Bernanke: Money can’t buy happiness

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Saturday deviated from giving the usual inspirational commencement address and instead offered students graduating from the University of South Carolina some sage advice on choosing happiness over material success.

“We all know that getting a better-paying job is one of the main reasons to go to college, and achieving economic security for yourself and your family is an important and laudable goal. But if you are ever tempted to go into a field or take a job only because the pay is high and for no other reason, be careful,” he warned. “Having a larger income is exciting at first, but as you get used to your new standard of living, and as you associate with other people in your new income bracket, the thrill quickly wears off.”

{mosads}The Fed chairman went on to say that lottery winners face a similar fate. After the euphoria wears off from winning a windfall, winners generally find themselves as happy as they were before becoming wealthy.

“The evidence shows that, by itself, money is not enough,” Bernanke said. “Indeed, taking a high-paying job only for the money can detract from happiness if it involves spending less time with your family, stress, and other such drawbacks.”

The speech centered on the properties of happiness, which the Fed Chairman said are ever-changing and sometime elusive. He also cautioned that chasing material success should not be confused with pursuing happiness since the former does not necessarily lead to the latter.

“If I live in a country in which most people have only one cow, and I have three cows, then I will have lots of social status and self-esteem and will thus feel happy,” he said. “But if everyone around me has a luxury car, and I am hung up on status, I won’t feel very special unless I have both a luxury car and an SUV.”

Instead of striving for the corner office, Bernanke said building strong, inter-personal relationships with family and family should be the goal when looking for happiness.

“Research has demonstrated that happiness and life satisfaction are perhaps more closely related to participating meaningfully in a network of friends, family, and community than any other factor,” he said. “I urge you to take this research to heart by making time for friends and family and by being part of and contributing to a larger community.”

The chairman urging against taking a high-paying job just for the money comes as cost increases for college tuition continue to outpace inflation and students find themselves deeper in debt after graduation than previous generations.

The College Board recently announced the current average tuition for a private not-for-profit, four-year school is $26,273.00, up 4.4 percent from last year.