The list did seem to correlate fairly well
with the UN’s list of per capita GDP by country, with one notable exception:
Latin America, which dominated the top of the list. Latin American countries
accounted for ten of the top eleven spots; the only non-Latin American country
to break the top ten was Denmark. The happiest country was Paraguay, with 87%
of adults being happy. Nicaragua came in at the number 4 spot, with 83% of
adults being happy. The United States came in at number 24, with 78% of adults
being happy. The difference between happiness rates of 78%, 83%, and 87% may
not seem like much, but it also means unhappiness rates of 22% in the United
States, 17% in Nicaragua, and 13% in Paraguay; so Americans are 29% more likely
to be unhappy than Nicaraguans, and 69% more likely to be unhappy than
Paraguayans.
This of course begs a couple questions:
why are Latin Americans so happy? What makes them happier than people in far
wealthier countries like the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand,
Japan, and most European countries? What makes Latin Americans different? I’m
not sure what the answer is, but I think it’s probably a cultural difference.
They’re happy because they do things that make them happy. The United States
has a per capita GDP that is nearly thirty times as high as that of Nicaragua,
and yet they are happier than us. It seems like they just have a culture of
happiness.
As Americans, we like to pretend we know
what it’s like to live in countries like Nicaragua. We feel bad for people who
live in “third-world countries” (a term which I despise). I’ve even heard
people refer to countries like Nicaragua as “third-world shitholes”. We seem to
constantly look down upon these countries and feel bad for the people who live
there…and yet many of them are happier than us.
The ultimate question in life, the
question that everyone should always strive to answer for themselves, I
believe, is this: how can I be happier? Sure, more money would probably help,
but I don’t think that’s the best answer. I think the problem is that Americans
chase happiness; we desire it so much that it consumes us, without us even
realizing it. We chase things that we think will make us happier, but it never
works. To quote David Foster Wallace: “If you worship money and things, if they
are where you tap real meaning in life, then you will never…feel you have
enough… Worship your own body and beauty and sexual allure and you will always
feel ugly… Worship power [and] you will end up feeling weak and afraid, and you
will need ever more power over others to numb you to your own fear. Worship
your intellect, being seen as smart, [and] you will end up feeling stupid, a
fraud, always on the verge of being found out.”
I think the better answer is to do
things that already make us happy, instead of things that we’re certain will
make us happier in the future. I think Henry David Thorough put it best: “Happiness
is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if
you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your
shoulder.”