Adding on to this, I am 100% certain I would be happier if I had enough money to retire right now and maintain my current lifestyle. I might even choose to keep working, but that piece of mind would definitely make me happier in general.

It's a qualia thing [1]. You have a certain understanding of happiness and that happiness can be bought with money. Try the steel man [1] approach and try to figure out which idea of happiness cannot be bought with money.

The statement also doesn't say that money makes people sad. Your form of happiness, would you still be happy if you don't have money?

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qualia

[2] https://lifehacker.com/utilize-the-steel-man-tactic-to-argue...

You don't understand it because the mental model as presented by the statement is too simple.

Money can make LOTS of people VERY happy, up to a certain point. Supposedly after 80k$, after you've been relieved of basic stresses like rent and finding food, more money will make you less happy per increment.

If you are an unhappy person with a minimum of 80k$, then the bottleneck to your happiness is not money.

Merely more money doesn't make ALL people happy ALL the time.

The cutoff is definitely much higher than $80k in the Bay Area. You would basically be homeless at that level of household income.

I make 80k in Austin - a city that's still relatively high in terms of living costs, compared to the rest of the country.

On that I can afford to live in a very comfortable apartment without roommates, eat out at decent (non-fast-food) restaurants for basically every meal if I want to, have an active social life and hobbies, and still put about 10% into savings each month. I can easily say that making more money would not have an impact on my happiness.

The Bay Area is so non-representative of the U.S. that it's not even funny.

well said

It depends on your own definition of happiness and your moral compass. It's pretty easy to confound shallow joys with lasting happiness.

Are you genuinely happy when you have a nice car and nice clothes, or are you merely matching the expectations of happiness of our current society? These things are the very definition of status symbol, and ultimately they are out of you control.

Imho happiness based on material things is very limited once you have the basics. When your parents are one step from death, when you get a kid, when your good health will slowly leave you &c. Your Porsche and your nice cloths will be way down on your list of happiness sources.

Basing internal happiness on external things seems like a recipe for disaster. First there is no limit on how much shit money can buy, second material things have no power against the true life hardships. You might temporarily delay some of them but that's a far cry from "happiness".

I don’t buy the status symbol thing. You buy a car like that for what you can do with it when no one else is around. When there are people to see you driving it, it’s going to waste. (Except at a track day, but you’re really unlikely to have the flashiest car at a track day, even with a Porsche).

Skiing requires skis. Hiking requires boots. Photography requires a camera. Driving requires a car. Sure you can do all of those activities much more cheaply, and spending will not automatically improve your skills or enjoyment, but when you are really into something there is a certain very real pleasure in using excellent gear. It’s not social status, in fact it often costs social status and stresses relationships to nerd out about your hobby that way.

Money is not sufficient on its own to buy happiness if you have more deep-seated issues in your life. At least that‘s what I‘ve always taken the quote to mean.

I think the line is intended to mean that hoarding money at the expense of the rest of your life isn't a good way to live.

Work life balance and all that.

Prospect Theory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prospect_theory

People measure happiness through gains and losses, not total accumulation. Having more disposable income means a higher probability of gains.

A certain level of money is necessary but not sufficient.

Just reading my Porsche makes me happy makes me happy.