Traditional transactions lead us to overvalue money and status while undervaluing the happiness we get from productive experiences. Traditional transactions also place money at the center, yet most of the joys in work and personal life cannot be priced at all. Try thinking back to how you felt emotionally last month and remembering exactly when the moments of being happy, satisfied, and glad actually were. Of course, there are moments when you feel positive after spending money, but most of the time, those feelings come from experiences you can't put a price on. A pleasant time with friends, a new challenge you took on and finished safely, joyful hours spent with your kids, the pleasure of walking through nature, watching the morning sunrise and the evening sunset — these are not experiences you can purchase. (317p)
From Lynda Gratton, translated by Jo Seong-sook, The Shift — Ten Years From Now, Where Will I Be, With Whom, and Doing What? (Thinking Institute)
"You work, you get a paycheck, and with that paycheck you buy things. That's how you become happy." That's how the author describes the typical 'way of working' in modern society. The picture of work in an age that chases high salaries and consumption. Now that I've put it into words like that, I feel a chill. The author says that if people from her grandmother's generation were teleported into the present, they would be shocked. The fact that among the author's four siblings, only one has not divorced — that's one thing; but above all, they might faint at the enormous volume of things that people in developed countries possess. Each family member has their own computer, and there's a separate 'family' computer too. Both sons have TVs in their rooms, and the house is filled with dishwashers, washing machines, refrigerators, and every kind of home appliance. A plausible story. "We all know this is wrong thinking. Having more money does not make us happier. Lottery winners are euphoric at first, but the elation quickly scatters. You don't have to win the lottery to realize the effect money has on satisfaction. For instance, you might think you'd do anything right now for a 25 percent raise. But if your income actually went up by 25 percent, the odds of you living a happier or more satisfying life are virtually zero. Why? Because as income rises, we shift our lifestyle to match the new wealth and we recompute where our happiness comes from. Lottery winners' interest and enthusiasm for the things they used to enjoy — like reading or a good meal — fade. In other words, they fall into the state known as the 'happiness treadmill.' Simply put, it's the psychological tendency where what we were grateful for yesterday becomes something we take for granted today, and the pleasure we feel in what we've started to enjoy steadily diminishes." Why am I working, were there problems in how I've been thinking, and how will I think about work from now on... Thinking back to when exactly I was recently happy, satisfied, and glad, I'd like to take some time to consider what I should really treasure while working.
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