Joy-Based Spending: How to spend money on things that bring you joy and not on things that won’t make you any happier

Let’s take a car as an example. A second-hand, $5,000 car, can take you across town in the same amount of time and similar comfort level than a new $50,000 car. Did the extra $45,000 you spent on the new car bring you $45,000 worth of additional happiness? or did you buy under the pressure of advertisers and the people around you?

My friend Cheryl goes to a coffee shop every morning and she pays about $4.00 for a cup of coffee. She could stay home and for about $0.25, she could make her own coffee. But the joy that she gets from going to her favorite coffee shop is more valuable to her than the $4.00. Her consumption is more aligned with the level of joy and satisfaction she gets from her spending.

On the other hand, Cheryl doesn’t care about cars. She doesn’t care about the brand of a car, or the age, all she wants is to be taken from one place to the other in the most affordable way.

Here is a challenge:

Look around you, make a quick inventory of the products that you possess and ask yourself: “Does this bring joy into my life?” if not, then start looking for ways to get rid of it. This exercise could take hours or years, depending on your mental baggage, but the sooner you start the better.

The next challenge would be to apply the same thinking to all the products that you buy on a regular basis. Whether it’s housing, transportation, or regular items, ask the same question: How much happiness will I get from this item. If the price is higher than the satisfaction you get out of it, then don’t buy it.

How much of your purchases is your own decision and how much is the influence of advertisers?

My mother buys a new car every four years. Advertisers have convinced her that she needs a new car to be safe on the road. Because one of her fears is to be stranded on the highway, she thinks that spending the extra few thousand dollars on a vehicle is worth it. But that fear has been implanted in her head by advertisers. If she made a rational decision, she would not be wasting her hard-earned money on new cars every four years.

How many hours of life is this worth to me?

Imagine that you earn $40,000 per year (after taxes).

The average person works 40 hours per week, 50 weeks per year = 2,000 hours per year.

Divide $40,000 by 2,000 hour. You get $20/hour.

Now when you see an item with a price tag of $40, ask yourself: Is this item worth 2 hours of my life? If the answer is yes, then buy it.

We all wear logos on our foreheads

I am a freelance photographer. One of my gigs was to take photos of an immigrant who wanted to show to his family and friends that he was doing well in Canada. He had several changes of clothes in a bag, and he asked me to make sure that the logo of his shirts, bags, and shoes was visible. Certainly, for him, the perceived value of the clothes was more important than the clothing itself. It was also worth hiring me to photograph him wearing brand labeled items of clothing.

But well-off Canadians have similar behaviors. One of my LinkedIn connections wrote a long post on why we should spend lots of money to look our best. And of course, there was a photo of him in what seemed to be an expensive suit. Was it really a suit what he bought or did he buy a symbol to show that he’s higher on the pecking order of social hierarchy? People who have money have to find ways to show to the rest of us that they have money.

Conclusion

Joy-based spending requires that you are constantly aware of how you spend your money and why are spending. Am I buying this item for my own happiness, or to earn a few more likes on Instagram? Do I really care about this product or am I letting the advertisers manipulate my desires?

Once you answer honestly those questions, your spending will diminish, you won’t have to worry about budgeting and you will be happier.

Joy-Based Spending from the readers

Michael James Gallagher, author:

I spend money on my books that are released on Amazon but I don’t make any money yet on them. This spending gives me hours of pleasure and self-satisfaction. In the end this project has cost me thousands of dollars that bring me joy.
I don’t enjoy spending thousands of dollars each year on taxes paid to governments that waste my dollars. I believe that I know better how to spend my hard-earned money and that taxes and government should be greatly reduced.

Elijah Baker, music teacher, videographer:

For me, it would be drum lessons!

Shahin Muttalib, entrepreneur, virtual assistant service.

Plane tickets, other than that I’m pretty stingy.

Ivan Murcia, owner of Trucavelo: 

Networking: Spending my time with positive and likeminded people.
One thing not worth money: Having a car is a wasteful way to spend money.

Natalia Usselman, dating photographer:

Worth my money: a $6 necklace from Value Village that I can redo the way I like it with a set of simple jewellery tools. Hours of entertainment!
Not worth my money: $18 cocktail + tips in a fancy bar – finished in half an hour and immediately forgotten.

Joze Piranian, Speaker, Comedian:

One service that is worth my money is using Fiverr. com for all my entrepreneurial needs

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