Why the Financial Goalposts Are Always Moving

Why the Financial Goalposts Are Always Moving

Posted July 12, 2022 by Ben Carlson

In 1980 the life expectancy in China was just 67 years old.  It’s now up to 77 years old.

In that time, the Chinese economy has grown by nearly 10% per year. GDP per capita and household consumption each grew fourfold between 1990 and 2005. Researchers wanted to see if the economic progress in China was accompanied by a similar increase in life satisfaction. Becoming a richer country did not make people any happier:

Yet during the same period, life satisfaction levels in China demonstrated very different trends—in particular dropping precipitously in the initial stages of rapid growth and then recovering somewhat thereafter. The drops in life satisfaction were accompanied by increases in the suicide rate and in incidence of mental illness.

She actually found people in fast-growing countries tend to be less happy than people in slower-growing countries. Rapid change tends to make people unhappy.

Why is this the case?

More wealth brings about inequality and insecurity as different skill sets are rewarded in a faster-paced economy. When more wealth is created, it becomes easier to make relative comparisons to those around you.

The New York Times interviewed dozens of millennials from around the country to help better understand their fears and anxieties about money.

One person talked about what happens when you start making more money:

I’m starting to get my financial footing. My goal used to be, “I want to hit $100,000.” Then you hit $100,000 and it feels like the new $40,000.

Moving the financial goalposts is an odd paradox of the human experience.

On the one hand, it’s a good thing we’re so driven to improve our place in life. The drive to get better is what fuels innovation, growth and progress.

But those same attributes can also drive you mad if you never feel satisfied with your accomplishments or blessings.

For Some People Success Only Amplifies Their Worries:

2020 was when I really saw a shift in how much I was making. It was the first year I made over six figures in design projects. And I felt weird and guilty about it. Like, do I need to give it away? Do I need to tell my parents how much I’m making? In Nigerian culture, you give your parents the first money you ever make. I gave my parents my first paycheck when I was a graphic designer at a church.

I’m actually going to counseling about this. My counselor helped me realize that there’s never going to be a number that will make me feel secure. If I make a million dollars this year, I’m still going to be stressed about next year.  This phenomenon exists for a number of different reasons but the simplest explanation is the fact that we’re all just human.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://awealthofcommonsense.com/2022/07/why-the-financial-goalposts-are-always-moving/