less is more... happiness

The idea that you need to go bigger to be happy is false. I really believe that the acquisition of material goods doesn’t bring about happiness. [...] The practices that consumers have adopted in response to the economic crisis ultimately could — as a raft of new research suggests — make them happier. New studies of consumption and happiness show, for instance, that people are happier when they spend money on experiences instead of material objects, when they relish what they plan to buy long before they buy it, and when they stop trying to outdo the Joneses.

- New York Times