Dubai: Rasheed Khan shows mixed emotions when asked about his life in Dubai.
Far away from his home in Pakistan's Punjab province, Rasheed, a watchman in one of the many residential towers in Al Barsha, Dubai, earns a monthly salary of Dh1,200 and gets to visit his family once in two years.
He supplements his salary by washing cars of some of the residents to make an additional Dh500. He has been provided free accommodation, a tiny room in the premises itself, that allows him to save "a lot".
"Are you happy," I ask him. He takes his time to answer the question. Silent for a while, he then mutters, "Hanh bhi, na bhi!" (yes and no).
"Happy that I am here and working and earning for my family back home. Sad that I am so far away from my family and I am not even able to visit them every year. It's not so easy," Rasheed, 46, says, finding more words to express his feelings.
How important is money to him? "It's for money that we all are here, away from our near and dear ones. And honestly what I earn here I can never think of earning in Pakistan," he says, adding that his job in Dubai over the past six years has helped him buy a plot of land in his hometown and also make the life of his family of six comfortable.
"Money is important for my family's happiness back home," he says. "They are able to live a life free of worry and money I earn here makes that possible."
Rasheed's answer captures the feelings of a majority of blue collar workers who work hard, save and sacrifice immensely to make their families back home happy.
Rasheed's sadness at being far away from his family in Pakistan is brought in clear relief when Bhooma Srirangarajan, an expat Indian design student at the American Univerity Sharjah, says how important is her family's proximity to her own life.
"My family and I are very close and I think I would be much less happy if I didn't have a family than if I had less money," she adds.
"At this point of time, when I have my parents to fall back on money does not play such a big part in my state of happiness. However, I am fully aware that this is subject to change when I am independent or have a family of my own."
These are just two views on the relationship between money and well being in a myriad landscape such as the UAE. A country with more than 200 nationalities, belonging to different religions, professional backgrounds and age groups, it's only to be expected that there would be varying views on the relationship.
But most agree that money matters, though not entirely, in pursuit of happiness as factors of family support and doing good for your family and friends back home come out as equally important.
Economists refer to what is called the "declining marginal utility of money"; which is another way of saying that after those first dollars, additional dollars matter less and less. "For a pauper, a gift of $1,000 is huge, for a billionaire it is no big deal," points out Ed Diener, who carried out the Gallup study. "It requires more dollars to make a difference to well-being as one gets richer. For poor people, even a few dollars matter," he said.
So, what about bankers, more so the investment bankers, a community that came to be much reviled during the financial crisis, have to say about money and happiness? After all they earned opprobrium for their big bonuses and huge payouts, termed obscene by the general populace and the media.
Money is a necessity till some threshold level, which is meeting your basic needs and a level of comfort, private banker Sameena Ahmad acknowledged, but beyond that point, she adds there is no direct correlation between money and happiness.
With the exception of construction workers and others in the lowest income jobs, who would be happy if they earned more, Ahmad believes, most people here in Dubai have crossed that threshold. It's not that the more you earn, the happier you are, she says, confirming what the theory of declining marginal utility of money says.
"Happiness at the end of the day is a state of mind," adds Ahmad, managing director at Bank Sarasin Alpen, which caters to the wealthy of the region. "You cannot buy it, you cannot perceive it. Money may give you momentary joy — that you are able to buy some material thing that you much coveted, but after some time it fades away."
Money is not surprisingly the source of a different kind of happiness for a younger college-going woman like Srirangarajan, who is dependent on parents for financial support. "It's the kind you get when you wear something new or buy something for you house. It provides a feeling of accomplishment," she says.
Instant gratification
"Most of the aspects contributing to happiness need money," says Shaghayegh Attarzadeh, 24, from Iran, who is station manager for Djibouti Air at Dubai International Airport.
While what Attarzadeh says may be true, there can be two ways of looking at money and happiness, when the latter stands for some form of instant gratification, in the form of buying something to satisfy oneself.
"Well, money is important in our daily life because there is no way you can go out and just walk around without thinking of buying anything you like or a gift," says Abdullah Hamadeh, 26, an engineering student. "Also it is not necessary that you should have money. May be you can look today for something and wait for the next day to buy it. But I would rather have money today rather than wait."
But being happy, he adds, is living without any problem from work or from family.
Srirangarajan, who enjoys herself as a designer and illustrator, says: "But, if tomorrow I had less money than someone who does something similar to what I do, I may not be unhappy. But I may want to be a little more competitive and work harder. When I work, I try to achieve the goals I have set for myself; I work to make something I can be proud of rather than something that always pleases people."
For an Emirati, born and raised here in a wealthy family, money is a must for happiness, but not the complete source. "Can money buy happiness? It depends on your status," says Omar Al Shaya, 31 who is in charge of his family's investment portfolio, among other businesses. I come from a wealthy family. A lot of stuff I have I take it for granted."
But he adds, he derives ultimate happiness from his relationships with family, friends, keeping in good health and spirits.
"On the other hand, if I were poor or from under the poverty line, I would definitely tell you money is a major factor," echoing the Gallup World's poll's results.
Recollecting his teenage years, he says he always thought about owning a Mercedes or a BMW. "Now when I have this car, I want a Bugatti. This is a human habit." But Al Shaya was raised by his father and grandfather to always think about others, the less fortunate people. "They taught us that if you have your needs met, then you have everything. Go and help others and God will help you too," he says.
The latest YouGov Siraj survey released last week found slightly over half of those surveyed (53 per cent) are satisfied with the life they lead. Satisfaction levels are particularly high amongst Emiratis and Westerners. However, the study also demonstrates many UAE residents are feeling the pinch this year with 59 per cent saying their overall stress levels have increased compared to last year.
Asian and Arab expats, more than westerners and Emiratis, were experiencing greater financial difficulties this year compared to 2009. Not surprisingly, the same segments —Asians and Arab expats — said their current work situation and business outlook has worsened.
In fact, to some, the meaning of happiness came to assume a different meaning during the financial crisis. They acknowledged money, more so saving money, is important to keep oneself afloat and be able to continue socialising with close friends and colleagues after one loses a job. But it is the support of the family that provides solace and happiness in times of crisis.
Mohammad Tahboub, a Palestinian-Jordianian who grew up in Ajman and now works and lives in Dubai as a public relations professional thanks God that his family is here. At the start of the crisis in 2008, Tahboub was made redundant. Though he was not financially threatened having made savings a priority right from his early professional career, it did cross his mind what turn his situation would take if he failed to get a job in the near future.
"How would I cope financially to meet my needs after I run out of savings and how would I be able to cope socially with my circle of friends and others did affect him psychologically," he says adding that he spent most of his time during that time with his family in Ajman.
"For me waiting for three-and-a-half months was nothing compared to others who were out for 10 months. My family helped me cope with the stress and strain during the time I was out of a job."
Have your say
Would being richer make you happier? Or does one have to compromise on little pleasures in life to make all the money? Tell us what you think.
