How Much .....?

Reading "Social... why our brains are wired to connect" has been a delight.  You can get Matthew Liebermann's highlights in his Ted Talk https://youtu.be/NNhk3owF7RQ but I highly recommend the book for many interesting stories and details.

Just how much are social aspects of our lives worth?  Putting a price tag on friends, relatives, and neighbors.  Having a friend whom you see on most days, compared to not having such a friend, had the same impact on well-being as making an extra $100K per year.  Being married is also worth $100K while a divorce is equivalent of your salary slashed by $90K. Seeing a neighbor  regularly -$60K.   And physical health  - $400K.

Interestingly -  the savings a couple needs for medical is $245K (see https://www.fidelity.com/about-fidelity/employer-services/health-care-costs-for-couples-retirement-rise).  But more interesting is the difference between a healthy person and unhealthy person (5 chronic health conditions and 5 prescription drugs) during retirement.  The healthy person need 20% less retirement income for medical needs. 

Then put two and two - together.  Liebermann makes the case for the correlation of good health with social interaction and relationships.  Ironically he also points out the fallacy that more money creates more happiness. 

So it is not about how much money social interactions are worth as it is time in your life.

How much time are social aspects of our life worth?  Did you devote any time to that today?