During the time I worked as a trainer for the IELTS exams (International English Language Testing System), one of the questions in the speaking section was: Do you think money can make people happy?
Research has shown that money does not necessarily bring happiness. But tell this to a poor daily wage earner who is trying to make ends meet to feed his family and he will scoff in the face of this wisdom.
Money to different people means different things and its value in possession is also subjective — while to an average income earner, having enough money could mean having a decent house, enough to eat, being able to provide security for the family and maybe putting away some for the future, for a millionaire it would mean the ownership of more than one house, luxury cars, the latest mobile, etc.
The desire for money and its subsequent pursuit has been decried as an evil, but how can something which has no power to think or act by itself, possess this quality? Money can only be used as a means to an end and whether it is used to do good or bad will depend upon the possessor.
Wealth in the right hands can save millions of lives, while in the wrong hands it has the power to destroy the same. It can buy a wonderful and fulfilling experience or it can lead one to commit a crime! It is not the possession of money but the avarice that leads one to acquire more than one’s needs which does the evil.
So my answer to the question as to whether money can make people happy would be “Yes”. In wise and conscientious hands, money can bring and spread happiness.
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