Buy Experiences, Not Things By James Hamblin

“Buy Experiences, Not Things” by James Hamblin explains how buying experiences rather than materials can make you happier; it can increase social interaction, decrease the likelihood of comparison, and even bad experiences can turn into a good story.
One key aspect from Hamblin’s article is you’re less likely to compare your experience to others. “People couldn’t decide if they wanted lower pay that is higher than their peers or higher pay that is lower than their peers. Although when it came to vacation days, the decision between getting 2 weeks while your peers get 1 and getting 4 weeks while your peers get 8 was easily made with little hesitation” (Pg. 3, Para. 2). When it came to money, a material thing, they were so worried about being compared to their peers salary that they had a tough time choosing higher or lower pay. But when it came to a vacation, a real life experience, they easily chose to have more days off and ignore the fact that their peers got twice the amount they did. If you spend less time comparing yourself to others, you will have more time to enjoy your experiences which, in the long run, will make you much happier.
“Even if it was negative in the moment, it becomes positive after the fact. That’s a lot harder to do with material purchases because they’re right in front of you” (Pg. 4, Para. 2). If you can turn a bad experience into a good story that you can look back on and laugh about, you will be much happier than if you buy a material that makes you upset. You have no way to make the situation with the material into a good one but a bad situation in real life can easily turned into a fun