The laws of capitalism say we have to constantly be on the move — work hard, play hard, consume hard, rinse and repeat. In an age where you're supposed to optimize everything, maybe it's fine to just be … fine. "You really do need to work hard and earn a lot (or inherit a lot) to live in decent material conditions in these contexts," he said. Related storiesAs the old saying goes, money doesn't equal happiness (though I have a hard time believing it doesn't help). "There's a hell of a lot of people who are really going to be normal or average, ordinary.

---

Persons: Thomas Curran, we're, Curran, Avram Alpert, Alpert, Barry Schwartz, Swarthmore College who's, Schwartz, Nathan Cheek, We're, doesn't, influencers, You've, Taylor Swift, Kelly Goldsmith, Jamie Ducharme, Goldsmith, they've, —, isn't, it's, Beyoncé, Emily Stewart Organizations: London School of Economics, Swarthmore College, Purdue, YouTube, Vanderbilt University, American Psychological Association, Ivy League ., Business Locations: America, Greece