Priceless Moments
The full moon lit up my children's faces as they slept peacefully in their upstairs bedroom. I nestled between them, feeling their warmth, smelling their sweetness, and listening to their soft breaths. Despite knowing I should return to my own bed, I lingered, overwhelmed by a flood of motherly love. Moments like these are priceless.
Scientific research suggests that while money is necessary for survival and daily needs, it's not the sole source of joy in life. Many essential joys can be experienced without spending money.
How can Let's Play Music classes help you and your family increase your happiness?
Happy Money
Inspired by the book, "Happy Money: The Science of Smarter Spending" by Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton, I will touch on the answers to these questions.
"Happy Money" outlines five basic principles that relate to how we spend money and our happiness level. Here are some great quotes from the book along with some of my thoughts on how they relate to music class:
1. Buy Experiences
"Think of purchases you've made with the goal of increasing your own happiness. Consider one purchase that was a material thing, a tangible object that you could keep, like a piece of jewelry or furniture, some clothing, or a gadget. Now think about a purchase you made that gave you a life experience -- perhaps a trip, a concert, or a special meal. Which of these purchases made you happier? Faced with this question, some 57% of Americans reported that the experiential purchase made them happier than the material purchase, while only 34% reported the opposite."
Parents investing in Let's Play Music classes enrich their child's life with music and provide unique, positive experiences. Children love the classes for their fun atmosphere. Parents also enjoy participating, fostering bonding moments and learning ways to integrate class experiences into daily life. Research highlights that such experiences contribute more to happiness than material goods, fostering connections and enriching life stories.
2. Make It a Treat
"The more we're exposed to something, the more its impact diminishes."
Maybe it's a good thing we don't have music class every day! Many parents have shared stories of their children eagerly waking up and asking, "Is today music class?" I love their enthusiasm!
"In a study of working adults in Belgium, wealthier individuals reported a lower proclivity to savor life's little pleasures… This phenomenon helps explain why the relationship between income and happiness is weaker than many people expect."
Research shows that just thinking about money can make you enjoy the pleasures of life less. So once your tuition is paid, forget about the money, and enjoy the special moments and fun times.
"Knowing that something won't last forever can make us appreciate it more. Recognizing that an end is near holds a key to happiness, helping us turn readily available comforts back into treats."
Childhood passes quickly, and children's minds are most receptive for only a short time. Embracing music education during this critical period can profoundly impact their lives. After three years of Let's Play Music (and possibly two years of Sound Beginnings before that), time will seem to have flown by.
3. Buy Time
"What matters most for human well-being: social relationships. People experience the most positive moods of the day while spending time with family and friends. A recent study with a nationally representative sample of Americans revealed that playing with children produced more positive feelings than almost any other common daily activity."
I cherish teaching and playing with children each week, and I'm grateful parents join us in class, enjoying activities and games with their kids. It's vital to me that parents share in the joy!
Swapping TV for music activities like class, piano practice, and family games can bring more happiness and value to our lives. Television, popular as it is, often lacks the emotional rewards of active leisure.
Let's trade TV time for music time! Joining class, practicing, listening to the albums, and playing games together are all great ways to maximize happiness and value from your time and money.
"Time and money promote different mind-sets. We view our choices about how to spend time as being deeply connected to our sense of self. In contrast, choices about money often lead us to think in a relatively cold, rational manner. Focusing on time frees people to prioritize happiness and social relationships."
Consider how investing in Let's Play Music impacts your time. While it adds to your schedule, what else would you be doing with that time? Likely, it wouldn't bring as much happiness or positively influence your life as much as a music education can!
4. Pay Now, Consume Later
Imagine going on a date with your spouse. You hire a babysitter, who charges by the hour. As time passes, you find yourself calculating the babysitter's fee rather than enjoying the moment. Later, during a taxi ride, you're preoccupied with the cost and duration instead of savoring the experience.
"Now imagine that you had prepaid for both the taxi and the babysitter the previous week. At the moment you paid, you will still experience the pain of paying. You have to suck it up at some point. But how might prepayment change your evening? When you pay for something, you experience the pain of paying. But how can prepaying for something change your experience?"
"Paying now and consuming later can help us take the long view, turning us into better stewards of our own well-being."
Asking people to register five months in advance helps them enjoy later without financial worry. Some parents pay for the entire semester upfront, freeing them to fully enjoy Let's Play Music without ongoing financial concerns. The peace of mind can be so worth it!
5. Invest in Others
I've complained about how much my kids cost, but investing in others actually increases happiness. Giving money away can be as fulfilling as earning more.
"The benefits of investing in others don't stop at just making you feel happier. Giving your money away can make you physically healthier, and even make you feel financially wealthier. In a study of more than a thousand older adults, individuals who provide money and other forms of support to both relatives and nonrelatives reported better overall health. This relationship held after taking into account income, mobility, and other variables."
Consider the money you spend on worthwhile activities for your children as money well-spent. Investing in your children benefits you as well as them. It's a win-win!
I hope you can see how buying the experience of music class, making class a treat, having fun with your children during class, paying for class in advance, and investing in your children can truly bring more joy and happiness into you and your family's lives!
The wonderful Let's Play Music program allows you to utilize all these principles to increase your happiness.
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