two years ago, didn’t you feel so happy? Do you feel that happiness when you play it now? No. This is because of habituation. We, as humans, get used to the items we receive: it's human nature (Heshmat). Therefore, we can not be happy with the objects money buys; money can't buy