Every day we see productivity and minimalism Youtubers and bloggers telling us how we should live a life with less material possessions, so we can live a sustainable, focussed and meaningful existence.
I myself have recently been diving deep into this content so that I can make my environment distraction free and have more clarity.
Minimising what we own and changing our consumerism behaviours allows us to be free. Free from our addictions to technology, and free from the meaning we attach to these material possessions.
Over the years I have become increasingly mindful of the possessions I own and have realised that if I have clutter around me my mind also feels cluttered.
I’m not a minimalist (by any means!) but definitely resonate with the thinking behind owning less and experiencing more.
However, today I wanted to share with you 6 things I feel that when I do invest money in add meaning to my life and allow me to be happier.
So lets dive straight into the 1st thing that you can spend money on that can make you happy which is...
1. Digital Courses & Personal Growth
Over the past 7 years, I have invested thousand on self-education, these include courses on mindset, business, digital marketing, freelancing, making money online, and all sorts. For me time is our most valuable resource, it’s something we can’t replace.
So when it comes to productivity the biggest hack or advice I can give you from my personal experience is to invest in anything that can save you time. This also applies to learning and acquiring skills.
I will gladly pay a coach or mentor or buy a course they have created that helps me do something in the most efficient way without making all the costly and time-consuming mistakes that they made.
Why would you spend 10 years trying to learn something and making mistakes when you can pay someone who has done what you are trying to do to teach you their wisdom in a fraction of the time.
As Tony Robbins says:
If you want to be successful in something find someone who has achieved the results you want and copy what they do and you'll achieve the same results.
Investing In these ethical shortcuts will make you happier overall and will allow you to reach your goals quicker.
I find that there is so much free information out there now a days that it can get overwhelming when its not structured properly (trust me I have been down many rabbit holes!).
Yes, it's made it easier for people to improve their lives, learn new skills and build huge businesses and side hustles from home, but it's also made us prone to constant distractions and shiny object syndrome.
So having a course on one focussed topic, laid out step-by-step by someone who has achieved what you are trying to do is a huge time saver, and definitely worth every penny.
A recent example from my own life is Ali Abdaal's Part Time YouTuber Academy, I took the course because I was dabbling with Youtube and wanted to take it more seriously, what better way to learn than from someone who has a huge following and had made Youtube a success.
I wanted to learn from a teacher who had grown his own Youtube channel, but In addition I also wanted to connect with other like minded people who are on the same trajectory or journey as myself.
Moving on to the 2nd thing that you can spend money on that will make you happy:
2. Books
Again this ties into the above whereby books are a great way to gain wisdom from people who have done extraordinary things- essentially a shortcut to success.
They can provide direction, strategies, and insights into how successful people think and do things.
In a recent article I shared the exact framework I used to become a reader and read 50+ books per year, but you don't have to start off reading so much, you can begin by reading just 1 book that will help you move 1 step forward from where you are right now, towards where you want to be.
There are lots of services nowadays which mean you don’t even have to read the books you can listen to bites sized snippets with a service like Blinkist or even listen while doing other things with services such as Audible.
Books can make you happy because like courses they allow you to reduce the learning curve and move forward rapidly towards achieving your goals, which can only be a good thing right?
OK so moving on to the 3rd thing which is:
3. Experiences Over Material Possessions
As humans, we quickly adapt to our surroundings and possessions so when we purchase new items we quickly become desensitised to the happiness we experienced when buying those objects. This is largely due to the theory of hedonic adaptation.
Hedonic adaptation, also known as the hedonic treadmill is a theory that states that regardless of what happens to people (new iPhone, higher pay, lottery win, death of a loved one, diagnosis of an illness etc), their levels of happiness (or sadness) will eventually return to their baseline levels.
After the initial spike in happiness (or sadness) triggered by an event habituation kicks in bringing your happiness back to the level it was at before the event.
However, numerous studies (1) have found that spending money on experiences prolongs and creates more happiness rather than spending on physical things.
The biggest reason behind this is because experiences can be shared with others in the form of stories, they allow you to connect with others, and you can look back on them as amazing stories and memories with your family and friends. Which results in you reliving and experiencing the emotions again and again.
The other reason why spending on experiences over material possessions makes you happier is because these experiences become ingrained in to your personality.
Dr. Thomas Gilovich, a psychology professor at Cornell University who has been studying the question of money and happiness for over two decades says:
“Our experiences are a bigger part of ourselves than our material goods. You can really like your material stuff. You can even think that part of your identity is connected to those things, but nonetheless they remain separate from you. In contrast, your experiences really are part of you. We are the sum total of our experiences.”
4. Time
Time is a finite resource and so spending money on anything that helps you save it is definitely a good investment in my eyes. Why waste time trying to drill your own shelf into the wall when you can pay an expert to come and do a better job it in half the time
I remember when I was growing up my mum would always say that trading money for time is always a good investment, she used to call it 'buying time'.
This concept has stuck with me and so whenever I can spend money to save time I'll do it. In fact, studies even show that buying time can promote happiness (2).
Time scarcity is a thing and can lead to feelings of stress, anxiety, and general unhappiness.
Spending money on things that can save you time can allow you to reduce "time stress" in turn making you happier and increase your positive emotions.
5. Fitness & Health
It's a well-known fact that exercise and fitness can lead to happiness, there are numerous studies that show the connection. It reduces depression, low self-esteem, improves mental health, and boosts your mood too.
So spending money on things that can help you get more fit and healthy, or even pursue a sport is definitely a great investment.
If you're thinking of buying that Pelaton Bike that you keep seeing an ad for or want to check out that new yoga studio that just opened up then go ahead. Let those endorphins fill your body!
6. Giving To Other People
Theres an old Chinese proverb
"If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody”
There are a many studies outlining the positive correlation between altruistic behaviours and happiness. According to one study (3) giving or spending money on others activates regions in the brain that are associated with pleasure, social connection and trust resulting in good mental and physical health.
So when it comes to spending money on other people, don't be shy. It'll help you feel good and make you happier in the long run.