Stop Buying Stuff (It’s Making You Miserable) (Level 1)

People love to buy things. Sometimes we buy what we need. But often, we buy things we do not need. This fills our homes with junk. Buying too much is a problem. It costs money, time, and energy. Many people buy expensive things just to look good to others. But does buying things make us happy? Studies show that new things only make us happy for a short time. Soon, we want something better. Old philosophers understood this. A man named Diogenes owned almost nothing. Because he had nothing to lose, he felt completely free. Another philosopher, Epicurus, said we only need simple things to be happy, like food, water, and friends. Wanting to be rich only brings stress. When we want less, we are free. We do not have to worry about money. We can focus on what truly makes us happy.