Tag: hedonic treadmill

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The Problem with Bucket Lists and How to Be Happy with Less

It’s often said that happiness equals what you have minus (or sometimes divided by) what you want. When our wants are many, what we have is of little consequence. That is why there are hordes of unhappy millionaires and high achievers who quietly suffer (yes, suffer) under the weight of lofty and insatiable desires and ambitions. Western ideals place great importance on the “haves.” And despite an anecdotal feeling that my greater social circle is less materialistic, I’m less certain that we’ve diminished our appetite for having things. The things look and feel different. Less like fancy watches or cars or gaudy showings of riches and more like spreadsheets full of countries and crags unvisited, food not tasted, status not yet achieved, or routes not sent. We believe subconsciously or otherwise that by checking items off our bucket list we will arrive at some sense of blissful satisfaction. But biology and evolution suggest otherwise.

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The Blue Dot Effect: Pessimism in a Beautiful World

As I’ve recently mused, financial independence won’t solve life’s problems. We will never “arrive.” We will never achieve perfection. An impactful 2018 study, nicknamed the Blue Dot Effect (a stand-in for the more lumbering “prevalence-induced concept change” title), helps us to understand the mind’s tendency toward finding problems, even where none exist. The results have broad implications for individuals and members of a progressing society.

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Eudaimonia: Key Pillars of the Meaningful Life

Thinkers and philosophers of ancient times sorted out much in the way of living a meaningful and purposeful life. But after thousands of years of progress, material growth, and convenience, we largely fail to find meaning in our modern lives. Today we examine the philosophy of eudaimonia and how we can truly develop our sense of meaning and purpose (for free).

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The Happiness Curve: Beware of Expectations

The grass is always greener on the other side. No truer words were ever uttered. Get it? Utter? Cows? Grass? Anyway, it’s our expectations that lead us in search of new experiences, but do they always pay off?

This concept of something better on the horizon has governed my existence for as long as I can recall. Under the constant glare of incandescent lights in a corporate office, I dreamed of selling my house and living on the road. But once I was living that reality, I discovered the very real contrasts of life on the road that I already knew existed.

When I was surrounded by all the nature, I just really wanted to lay on my living room rug with air conditioning, a lacrosse ball under my lower back, watching The Great British Baking Show.

It didn’t take long for us to decide that some sort of hybrid life was our best option. We opted to buy a house in St. George, Utah, intent on nesting here for the majority of the year, like Roland’s Rock House. For the rest of the year, particularly the hateful summer, we planned to travel and perhaps rent out our home.

So, how is that going?

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