What Color Is Your Parachute 2018 by Richard N. Bolles copy

Money is important. Or else we’re reduced to bitcoins or to barter, for our
food, clothing, and shelter. So, when we’re out of work, unless we have
huge amounts of money in our savings account or investments, we are
inevitably thinking: “What am I going to do, so that I have enough money
to put food on the table, clothes on my back, and a roof over our heads for
myself—and for my family or partner (if I have one)?”
Happiness is important, too. So, we may find ourselves thinking: “How
much do I really need to be earning, for me to be truly happy with my
life?”
Are these two worries—money and happiness—related? Can money
buy happiness?
Partly, it turns out. Partly. A study, published in 2010, of the responses
of 450,000 people in the U.S. to a daily survey, found that the less money
they made, the more unhappy they tended to be, day after day. 6 No
surprise, there. And, obviously, the more money they made, measured in
terms of percentage improvement, the happier they tended to be, as
measured by the frequency and intensity of moments of smiling, laughter,
affection, and joy all day long, vs. moments of sadness, worry, and stress.
So, money does buy happiness. But only up to a point. That point was
found to be around $75,000 annual income (at the end of 2011, median
household income was $51,413 7 ). If people made more money than
$75,000, it of course further improved their satisfaction with how their life
was going, but it did not increase their happiness. Above $75,000, they
started to report reduced ability to spend time with people they liked, to
enjoy leisure, and to savor small pleasures. Happiness depends on things
like that, and on other factors too: good health, a loving relationship,
loving friends, a feeling of competence, gaining mastery, respect, praise,
or even love, because we are really good at what we do.
So, this petal cannot be filled out all by itself. It is inextricably tied to
the other petals—most particularly, to what you love to do, and where you
love to do it.
Still, salary is something you must think out ahead of time, when you’re
contemplating your ideal job or career. Level goes hand in hand with
salary, of course. So here are a couple of questions you should be asking
yourself:
1. At what level would you like to work, in your ideal job?