Money, money, money! Think of all of the intense emotions that money creates. There's probably nothing else in your life that makes you crazier, more desperate, and more unrealistic. I'm sure that like most people you have quite a love-hate relationship with money. At the very least, finances seems to always be at the forefront of your thoughts and your life. It seems to rule your life.

Almost everyone believes that if they just had more money, they would be happy. But, guess what? It's not true! Money, in and of itself, does not bring happiness—it's been proven again and again. In 1997, Hong and Duff researched twenty factors that most people believed contribute to our happiness. There were nineteen factors that they found do increase our happiness level. But, surprise, surprise...money was not one of them! Financial prosperity, in fact, seems to have almost no effect on our level of happiness. Let that fact sink deep into your brain.

You may think that somehow you are different. If you could just make $25,000 more a year, you could pay the bills and mortgage and live stress-fee. That would surely make a person happy, right? Wrong...and the research proves it.

So, how can we truly realize that money doesn't buy happiness? How on earth can it be done? Well, for starters, if you believe that mere money will make you happy, then you have a dysfunctional relationship with money. You are placing unrealistic expectations upon what your finances can do for you. The first thing you need to do is fix your relationship with money so that it is healthy and functional.

Don't get me wrong. We all need money. We need to pay the rent, buy groceries, and pay for the car repairs. Those things aren't magically going to take care of themselves. So, yes, in a nutshell we do need a certain amount of financial security. But, once we attain the basic necessities of food and shelter, it really doesn't matter how much we make. We're not going to be happier making $150,000 a year.

This is the story of America. Whenever we make more money, we want more things. We spend more, consume more and need more.

A few years ago, Showtime produced an interesting documentary. The documentary profiled Ted Rodrigue who had been homeless for more than a decade. Ted was not an alcoholic or drug-addict. He was completely sound of mind and body. Ted blamed bad luck and unfortunate circumstances on his homelessness.

Showtime gave Ted $100,000 in order to help him turn his life around. In addition, they offered him counseling and an opportunity for employment. Showtime was interested in seeing if money would solve and erase all of Ted's problems.

In just a matter of months, Ted had spent all of his money and was once again homeless. Money had not changed him or solved any of his problems.

We tend to view this story with judgment. We somehow think that we would never make the same decisions that Ted did. But, why do over 90% of ALL people who come into money lose it after a few years? Moreover, most of these same people end up declaring bankruptcy and are worse-off than where they started!

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