Personally, I prefer to talk about irrationality in the context of wealth accumulation. I think it makes sense to acquire more and more possessions if it increases our happiness in life, allows us to help other people, gives us a little more freedom or security, improves our relationships, allows us to spend our time doing something more enjoyable, etc. We can then describe irrational situations where someone should prefer leisure in terms of personal happiness and life satisfaction, but instead concentrates on making money.
We can then describe as irrational situations where someone should prefer leisure in terms of personal happiness and life satisfaction, but instead concentrates on making money. Or they don’t change to a lower paid job that they would enjoy more, even though they don’t really need the extra money. Or in situations where he could invest the money in a relationship, he keeps it in his bank account and is left with a fuller bank account and loneliness.
It’s obviously a matter of personal situation and stage of life. Parents of teenagers need a lot of money, childless people just a little.
And it’s definitely true that the world is full of slackers. But in my environment I see more of an irrational focus on making money. It’s a shame that we usually don’t know what makes us happy. And that we haven’t learned to think about such things. The fact that I want something so badly doesn’t usually mean anything. The acquisition of such things ends in a quick hedonistic adaptation. The brain gets used to it in a few months and the happiness of life returns to its original level.