What Can You Buy That Will Make You Long-Term Happy? Here You Go.

A raft of new research suggests spending money on an experience will make you happier than those new shoes or a Borsalino Super Fino Montecristi Men’s Fedora ($950).

“We’re moving from a conspicuous consumption – which is ‘buy without regard’ – to a ‘calculated consumption,’” says Marshal Cohen, an analyst at the NPD Group, a retailing research and consulting firm.

One of the key practices along these lines is that “experiences” trump “material objects.” This latest round of research is all about emotional efficiency:  how to reap the most happiness for your dollar.

While scholars and researcher haven’t determined whether Armani will make you smile more than Jason Wu, they have found that our types of purchases, their size and frequency and even the timing of the spending all affect long-term happiness.

The major finding is that spending money for an “unusual” experience – a Spanish immersion, a Yellowstone wolf-tracking trek, cooking lessons in Crete, or working with a medical relief team in Haiti – produces longer-lasting satisfaction than spending money on a trip to eat low-country cuisine in Charleston, South Carolina. (No offense, Charlestonians.)

The new research supports the idea of  sabbaticals as experiences that will contribute more than rejuvenation – but the elusive long-term happiness. And doing something unusual?  You’d be surprised how many ordinary ideas for what to do on a sabbatical can  stretch, and expand into extraordinary sabbatical experiences.

So wear a ball cap. Negotiate a sabbatical in your present job or your new one. Then, do something unusual during that career break. You’ll redeem happiness for every dollar spent.

Reminder: To kick start your sabbatical planning, attend a Meet, Plan, Go! event in one of 13 cities, including Atlanta, where we’re hosts. Sign up! It’s free.