Will Misenheimer

Professor Jizi
UWRT-1102-028
1 February 2015

Double Entry Journal

Citation:

Source: Quote (Page# or Paragraph #)

Responses

160: He told us that although scientists like

to hedge their answers and give convoluted
replies full of disclaimers, he wanted a
simple yes or no answer.

I believe that we all want the yes or no

answer from this question, which, ironically, is
a question that never seems to be answered
directly. When answering this question, we
usually lean towards yes or no and justify our
thoughts, but there is hardly ever complete
confidence in our answers.

160-161: Rich people may sacrifice other

types of wealth to get money, and
sometimes develop unhappy attitudes on
their way to making fortunes.

This reminds me of Steve Jobs and his

proclamations during the last few days of his
life on Earth. Jobs declared that his careerdriven life and dangerously ambitious desire
to acquire money left his family excluded and
deprived him of much happiness.

162: But, according to the participants in

this study, it wasnt money that brought their
happiness.

I am very interested to hear about the

reasons why financially successful people are
happy. I imagine that the millionaires polled
from the Forbes List, were smarter with their
money than wealthy athletes or movie stars,
leading to a better chance of being happy.

163: Indeed, the wealth of nations is one of

the strongest, if not the strongest, predictors
of the life satisfaction in societies.

I believe that this is mostly due to relief of

pressure. The countries that are wealthier
most likely experience a slight relief of
pressure that enables each individual to live a
slightly happier life when he or she does not
have to worry as much about happiness.

164: Winners of large lotteries are often in

It seems that too many times people win the

the news-first for winning, and then later if

their life turns sour.

lottery, enter a state of euphoria and

unrealistically spend money that allows for
even a bank account of that proportion to go
broke. I believe that the key is to not focus on
material goods, but maintaining and
increasing happiness.

165: Viv Nicholson found religion, became

an active member of the Jehovahs
Witnesses, and began a new, more
wholesome life.

This is just as I wrote about in my Happiness

Essay. I proclaimed that religion and a
purpose was a major component to
establishing a healthy mindset.

166: Finally, we know that materialism can

be toxic to happiness.

I can make a connection to this with my

Happiness Essay because I proclaimed that
the desire for tangible goods and the drive to
be materialistic will cause significant
unhappiness.

166: We will describe these findings that

indicate that money does not always equal
happiness, and explore the costs as well as
the benefits of money to explain why it is
sometimes related to happiness and
sometimes not.

The author is presenting a very well, premeditated thought by presenting the facts of
why money can support happiness and why it
also may be negligible when determining
ones happiness.

167-169: How is it that many rich people

are not extremely happy, and how can it be
that some poor people are happy? The
answers lie, in part, in the fact that there are
many other influences on happiness, such
as a cheery genetic predisposition and
having supportive relationships.

This supports the notion that happiness is not

determined by money, but is rather
dependent upon a healthy mindset and
perspective. A healthy and optimistic
perspective is needed to develop happiness.

169-170: The problem is the Thompsons

want more expensive luxuries and
experiences, and thus end up feeling
poorer.

I feel guilty of being a Thompson

sometimes. I feel like I want the expensive
car and fancy house, but, if I can simply
minimize my desires to what is good enough
and be grateful, then I will truly know more of
what it means to be happy.

171: The poorer example is four times as

happy with their money because they have
more than their desires require.

I agree. I believe that those who can minimize

their desires and be happy with what they
have are usually much happier than those
who want much more than they have.

171: The lesson here is that no matter how After reading this article, I have really
much money you earn, you can always want developed an understanding as to why being
more, and feel poor along the way.
content with little may develop a stronger
sense of happiness.