Happy Mondays
Leading life and happiness coach
IT DOES not grow on trees, we are not made of it and it does not make you happy. Only the last phrase is the oddest one out. Saying money does not make you happy is on a par with saying Game Of Thrones is just an updated version of The Waltons. Mark Twain was on the nose when he said it was the “lack” of money that was the root of all evil. Just try living without it.
“The rich are not happy” is a psychic salve the less-loaded apply liberally because it seems to be an unpalatable and unjust law of Nature, like cellulite or balding, that we can never fully accept.
Money can buy you love too if you have ever seen the blessed-out “can’t believe my luck” expressions of the guys who have added a Thai wife to the shopping cart.
Looking at the recent rash of programmes on the lifestyles of the super-rich and their peccadilloes, we are all guilty of pressing our noses against the TV screen and sitting in a drool pool of envy and incredulity. A sort of prosperity porn that has us both thrilled and disgusted with its toxic but irresistible lure.
There are people who think nothing of spending £3,000 on a crocodile-skin evening bag and some employ the world’s most exclusive perfumiers to design their own fragranced candles for the their mansions. We gasp, groan and gripe at the excesses while part of us gleefully runs an alternative movie in our heads where we are the oligarch, heiress or head of industry and fantasise about how we would splash the cash if we were touched by the hand of wad. We are living in a time not unlike the pre-revolution Russia where Fabergé eggs encrusted with jewels and clockwork novelties were the precious novelties designed to amuse the elite few.
Admiration for former BHS owner Sir Philip Green runs into minus figures as he adds a £100million yacht to his fleet in the week that shop workers are fearful about a £570million hole in their pension fund.
We have also seen Sir Martin Sorrell of global advertising company WPP defend his £70million pay package and even admit he was not embarrassed about the deal with a sort of “because I’m worth it” shrug.
The question is would YOU feel worth it? Is his role worth more than that of a staff nurse caring for incontinent, demented geriatrics with grace and without thanks?
I recently bought my “mid-life crisis” car. A second-hand sporty number with two seats and a top that comes off. And I am still struggling with feelings of “am I allowed this?” “I hope people aren’t envious” and “do I deserve it?”
Professor Martin Seligman said: “Once the gross national product exceeds £5,475 per person the correlation between purchasing power and happiness disappears and added wealth brings no further life satisfaction.”
I hope that knowing that the super-rich are only slightly happier than the rest of us may lighten your load today whether you board a bus or Bugatti or mince along the streets of Manchester or Monaco.