My line of thought for this is that stressing about whether you’ll have enough money to cover rent won’t make it any easier to cover rent. Happiness is more about mindset than circumstances. It is easier said than done, for sure, but if one needed to have 0 problems to be happy, there wouldn’t be many happy people.
Consider a millionaire who checks the markets one day only to realize their portfolio has dropped by 30% wiping out all of their gains for the past two years and leaving them with only 3 million. They’d probably not be very happy with that, despite still being in a position that many would trade everything to be in.
My line of thought for this is that stressing about whether you’ll have enough money to cover rent won’t make it any easier to cover rent. Happiness is more about mindset than circumstances
No… but if you don’t worry about it at all, you won’t pay it. You need to be able to pay it. Which means having to get money. Which means having to do things. Which means having to plan. Which means thinking about the future.
I do not see how your millionaires explanation is in any way relevant, as they are still won’t be living from paycheck to paycheck.
My interpretation of the message in the meme isn’t so much a “present vs future thinking” as it is a “you don’t need to search for happiness because your brain determines your mood, not outside factors.” I’m not saying you should just ignore your issues (which would make things more difficult over time), but that you can be happy despite them. Happiness isn’t a goal, it’s a state of mind.
As for the millionaire example, that they wouldn’t be living paycheck to paycheck is the whole point. It was intended to frame happiness/unhappiness in a different context that was easy to understand (he lost money he had spent a lot of time getting) but was still left in a position that most would be happy to find themselves in, but instead he’s probably miserable about it.
It is that simple but it isn’t easy. It’s like finding enlightenment from Buddhist parables. They don’t all click the same for everyone. Once they click, it can seem obvious, but before that, they can seem meaningless, trite, or misleading.
From my pov, the image is accurate but not the clearest. It can only get you part of the way and only if it resonates with you. It doesn’t surprise me that it generates cynicism similar to the “gee thanks, I’m cured” responses to mental health advice.
My line of thought for this is that stressing about whether you’ll have enough money to cover rent won’t make it any easier to cover rent. Happiness is more about mindset than circumstances. It is easier said than done, for sure, but if one needed to have 0 problems to be happy, there wouldn’t be many happy people.
Consider a millionaire who checks the markets one day only to realize their portfolio has dropped by 30% wiping out all of their gains for the past two years and leaving them with only 3 million. They’d probably not be very happy with that, despite still being in a position that many would trade everything to be in.
No… but if you don’t worry about it at all, you won’t pay it. You need to be able to pay it. Which means having to get money. Which means having to do things. Which means having to plan. Which means thinking about the future.
I do not see how your millionaires explanation is in any way relevant, as they are still won’t be living from paycheck to paycheck.
My interpretation of the message in the meme isn’t so much a “present vs future thinking” as it is a “you don’t need to search for happiness because your brain determines your mood, not outside factors.” I’m not saying you should just ignore your issues (which would make things more difficult over time), but that you can be happy despite them. Happiness isn’t a goal, it’s a state of mind.
As for the millionaire example, that they wouldn’t be living paycheck to paycheck is the whole point. It was intended to frame happiness/unhappiness in a different context that was easy to understand (he lost money he had spent a lot of time getting) but was still left in a position that most would be happy to find themselves in, but instead he’s probably miserable about it.
Oh… so what you’re saying is that it isn’t quite as simple as the picture makes it out to be…?
It is that simple but it isn’t easy. It’s like finding enlightenment from Buddhist parables. They don’t all click the same for everyone. Once they click, it can seem obvious, but before that, they can seem meaningless, trite, or misleading.
From my pov, the image is accurate but not the clearest. It can only get you part of the way and only if it resonates with you. It doesn’t surprise me that it generates cynicism similar to the “gee thanks, I’m cured” responses to mental health advice.