&gt;we get more long term happiness from experiences than from thing<p>That doesn&#x27;t mean &quot;don&#x27;t spend money on things.&quot; Things can and do (and should!) enable experiences.<p>I&#x27;ll buy a high-end laptop I&#x27;ll spend a great many hours using it, and experience of using it is better than the experience of using something cheaper. (Seriously, when I see people fighting their POS trackpads and 15-second seek times to do basic window management operations, it&#x27;s no wonder they&#x27;re not into computers.)<p>I&#x27;ll buy a good car because the experience of driving something comfortable and responsive with a pleasant interior is better than the experience of driving a shit heap, and I actually like driving.<p>I&#x27;ll buy $500 headphones because listening to music on them is <i>amazing</i>.<p>I&#x27;ll buy a $500 DSLR because having the shutter actually respond when I press the shutter button is <i>amazing</i>.<p>We can even go less obvious: I&#x27;ll buy fashionable clothes because people will treat me with more respect and interest if I look put-together.