The "cult of never enough" encourages the belief that more money, possessions and achievements will make us happy. But Manisha Thakor has learnt through personal experience that emotional wealth is more important than financial wealth. Listen to learn how to redefine your success.
Manisha Thakor is the author of the book Money Zen: Escape the Cult of Never Enough and Reclaim Your Life. In this episode of Behavioral Grooves, she discusses with Kurt and Tim how she chased the American dream of financial success for 30 years before realizing it had become a nightmare. She became a workaholic and lost sight of what truly brings happiness.
Manisha talks about how the "cult of never enough" encourages the belief that more money, possessions and achievements will make us happy. However, she realized that emotional wealth is more important than financial wealth. She discusses the importance of financial health over wealth, which includes having enough to meet your needs without stress.
How does society measure success in terms of money, power and productivity rather than by character and contribution? Manisha talks about the Buddhist concept of the "hungry ghost" which represents our insatiable desires. She argues that the answer is often "less" - shedding commitments, possessions and being still in nature.
Listen to find out how to redefine success beyond financial wealth and move towards a balance of financial health and emotional wealth.
If you’d like to support the work of Behavioral Grooves, you can become a Behavioral Grooves Patreon member.
Topics
(3:45) Welcome and speed round questions.
(5:54) What is a busy badge?
(8:57) The social comparison aspect of wealth.
(13:00) The rise of the Blackberry culture.
(20:34) What you do is who you are?
(24:13) Chasing after the American Dream.
(28:46) A classic second generation immigrant story.
(31:08) Emotional wealth and financial health.
(38:42) What is the Hungry Ghost?
(42:58) The music Manisha would take to a desert island.
(46:29) Grooving Session with Kurt and Tim on redefining success.
© 2023 Behavioral Grooves
Links
Manisha Thakor’s book, MoneyZen: The Secret to Finding Your "Enough": https://amzn.to/3JtuuXV
Episode 102, Cristina Bicchieri: Social Norms are Bundles of Expectations: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/cristina-bicchieri-social-norms-are-bundles-of-expectations/
Dr Malissa Clark – University of Georgia: https://psychology.uga.edu/directory/people/malissa-clark
Matthew A. Killingsworth, Daniel Kahneman and Barbara Mellers (2022) “Income and emotional well-being: A conflict resolved”: https://www.pnas.org/doi/epdf/10.1073/pnas.2208661120
Episode 215, Secrets of Subtraction: Donut Holes, Lego and Bruce Springsteen with Leidy Klotz: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/subtraction-with-leidy-klotz/
Schulte Brigid, “Why being too busy makes us feel so good,” Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-being-too-busy-makes-us-feel-so-good/2014/03/14/c098f6c8-9e81-11e3-a050-dc3322a94fa7_story.html
DeGreeff, B., Burnett, A., & Cooley, D. (2009). “Communicating authenticity or inauthenticity in a fast-paced world,” Journal of Happiness Studies: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225649342_Communicating_and_Philosophizing_About_Authenticity_or_Inauthenticity_in_a_Fast-Paced_World
The Hungry Ghost: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hungry_ghost
MoneyZen quiz online: https://quiz.tryinteract.com/#/646d1000fec8ca0014804a9e
Behavioral Grooves Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/behavioralgrooves
Musical Links
Vivaldi “Four Seasons”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRxofEmo3HA
Lionel Hampton “Flying Home”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_rTICMVXQQ
Want Marketing That’s Effective? Use a Behavioral Science Perspective | Nancy Harhut
Can Psychology Tell Us What Makes A Good Life? With Paul Bloom, Part 2
Psychology: Should Freud Still Be On The Syllabus? Paul Bloom, Part 1
What Do You Really Want? Understand The Desires We All Share | Charlotte Fox Weber
How One Small Word Can Transform Our Motivation, Success And Relationships | Jonah Berger
A Guide To The Ambitious Future of Behavioral Science with Michael Hallsworth PhD
Surprising Ways To End Poverty and Solve Climate Change with Erik Angner PhD
Why You Don‘t Need to be Powerful to be Influential | Vanessa Bohns [Republish]
You Work. You Parent. But Can You Also Thrive? | Yael Schonbrun PhD
The Tools You Need To Embrace Uncertainty | Nathan Furr and Susannah Harmon Furr
How To Frame Incentives To Drive The Desired Behavior | James Castello
The Myth of the “Relationship Spark” with Logan Ury, featuring guest appearance by Christina Gravert, PhD [Republish]
Why Resilience Is More Than Just Bouncing Back | Gabriella Rosen Kellerman MD
Why Human Connection Is The Key To Effective Branding | Matt Johnson
Why The Best Choice Can Sometimes Be An Imperfect Choice | Michelle Segar PhD
Top 2 Tips on How to Read a Book Quickly
How Behavioral Science Can Tackle Misinformation And Obesity | Evelyn Gosnell
The 3 Steps To Getting Your Groove Back In The New Year
Make It Scale: How To Drive Behavior Change Initiatives | Neela Saldanha PhD
The Best Behavioral Science Books Of 2022 (According to Kurt and Tim!)
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Poetry of Science
Hidden Brain
The Science of Happiness
Choiceology with Katy Milkman
Mysterious Radio: Paranormal, UFO & Lore Interviews