Be happy - go out more
FORGET new shoes or the latest must-have gadget - a good night out will make you happier.
Scientists have found that buying an experience is more fulfilling than owning an object.
The purchase of a restaurant meal or a trip to the theatre results in increased well-being because it satisfies our need to feel "socially connected" and, according to psychiatrists, boosts the feeling of being alive.
Bought experiences also have more staying power.
Ryan Howell of San Francisco State University, who led the research, said: "Purchased experiences provide memory capital.
"We don't tend to get bored of happy memories like we do with a material object."