4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

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David Jr.
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註冊時間: 週二 8月 19, 2003 12:07 am
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4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 David Jr. »

Hello yoyos,
I am David Jr., the chief host of Saturday in April.
I will be the 1st host on 4/3, then we will have Maggie talking about how to survive a bad manager on 4/10, then Toshi will speak on 4/17 with topic of paradox of choice(with TED video). About 4/24, not decided yet.

錢能買到快樂?研究:只要比親友更有錢就行
http://tw.news.yahoo.com/article/url/d/ ... 22l5c.html

Money DOES buy you happiness... if your friends have less of it
By Fiona Macrae
Last updated at 1:11 AM on 23rd March 2010
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... iends.html

Money makes you happy - but only if you have lots more than your friends and neighbours.
Owning the house of your dreams, the car you always longed for and having millions in the bank doesn't stop that desire to keep up with the Joneses, researchers have found.
And if the Joneses have more than you do, you'll be miserable.
It seems envy at being lower in the social pecking order tarnishes the satisfaction of being well off.

Psychologists looked at the happiness levels of 10,000 people who took part in the British Household Panel Survey and compared these with their income.
The results showed that although salary is important to a certain extent, a person's social standing or status matters more.
And that's where the Joneses come in. 'The standard of living has gone up for each individual over the past 40 years but it has gone up for everyone,' said researcher Dr Chris Boyce from the University of Warwick.
'Our cars are faster now but our neighbours have faster cars too, so we haven't got that advantage over people close to us.

'Without the biggest home, or the fastest car then it doesn't give you that same excitement as it would have.
'Earning £1million a year appears not to be enough to make you happy if you know your friends all earn £2million a year.'
Dr Boyce feared many of us are racing to earn more money at the expense of building strong relationships.
As Hyacinth Bucket discovers in the BBC comedy Keeping Up Appearances, trying to outdo the neighbours usually ends in tears.
'If everyone has to work hard to be better than other people, it suggests that if we all worked a little bit less we could find the time to do things that might be a bit more productive for our wellbeing,' said Dr Boyce, an economic psychologist.
'For instance, spending more time with our friends, looking after our mental health, spending more time at leisure.'
His findings, published in the journal Psychological Science, make disturbing reading - especially if you happen to be a lottery winner.

'If you win a fantastic amount of and move away, all of a sudden-you are surrounded by people who are very wealthy,' he said.
'So you have ended up with a rank against your neighbours that was just as low as it was previously.
'If you stay in the same house, you move up a couple of ranks but other people have to move down to make room for you.
'You will find yourself in a situation where there is a lot of envy and jealousy.
'You will have made everyone else's lives miserable.'
It's not the first time we've been warned that striving to keep up with the Joneses is bad for our health.

Previous research found those who feel eclipsed by their friends' material success are more likely to develop heart disease, diabetes, ulcers and high blood pressure.

Session 1:
1. How do you think about this article?
Do you agree with the theory of “money counts for little unless you are richer than your friends?”
why or why not?

2. What’s the reason supporting this theory?
And what’s the reason against this theory?
Can you find out the logic and the cause and the effect?

3. Are you more willing to be a “rich” person, yet was born and living in a poor country, or are you more willing to be a “ordinary” person, yet was born and living in a rich country?
Why?

4. Do you think "money" is playing an important role in your life now? And In what way?
How do you acquire money?

Session 2:
We will play a game, in which I will set some scenarios for you to think it over.
I will give more clues later on.

So see you soon.

********************************************************************************************************************************************
Agenda:
Session I:
2:15 ~ 2:30 Greeting / Ordering Beverage or Meal
2:30 ~ 2:40 Opening Remarks / New comers' Self-introduction / Grouping
2:40 ~ 3:20 First Group Discussion
3:20 ~ 3:35 First Summarization
3:35 ~ 3:40 Regrouping /Break
Session II:
3:40 ~ 3:45 Introduction
3:45 ~ 4:25 Second Group Discussion
4:25 ~ 4:40 2nd Summarization
4:40 ~ 4:50 Concluding Remarks / Announcements
********************************************************************************************************************************************
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最後由 David Jr. 於 週五 4月 02, 2010 6:48 pm 編輯,總共編輯了 3 次。
Remember all what your mom has told you, and do the opposite.
Michael-liu
YOYO member
文章: 708
註冊時間: 週五 4月 24, 2009 6:09 pm

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 Michael-liu »

Hi, David

find "down" ? Do you mean find "out" ?

Michael
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Rock
YOYO member
文章: 2162
註冊時間: 週三 10月 31, 2007 9:03 am

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 Rock »

Yeah, hallelujah~~, David Jr. is hosting again. As one of the best hosts in Yoyo, you sure will bring us an exciting afternoon. Don't feed us too much red wine, though.
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David Jr.
Vice President
文章: 257
註冊時間: 週二 8月 19, 2003 12:07 am
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Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 David Jr. »

Hi Michael,
Thank you for your correction.
I just revised the sentence. :D

As for Rock, what a compliment!!
But you are right, I am more interested in controversial topic.
Maybe feeding you guys some red wine is a good idea during the meeting.

David
Remember all what your mom has told you, and do the opposite.
stephen185
YOYO member
文章: 206
註冊時間: 週三 5月 30, 2007 8:23 pm

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 stephen185 »

Rock 寫:Yeah, hallelujah~~, David Jr. is hosting again. As one of the best hosts in Yoyo, you sure will bring us an exciting afternoon. Don't feed us too much red wine, though.
Yes, the meeting hosted by David Jr. is always popular.
And I am so glad that he is willing to be the Chief Host of Saturday meeting. :D

Stephen
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Julian
Member
文章: 733
註冊時間: 週三 1月 07, 2004 12:06 am
來自: Taipei

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 Julian »

I feel it the same way too! ~ :) It's an interesting topic to me especialy the mentioned "錢能買到快樂?研究:只要比親友更有錢就行"
Good point!... :lol:
銀藍色.象牙海岸的月光~雀躍著沉寂中的寧靜..
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technobabel
YOYO member
文章: 1188
註冊時間: 週六 5月 14, 2005 8:42 pm
來自: Eastern Seaboard

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 technobabel »

In reality, once you have shifted your income bracket favorably, you may find yourself in a different social circle that are far more snobbish.
Soon, your reference of how much money is enough also shifts.

Before, you humbly thought it would be nice to just have one LV bag and that is enough to put yourself in the state of permanent ecstasy.
but now you have conclued that you "need" at least a dozen just to prevent yourself from sinking deeper into depression.
It is the inescapable Hedonic treadmill.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedonic_treadmill

What about those relatives that are helpless poor?
you are very likely to forget his or her phone number.
This could be the same reason why many veteran Yoyo members never bother to show up anymore.
I am not abandoning Yoyo, I am just dancing slowly away from it.
Michael-liu
YOYO member
文章: 708
註冊時間: 週五 4月 24, 2009 6:09 pm

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 Michael-liu »

technobabel 寫:What about those relatives that are helpless poor?
you are very likely to forget his or her phone number.
This could be the same reason why many veteran Yoyo members never bother to show up anymore.
Hi, dude

What are you implying by saying " This could be the same reason why many veteran Yoyo members never bother to show up anymore" ?

You mean the current Yo Yo members are more well-off than old members so we forget them? or you mean we are snobbish so they don't want to show up anymore?

No matter what you meant by saying that. That is a strong statement

Michael
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technobabel
YOYO member
文章: 1188
註冊時間: 週六 5月 14, 2005 8:42 pm
來自: Eastern Seaboard

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 technobabel »

Michael-liu 寫:
Hi, dude

What are you implying by saying " This could be the same reason why many veteran Yoyo members never bother to show up anymore" ?

You mean the current Yo Yo members are more well-off than old members so we forget them? or you mean we are snobbish so they don't want to show up anymore?

No matter what you meant by saying that. That is a strong statement

Michael
In both traditional and environmental sense of the phrase, we should be glad that some of us had move on or stay on the "greener pasture" A win-win situation either way.
I am not abandoning Yoyo, I am just dancing slowly away from it.
Michael-liu
YOYO member
文章: 708
註冊時間: 週五 4月 24, 2009 6:09 pm

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 Michael-liu »

Hey, Steven, Rock, and Debby

About our discussion of "a glaring omission" appeared in the second article David passed out, it turned out that we were all wrong about its meaning

glaring
1. very bad and very noticeable [= obvious]:
The book's most glaring omission is the lack of an index.
a glaring example of political corruption

2. too bright and difficult to look at: the glaring light of high noon[/b]


This is why we always need to check an English English dictionary

Michael
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David Jr.
Vice President
文章: 257
註冊時間: 週二 8月 19, 2003 12:07 am
來自: Lonely Planet
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Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 David Jr. »

Hello yoyos,
I am glad to host today's meeting.
Today we have participants below,
Host: David Jr.
Attendee: Mountain, Rock, Regina, Chris, Antonio, Debby, Michael, Adam, Chiron, Stephen Chiu, Eddie, Bernd, Kelly, Emma, Amizi, Christine Wang, Bill Yu, Gavin, Arhtur, Cindy, Julian, Janet, Dawn(at the last minute).
Total: 24

New Comer: Ashley
Remember all what your mom has told you, and do the opposite.
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David Jr.
Vice President
文章: 257
註冊時間: 週二 8月 19, 2003 12:07 am
來自: Lonely Planet
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Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 David Jr. »

Session 2 Article:
Compare this article and previous one, which one makes more sense to you?
Or.. is it possible that both article are correct, just in different perspective?

Money Won't Buy You Happiness
Matthew Herper, 09.21.04, 3:00 PM ET
NEW YORK - It's official: Money can't buy happiness.
http://www.forbes.com/2004/09/21/cx_mh_ ... iness.html

Sure, if a person is handed $10, the pleasure centers of his brain light up as if he were given food, sex or drugs. But that initial rush does not translate into long-term pleasure for most people. Surveys have found virtually the same level of happiness between the very rich individuals on the Forbes 400 and the Maasai herdsman of East Africa. Lottery winners return to their previous level of happiness after five years. Increases in income just don't seem to make people happier--and most negative life experiences likewise have only a small impact on long-term satisfaction.

"The relationship between money and happiness is pretty darned small," says Peter Ubel, a professor of medicine at the University of Michigan.

That's not to say that increased income doesn't matter at all. There is a very small correlation between wealth and happiness--accounting for about 1% of the happiness reported by people answering surveys. And for some groups, that relationship may be considerably bigger. People who are poor seem to get much happier when their monetary prospects improve, as do the very sick. In these cases, Ubel speculates, people may be protected from negative circumstances by the extra cash. Another possibility is that the money brings an increase in status, which may have a greater impact on happiness.

Why doesn't wealth bring a constant sense of joy? "Part of the reason is that people aren't very good at figuring out what to do with the money," says George Loewenstein, an economist at Carnegie Mellon University. People generally overestimate the amount of long-term pleasure they'll get from a given object.

Sometimes, Loewenstein notes, the way people spend their money can actually make them less happy. For example, people derive a great deal of pleasure from interacting with others. If the first thing lottery winners do is quit their job and move to a palatial but isolated estate where they don't see any neighbors, they could find themselves isolated and depressed.

Other trophies simply don't bring the payoff one expects. Says Loewenstein, "If you're a single male driving around in the Ferrari with nobody next to you, it's a glaring omission."

The central problem is that the human brain becomes conditioned to positive experiences. Getting a chunk of unexpected money registers as a good thing, but as time passes, the response wears off. An expected paycheck doesn't bring any buzz at all--and doesn't contribute to overall happiness. You can get used to anything, be it hanging by your toenails or making millions of dollars a day. Mood may be set more by heredity than by anything else: Studies of twins have shown that at least half a person's level of happiness may be determined by some of the genes that play a role in determining personality.

But this raises another question. How important is happiness anyway? People with chronic illnesses describe themselves as happy, but they would still pay large sums for better health. And although healthy individuals are not much happier than quadriplegics, they would pay large sums of money to keep the use of their limbs. Some of life's most satisfying experiences don't bring happiness. For instance, having children actually makes people less happy over the short term--but that doesn't necessarily mean we should stop procreating.

"I think it's possible to way overestimate the importance of happiness," says Loewenstein. "Part of the meaning of life is to have highs and lows. A life that was constantly happy was not a good life."

However, there may be at least one important relationship between money and happiness, according to Ed Diener, the University of Illinois researcher who surveyed the Forbes 400 and the Maasai. Diener has also written that happy people tend to have higher incomes later on in their lives. So, while money may not help make people happy, being happy may help them make money.
Remember all what your mom has told you, and do the opposite.
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chiron
YOYO member
文章: 520
註冊時間: 週三 10月 03, 2007 4:23 pm

Re: 4/3 (Sat.) Happiness and Money (host: David Jr.)

文章 chiron »

I think this is the book David mentioned that day, right??
Please call me Na'vi!
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