Money or Happiness ( Or Both )

I ran across this interesting graph in another article I was reading this morning.

The theory behind the graph is that money and happiness are inversely related. The more money you make, the less you do of the things you love to do. The graph, courtesy of Juhan Sonin:

This relates to my post earlier in the month on becoming a manager. It has been confirmed in meetings this week where I work currently. The higher you get in an organization, the less you do of the things you really love to do ( typically ). Instead, you are telling other people what to do.

If your life’s goal is to retire with a gold watch and put in years of service to an organization, that’s certainly a fine career path.

I just wonder how much you miss the juice of taking on impossible problems, getting your hands dirty, and coming out on top.