Money vs Work

There’s an MIT Press article that I keep seeing pop up on people’s websites, and it has a feel-good message that our relationships are the key to happiness. It states: “The top five factors, ranked in order of impact, were romantic and familial relationships, financial situation, work, community and friends, and health.”

It makes complete sense that our relationships would be at the top. I’m kind of surprised that health came in fifth, but we also don’t think a lot about our health if we don’t have a health issue.

But the piece goes on to focus solely on relationships and why we shouldn’t neglect them, ignoring an interesting point in the center of the list. Finances come before finding happiness in  meaningful work or career status.

One argument I’ve seen against universal basic income is that it disincentivizes work. But wouldn’t this be an argument for people becoming happier overall if finances were settled? And happier people tend to engage more than disengage.

Just thinking.