The Happiness Institute is part of what US economist Paul Zane Pilzer calls the "Wellness Revolution" .
In his book of the same name,
Pilzer says the next trillion-dollar industry after cars and information technology will be in preventative businesses
that help people find peace, health and happiness .
While most of us are significantly better off financially than our parents and grandparents,
happiness levels haven't changed to reflect that .
Studies show that once the basic needs of shelter and food are met,
additional wealth adds very little to happiness .
Even investment banker Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein
has warned not to "equate money with happiness" .
"A vast array of individuals seriously overrate the importance of money in making themselves, and others, happy,"
said strategist James Montier in a recent memo to clients .
"Since the 1950s, people's happiness levels have been remarkably constant
despite a massive growth in income-per-head over the same time horizon." he said.