From Elizabeth Dunn’s “Happier Spending”
Humans Adapt to Almost Everything. To Maximize Gratitude and Overcome Adaptation, Make Things Scarce.
“Abundance, it turns out, is the enemy of appreciation. Many of us are lucky enough to live in a society where chocolate is available in every supermarket, gas station, and movie theater. Ironically, though, this abundance may undermine our enjoyment of it.” (p. 27)
“If abundance is the enemy of appreciation, scarcity may be our best ally.” (p. 34)
- A group of students ate chocolate and then told not to eat chocolate for one week.
Another group of students were given chocolate and told to eat as much chocolate as they comfortable could for one week.
After one week, both groups were given chocolate. The group that didn’t eat chocolate for one week, enjoyed chocolate much more than the other group. - The author used to drink Latte every day. She realized she didn’t appreciate Latte anymore. Now she drinks regular coffee every day, and only drinks Latte once in a while as a treat. She truly enjoys her Latte now.
- Fast food restaurants, like Mcdonalds, purposely make certain sandwiches like the McRib “limited time only.” They know that making it scarce will make people want the sandwich even more.
- Derek Lee appreciated his Mini Cooper much more when he drove it rarely and for fun. Now that he drives it every day, he doesn’t get the same excitement. Zipcar understands people are happier when they rent a different fun car for an experience. So Zipcar offers fun cars with colors like a lime green. Luxury rental companies offer Ferraris and Maseratis.
- People who travel often, are less likely to savor each trip, and less likely to appreciate the small details of each trip. “Because Tim has never traveled before, each tiny discovery provides a fresh delight. The more people travel, the less likely they are to savor each trip.” (p. 44)
- The French take their time to savor and enjoy their meals more than Americans. They also eat less.
- People like to binge watch TV episodes. Research shows people enjoy the shows more if they take breaks between episodes. In fact people enjoy episodes more when there are commercial breaks. Why? Commercials prevent you from adapting to the show. “Commercials disrupt that adaptation process, so when the show comes back on, we can fall in love with Jim and Pam all over again.” (p. 42)
- Research show people enjoy songs more when there was an interruption. People who listened to a song for 50 seconds with 10 seconds of interruption, liked the songs more than the people who listened to songs with no interruption. They were also willing to pay twice as much to attend a concert by the artist with the 10 second interruption.
- People enjoyed massages more when they were forced to take breaks during the massage. They were also willing to pay more for this massage!
- Getting a lot of small treats is better than getting a large treat. “The little treats of daily life may provide a purer source of pleasure than people realize.” (p. 51)
- “Limiting your access to everything from the McRib to Maseratis helps to reset your cheerometer. That is, knowing you can’t have access to something all the time may help you appreciate it more when you do.” (p. 42)
Other Good Quotes About Making Things Scarce.
“When Kristen Martini was in her mid-thirties, she moved from a large suburban home to a tiny cottage in the woods, taking only some food, a bit of clothing, and her two children, and leaving behind the enviable trappings of her comfortable life. The values and goals that prompted this move—placing personal growth and fulfillment above image and financial success—are indeed strongly linked to happiness.” (p. 35)
“All else being equal, most people report they would rather have a larger number of smaller pleasures, rather than a smaller number of larger pleasures. For example, people prefer to get $5 a day for five days, rather than $25 all on one day. But all else is rarely equal. From an economic perspective, the ninety-minute massage at the Four Seasons is clearly the better deal. But consider whether it’s a better deal from your perspective. Three thirty-minute massages give you three treats instead of one experience that you’ll likely tire of before it’s over, providing you with a bigger happiness payoff for each dollar spent.” (p. 52)
“When couples do novel, exciting things together, the relationship itself feels novel and exciting.” (p. 48)