How To Be Happy

From yesterday's Wall Street Journal, some advice:

Think carefully about how you spend your dollars. While a new car may not boost your happiness for long, maybe a trip to Europe would.

"Money itself doesn't make you happy," [Harvard psychology professor Daniel] Gilbert says. "What can make you happy is what you do with it. There's a lot of data that suggests experiences are better than durable goods."

The car might seem like the better purchase, because it has lasting value. But, in fact, it sits in the driveway, slowly deteriorating. "Experiences don't hang around long enough to disappoint you," Prof. Gilbert says. "What you have left are wonderful memories."

This rings true to me.