This is an analytical essay in which the author delves into what makes people happy. The author suggests that happiness is a universal feeling everyone desires and that different people may achieve happiness in different ways. The author suggests that many people look to money or relationships to make them happy, but without gratitude they still will not be happy.
We all strive to achieve happiness; it is a universal feeling we all desire. However, what happiness is and how to achieve it. Everyone experiences happiness, but each person has a unique definition of the feeling. Merchants may find that fiscal success brings them happiness, while those with disabilities could value being treated with simple kindness and respect, while children desire to have a plethora of candy at their disposal.
Michael Norton and Steve Siebold said that happiness can be bought, however, this is not true in the case of many Chinese workers who suffer under the notorious “996” work schedule. Money cannot be the only key to happiness. Human relationships are also universally valued and have been shown to keep people both happier and healthier (Robert 57). Interestingly enough, money can affect relationships, both positively and negatively, so that is where gratitude comes in. Gratitude works as a glue between the two elements of happiness: money and relationships.
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Money can positively affect relationships, especially those in the family, as it relieves one of financial fears and enables greater satisfaction in life. In Norman’s family model, $100 million allows one to live in New York City, have two vacation homes, and own a commodious apartment on Fifth Avenue at the same time. While paying for their children’s private school tuition, parents can also acquire a costly art collection without worry. (Martin) With an abundance of money, a family could have a comfortable life without feeling a need to dedicate a large portion of their time towards working. This is true in the case of many office workers who have no time or energy to think about personal pursuits.
Whereas money provides families with the world’s most pre-eminent healthcare systems, curative medicine, and alternative treatments (Siebold). Countless people are unable to afford their life-saving medication comfortably; wealth can save you and your families’ lives. The above ideas are also aligned with the sentiment highlighting the ability to comfortable afford gifts and opportunities for others, thus contributing to betterment of their lives (Siebold). In some cases, money does bring people healthy relationships with their families.
However, this does not mean that extreme wealth is the only way of building healthy relationships and gaining happiness. In fact, the amount of money does not matter as what is more important is how one earns and spends their wealth. People can feel great joy in social relationships even with little money to spend on others. As shown in Norton’s experiments, even doing small trivial things with money for others brings people satisfaction if they do not spend it on themselves. This is true because spending money for what you desire is consumption, but spending money on others has a positive impact on others (Norton). Making other people happy feels good and in turn brings oneself joy. These pro-social behaviors assist one in attaining satisfaction through altruism.
The way one earns their living also affects happiness. The ability to earn and spend one’s own fortune brings confidence and is more satisfying than using other’s hard-earned money. The story of Rong, a Chinese fuerdai and son of billionaires, exemplifies this. Having had a great deal of wealth but lacking chances to prove his own ability, Rong grew up under his father’s fame and was defined as “someone’s son”. He always wanted to prove himself and overthrow the idea that morality is measured by the amount of money one could make regardless of how he or she earned it (Shyong).
Rather than attaining his happiness by living in a fancy apartment and driving luxury cars, he pursued his happiness by launching a virtual reality startup and dedicating himself to create his own fortune. Rather than depend on his parents’ fortune to live comfortably, Rong found happiness by creating his own source of income. Therefore, it is not the amount of money one has that determines their happiness, but instead the ability to maintain relationships and take pride in the life they established for themselves.
While money can benefit relationships it can often hinder relationships between workers and the government and family ties under working culture as exemplified by China’s “996” working hour system. The “996” work schedule has people working from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week and it was pursued by many enterprises. “This industry was booming once…There are no more giant financial returns,” Said Li Shun (Qiqinf and Zhong). Employees would not have such strained relationships with their employers if they were not subjected to such a work schedule. While workers require overtime pay, some employees try to please their bosses by devoting their time voluntarily, making those who have already finished their work afraid to go home (Qiqinf and Zhong). In this case, the intense working schedule pushes the business relations under great stress.
However, it is always gratitude that helps re-build the relationship between employees and employers. Gratitude is the recognition of what we possess and the appreciation of what others do for you. If people are grateful, they will remember those who have helped them. Gratitude amongst coworkers’ increases efficiency and respect (Summer 40). This can help avoid competition within the industry, like competing to see who can work the most hours without asking for extra pay.
Enterprises could show their gratitude by recognizing that longer working hours do not correlate with higher working efficiency, and treat their employees with dignity and respect. It is important to understand workers’ anxiety and to know that overworking induces personnel casualty, sickness, and mortality (Qiqinf and Zhong). Therefore, the strained relations in business could be meliorated by employers and employees show understanding of pursuing a “996” working schedule blindly is not beneficial for neither the employees nor the companies.
Aside from business relations, ties between workers and the government could also be worsened by money. When workers tried to strike for their received unfairly treatment of pro-longed working hours, the Chinese government blocked people from accessing GitHub, Facebook, and other social media platforms out of fear (Qiqinf and Zhong), which enraged those employees who depend on those data platforms to work. Disregarding the citizens’ voices only worsened the dynamic between employees and the government.
However, gratitude could ease this strained relations. When faced with strikes and discontented employees, the Chinese government should be grateful toward workers’ contribution because the national development relied on each citizens’ effort, and be willing to listen to the voices of their workers. Rather than impeding the works’ way to expressing their dissatisfaction, President Barack Obama showed compassion towards 13 million people who were living in difficult situations by offering new protections and compensating them for working overtime (Qiqinf and Zhong).
What’s more, pursuing money under the “996” culture also breaks workers’ family ties because they are exhausted after work with no energy to savor life with family. Unlike the idea that the wealthy could dedicate more time to their family (Siebold), they are busier trying to sustain themselves. This is similar to Rong’s experience in that he had to skipped the traditional mourning rituals of his grandfather’s funeral in order to get back to host producers (Shyong). Disappointing his family, Rong was reprimand by his mother for disrespecting his elders because of his own career. But as he said, creating a fortune required sacrifice. Clearly, money allows for many potential problems if people become too consumed with money.
However, as a family unit, understanding and supporting each other is necessary for keeping healthy relationships and gratitude helps relieve stress within families. As Rong experienced discontent from his family for choosing to go to a work function (Shyong), I believed if his mother recognized his hardships of balancing between running business and caring relatives and supported him, she would feel grateful and Rong could be fueled to work more efficiently. This aligns with Allen’s idea in that people should appreciate life itself because recognition drives feelings of appreciating, encouraging, and contentment in life (Summer 42). This enables people to have good familial relationships while also bringing relief from the burnout of working.
There is no universal recipe for happiness, but we do know that balance is key. While spending money benefits socializing relationships and helps family ties, it can also ruin relationships and make us unhappy. So how do we achieve happiness? It is a balance between being grateful and generous to others as well as ourselves. Gratitude plays a role as a “social glue” for broken relationships, reminding us to respect and appreciate those in our lives. It is easy to get carried away in the chaos of life, however to maintain a happy and healthy lifestyle one must balance their obligations and stay grateful for all that they have.
