Published on 12, July, 2020
What makes you happy?
What brings you joy or gives you a little smile and cheers you up?
Making someone laugh or smile - especially my service users at work (highly-autistic adults). My cat, Daisy. Floating on my back in the sea, staring up at the sky. Cycling out in the country on a crisp winter day (such as this morning, first thing). Writing. Reading. Singing. Sleeping.
Money would make things easier for me and give me more choices in life, but another thing that makes me happy is leading a simple life, having few things cluttering it up, and just getting by each day.
The only time in my life when I had some money (when I sold my house), and didn't really need to worry about paying for things, I didn't really feel truly happy. I felt pressure all of a sudden. I could buy a car. I could travel the world. I could buy nice clothes and furniture. I frittered a lot of it away on things that I didn't really need, but which I thought would make me happy. I had a small motorhome - but found myself worrying about it getting damaged, or broken into. Now that I can't really afford anything except the essentials, I feel more psychologically settled - which is an important component to happiness.
Even someone like J K Rowling, with huge financial resources she's never likely to run out of, had buyer's remorse when she bought Johnny Depp's old yacht for £22 million. She had it less than a year, and took a £7 million loss when she sold it again. Peanuts to her, of course. But she said she never felt happy having it, because of the responsibility that came with it: staffing, maintenance, mooring, etc.
I think Kurt Cobain summed it up for me...
Nirvana's Kurt Cobain on wealth