The Price of Happiness: When Money Meets Emotion

There is a popular saying that money can’t buy happiness, but let’s be honest to ourselves, sometimes it can buy things that make us feel good, even if only for a while. We all have that one thing that we tend to overspend on, whether it’s a guilty pleasure or a desperate attempt to impress someone. As for me, it was a sleek, wristwatch, something I didn’t really need but convinced myself to venture into it.

Some years back, I found myself in a situation whereby I wanted to impress someone. Not just anyone, but a mentor that I deeply respected. He was a man of high class, always dressed in the finest suits, with confidence that made people stop and listen when he spoke. Infact, if you see him walking and you dont look at him twice it means you have neck pain. I wanted to earn his approval, not just through my work ethic, but by showing that I belonged in his world as well.

One day, we were attending an exclusive networking business seminar. I had one expensive suit, polished shoes, and the well-rehearsed confidence. But i felt that something was missing somewhere. When I looked around, I noticed how the men in my mentor’s circle carried themselves with pride, the way they checked their wristwatches subtly, as if time itself was a valuable asset that they controlled. That was when I decided, I needed a statement piece, something that spoke without words.

The next day, I walked into a luxury watch store with heart pounding, as I scanned the glass cases. I knew I couldn’t afford the brands in cash, so I opted for an installment plan, something I tagged “investment.” The watch gleamed in the light, so heavy on my wrist, but I felt happy and satisfied.

Did it work? To some extent, yes. My mentor noticed the watch, nodded approvingly, and made a passing comment about “good taste.” It was a small moment, but it fueled my confidence for a while. I believed that the watch had given me access to different set of people.

Furthermore, as the months go by, the excitement faded leaving me with the monthly payments which became a burden, and I realized that my mentor never truly cared about the watch. What really impressed him more was my dedication, my ideas, and the way I handled challenges. The watch had been admired, an illusion of success rather than the real thing.

Nevertheless, I don’t regret the experience I had, rather, it taught me a valuable lesson about self-worth and the things we chase to impress others. Sometimes, we overspend to fill an emotional gap, we showoff just to make all eyes on you, others where we should be building confidence from within.

Money can buy temporary happiness, but real fulfillment comes from who we are, not what we wear. That day, I learned that true success is not in a wristwatch, it’s in the person wearing it.

Thanks for reading.