How To Buy Happiness
Michael I. Norton is a professor of business administration in the marketing unit at the Harvard Business School. He holds a B.A. in Psychology and English from Williams and a Ph.D. in Psychology from Princeton. His research has twice been featured in the New York Times Magazine Year in Ideas issue, in 2007 (Ambiguity Promotes Liking) and 2009 (The Counterfeit Self). His main subject of his TED talk How to Buy Happiness is that some people believe in that fact that money cannot buy you happiness. But, studies have shown from all around the world that when given money the people who spent the money on somebody else were happier than the people that kept it for themselves.
Michael’s argument was in the people that believe in the known phrase of “money cannot buy you happiness”. His position for this argument was that people just selfishly use their money in the wrong way which leads to the sad not happy times. Some of the evidence/key points used by Norton were that a couple had won the lottery for five million dollars. It turns out they spent all the money and went into debt. Also, their family and friends bugged them for money which ruined their social friendships. This at the end ruined their social friendships, put them even more in debt, and ruined their lives. Another valid point addressed was that of a woman from Ghana who was given $10,000 in African currency. She could have done whatever she pleased with the money, but she decided to pay the treatment for one of her family’s friends which had gotten malaria. She was later interviewed and was very pleased within herself because of the decision she took. The author didn’t really touch on a counter argument so that was not an issue with the Ted Talk.
Personal Statement: For this Ted Talk I feel that it is true and I am a firm believer of its. For some people helping someone out can help you out as well. Connecting this subject to the American Dream makes me realize that being selfish as a person might seem like the right thing to do at the time, but in the long run you need to care for the other people that live around you and you share earth with. From the novel “The Great Gatsby” people of both the West and East Egg are very wealthy people. But, just because of their wealth doesn’t mean their lives are perfect and happy. For example characters such Daisy, Tom, and Gatsby are very wealthy but in the reading their lives are far from perfect and happy. The people from the eggs find their importance to have the biggest baddest life. The only character from the novel that exhibited a hint of sharing wealth was Gatsby. He had bought a woman a new dress when her dress was ripped at one of his out of this world parties. But, none of the characters had invested or even donated to a charity with all the wealth they had.
Michael’s argument was in the people that believe in the known phrase of “money cannot buy you happiness”. His position for this argument was that people just selfishly use their money in the wrong way which leads to the sad not happy times. Some of the evidence/key points used by Norton were that a couple had won the lottery for five million dollars. It turns out they spent all the money and went into debt. Also, their family and friends bugged them for money which ruined their social friendships. This at the end ruined their social friendships, put them even more in debt, and ruined their lives. Another valid point addressed was that of a woman from Ghana who was given $10,000 in African currency. She could have done whatever she pleased with the money, but she decided to pay the treatment for one of her family’s friends which had gotten malaria. She was later interviewed and was very pleased within herself because of the decision she took. The author didn’t really touch on a counter argument so that was not an issue with the Ted Talk.
Personal Statement: For this Ted Talk I feel that it is true and I am a firm believer of its. For some people helping someone out can help you out as well. Connecting this subject to the American Dream makes me realize that being selfish as a person might seem like the right thing to do at the time, but in the long run you need to care for the other people that live around you and you share earth with. From the novel “The Great Gatsby” people of both the West and East Egg are very wealthy people. But, just because of their wealth doesn’t mean their lives are perfect and happy. For example characters such Daisy, Tom, and Gatsby are very wealthy but in the reading their lives are far from perfect and happy. The people from the eggs find their importance to have the biggest baddest life. The only character from the novel that exhibited a hint of sharing wealth was Gatsby. He had bought a woman a new dress when her dress was ripped at one of his out of this world parties. But, none of the characters had invested or even donated to a charity with all the wealth they had.