A New York Times article reviews research conducted on the benefits of higher income.

The research shows: “Additional income doesn’t buy us any additional happiness once we reach that comfortable standard. The magic number that defines this ‘comfortable standard’ varies across individuals and countries, but in the United States, it seems to fall somewhere around $75,000. Using Gallup data collected from almost half a million Americans, researchers at Princeton found that … the beneficial effects of money tapered off entirely after the $75,000 mark.”

Much of the article discusses how “under-indulging” and being generous to others creates more happiness.

So if you use my Back-of-the-Envelope Breakeven exercise and are wondering how much personal draw you should aim for, consider that less is more, sometimes.