Education, money and Happiness
A student wrote to me: “My family told me that I need to go to school, to get a job, make a lot of money, and be happy. Why do I need to go to school to be happy? What else can I do to be happier? Please advise.”
Answer: You go to school to get educated. The goals of education are to help you to understand the world that you are living in and your responsibilities to yourself, to your family, your country, and the world. The more education you have, the better informed you are about what is going on in your environment so you can make a better decision. A prosperous country depends on its people who are informed about all social issues and take part in their duties to support, defend, and help improve the lives of their people.
Making money is NEVER the goal of education. To get a job, you need to have certain knowledge and skills and you go to school to learn and develop such skills. How well you are doing on your job and how much money you make depend on other factors such as your skills, your luck, to do the right thing at the right time etc.
DO NOT associate an education with money or happiness. Money does NOT EQUAL HAPPINESS. Happiness is a state of mind and being content with life. People who have a lot of money NEVER happy because they are always living in fear of losing it. Can you be happy and fearful at the same time? Of course, you may not experience it until you have a lot of money. People who are obsessed with money are always anxious and stressful. If they have some money, they always want more and NEVER happy with their lives.
DO NOT confuse happiness with getting what you want. You want a motorcycle, and you get it, maybe you are happy for a week or so then what is next? Then you want something else. As long as you want something and get it, you feel happy but what happens when you DO NOT get it? Of course, you are unhappy. Happiness is a STATE OF MIND, not something you can get or seek.
You go to school to be educated so you understand yourself and your responsibilities. As long you understand yourself and content with your life, happiness will come naturally.
Sources
- Blogs of Prof. John Vu, Carnegie Mellon University
