Can we buy happiness? This perennial question is back at the top of the agenda.
Pharrell Williams, whose gloriously catchy song “Happy” is the biggest international hit in years, declares that you are happy “if you feel like a room without a roof”. Carlos Slim, the Mexican telecoms magnate who was the world’s richest man for many years, suggests that it is time, rather than money, that we should value. He has proposed a three-day working week. People could work three 11-hour days and then enjoy their family.
The idea stirred up much reaction, but it made sense. Latin countries have a working day with a siesta for lunches, or mixing with family. Even though they are poorer in economic terms, many visiting Americans and northern Europeans have the sense that they are happier.