It's an old-age debate - would you be happier if you had
more money?
In a 2012 New York Times article, Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton researched a national sample of Americans to see if they thought they would be happier if their salaries were doubled. The results were surprising - only 9% of the people with the doubled salaries reported they were more content than those making the non-doubled salaries.
This research supports the view of SMMC representatives - just having more money will not equal more happiness. BUT we do think that having a better understanding of how to manage your money does improve your overall well-being. Better financial habits give you peace of mind and reduce stress. Additionally, understanding how to efficiently use your money to reach your life goals increases your confidence in your future, helping you see that you can live the life of which you dream. All of us can agree that we are happier if we know our goals are within reach.
We continue to study how to better positively impact the lives of our students and their happiness. We will share the results of our research efforts as we seek to quantify how financial education does increase happiness.
For example, following is one of our most current success stories showing how gaining better financial knowledge and habits made one UNL student happier:
"I scheduled by session at the SMMC because I needed help creating a budget to help save money for a trip abroad. During my session, my SMMC representative really helped me with the questions I had. It was really nice to talk to someone regarding money issues as she wasn’t there to lecture me on what I had been spending my money on but instead focused on what I could do better."
"My session definitely helped ease my financial worries. I do think that my personal well-being was positively impacted because I don’t experience as much stress about my finances."
"My session did help me change my financial behaviors. I now pay a lot more attention to what I put my money into. I had never realized how much money I was spending monthly or how truly easy it is to save money. I no longer stress about this stuff and saving has become second nature."
"My friends have even noticed the improvement because before I was constantly battling my finances and trying to make ends meet. I make more than enough money to live comfortably as a college student and just needed a little help figuring that out. My session was great and I appreciate that UNL offers this service."
In a 2012 New York Times article, Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton researched a national sample of Americans to see if they thought they would be happier if their salaries were doubled. The results were surprising - only 9% of the people with the doubled salaries reported they were more content than those making the non-doubled salaries.
This research supports the view of SMMC representatives - just having more money will not equal more happiness. BUT we do think that having a better understanding of how to manage your money does improve your overall well-being. Better financial habits give you peace of mind and reduce stress. Additionally, understanding how to efficiently use your money to reach your life goals increases your confidence in your future, helping you see that you can live the life of which you dream. All of us can agree that we are happier if we know our goals are within reach.
We continue to study how to better positively impact the lives of our students and their happiness. We will share the results of our research efforts as we seek to quantify how financial education does increase happiness.
For example, following is one of our most current success stories showing how gaining better financial knowledge and habits made one UNL student happier:
"I scheduled by session at the SMMC because I needed help creating a budget to help save money for a trip abroad. During my session, my SMMC representative really helped me with the questions I had. It was really nice to talk to someone regarding money issues as she wasn’t there to lecture me on what I had been spending my money on but instead focused on what I could do better."
"My session definitely helped ease my financial worries. I do think that my personal well-being was positively impacted because I don’t experience as much stress about my finances."
"My session did help me change my financial behaviors. I now pay a lot more attention to what I put my money into. I had never realized how much money I was spending monthly or how truly easy it is to save money. I no longer stress about this stuff and saving has become second nature."
"My friends have even noticed the improvement because before I was constantly battling my finances and trying to make ends meet. I make more than enough money to live comfortably as a college student and just needed a little help figuring that out. My session was great and I appreciate that UNL offers this service."
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