As the CEO and founder of Amazon,
the multibillion dollar online shopping company,
Jeff Bezos is the richest person on the planet.
With a current net worth of $193.7 billion,
Bezos can buy just about anything.
If you're feeling good about
that $100,000 salary of yours,
Jeff makes about that every minute.
That's $6 million per hour.
Jeez, I think it's time to ask for that raise.
So, what would you do with all that money?
As a former Wall Street computer engineer,
Jeff's humble beginnings with Amazon
began in 1994.
It all started in his garage in Seattle.
What began as an online store for books,
CDs and software
grew quickly during the internet boom.
By 1997, Amazon stock was up by 40%,
netting Jeff a cozy $12 billion.
Fast forward twenty years,
Amazon has dominated
the online marketplace
and has grown astronomically.
With all this newfound wealth,
Jeff made the single-largest
charitable contribution ever.
$10 billion to help fight climate change.
But as far as his net worth goes,
that's a tiny drop in the bucket.
How about a shirt made of pure gold
for only $250,000?
Ooh, shiny.
Or maybe a $276,000
Mongolian dinosaur skull suits your fancy?
Any interest in a 14 ft (4.2 m) preserved shark
for $12 million?
Or, if you want your tushy to feel pampered,
how about a 24-carat solid gold toilet?
Talk about flushing
your hard-earned money down the drain.
With Jeff's riches,
you could pick up
a $65 million Gulfstream private jet
or even purchase citizenship
to a foreign country.
Want to be an Austrian citizen?
A passport will cost you
a whopping $23.7 million.
Citizenship to Cyprus,
Malta,
Turkey,
and certain Caribbean islands
is also up for grabs.
With hundreds of billions of dollars,
the sky's the limit.
If you got the money overnight,
you'd likely be invited to apply for
the Centurion Card from American Express,
the ultra-exclusive credit card
made of black titanium.
Or, if you're feeling more like Scrooge McDuck,
you could liquidate everything
and fill your home with a mountain of cash.
But this would remove 15.7%
of the U.S. currency in circulation.
Okay, would all of this money make you happy?
You might be surprised.
A study published in the journal
Nature Human Behaviour found that
the richer we get, the less happy we become.
Once you reach $105,000 in household income,
any more money
tends to be associated with
reduced life satisfaction
and a lower level of well-being.
And that's not just because of higher taxes.
The "treadmill effect"
is a term coined by psychologist
Elizabeth Lombardo.
We think more things
or more money will make us happy,
but as soon as we get it, we wonder
what's next?
Could more happiness be around the corner?
Should I buy 10 exotic cars
instead of just one?
Gimme, gimme, gimme.
Both children and adults
are affected by this phenomenon.
Children of affluent families
are more likely to suffer from depression,
anxiety,
and substance abuse later in life.
So, parents,
you might want to slow down on the toys.
Your three-year-old does not need an iPad.
Researchers at the Harvard Business Review
have concluded that wealth is isolating.
The more status we have,
the more we feel a psychological urge
to distance ourselves from others.
This can possibly be due
to a feeling of competition or selfishness,
but also a general lack of reliance
on other people for survival.
Many of the wealthiest elites are workaholics.
Like Elon Musk, whose plans to colonize Mars,
build electric cars,
and develop brain implants
keep him busy enough that
he only sleeps six hours a night.
Being extremely wealthy also makes you
a much higher target for kidnappers
and the paparazzi.
So good luck going out
to your favorite restaurant.
Aside from the glitz and glamour,
could charitable donations
bring you happiness?
Becoming a philanthropist
could certainly solve
a lot of global problems.
689 million people are
living in extreme poverty worldwide.
This number is expected to grow
by 115 million people this year
due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
If you gave 804 million people
just $3.20,
the money needed to surpass
the lowest poverty threshold,
it would cost you $1.05 billion.
Mere pocket change for Jeff Bezos.
Around 2.2 billion people
don't have access to clean water globally.
But not even Jeff Bezos' fortune
could solve this problem entirely.
You could, however,
help the folks in Flint, Michigan.
Around 140,000 residents have been exposed
to poisonous lead in their water supply.
Replacing the lead pipes
would cost you anywhere from
a few billion to $50 billion.
Even if you're not a billionaire or a millionaire,
experiences bring us the most joy.
It won't cost you a penny to volunteer
at food banks or shelters.
And there are plenty of opportunities
to volunteer abroad and help the less fortunate.
All in all, no matter what you earn,
it's important to be thankful for what you have.
Still, I know some of you may be dreaming
about buying your first Lamborghini
or paying off your student loans.
Maybe stocking up on Bitcoin could help?
Just bear in mind,
this is not investment advice,
but it is a story for another What If.