Happiness and Success

Ever wondered why many successful and wealthy people desire happiness? Is it true that you can be successful and not happy?

Can We Compare both?

Happiness and success. One of the most sought after topics today. Can success bring happiness? Or does being happy help and motivates a person to be successful? Arguably debatable topics. But I would like to point out that we are all going wrong about this. How? Comparing success and happiness is like equating wealth and health. They are both completely different things. Well, we are not entirely to blame here if we think that accomplishment brings joy. The media and our social structure have moulded our perspective in such a way that even before a person hits puberty/adolescence the only way inscribed in their brains to be happy in life is, to be triumphant. The victorious figures from sports, entertainment, science and sociology are portrayed as the only viable and survivable options in today’s world.

Nobody teaches a teenager how to be contented and satisfied with what you have. The peer and parent’s pressure of achieving excellence and recognition in sports and academia only increases anxiety in our society. It is told that everyone can be great. Being mediocre in such a young age is considered a sin. Now, I am not advocating that we should not encourage our kids to work hard and dream big. But we should keep our pushes and encouragement towards our generation under a leash.

Let’s Analyze Happiness

Now let’s analyze happiness. When we accomplish something our body realizes a small amount of dopamine in our bloodstream. This enzyme often called happy hormone is necessary for our health and body in the same way food is. And one more thing, we don’t feel any bliss until we don’t go through some sort of struggle. Imagine this, a billionaire will not feel the same amount of pleasure when buying a brand new car compared to a daily wager who went into a lot of hardships while saving money for a ten-year-old used car. Why? In the first case, the car is brand new and of the luxury class, while in the second case it’s an old car used car. Almost all of the world population seem to misunderstand this mystery. Only because of one reason and one reason only. We only consider the result. We imagine that at the end if we achieve something influential and valuable we will be cheerful and happy. Look at the two images below (apologies for my drawing in advance):

Happiness Vs. Struggle

Figure 1 shows the scenario of a middle class/working-class person. Remember we discussed that he will experience more pleasure than a rich guy even after buying a second-hand car. In figure 1 you can see why. His happiness is directly proportioned to his struggle. Since his struggle for even an old car is greater than the hardship faced by a rich person in buying a luxury car, happiness is also greater. Can’t quite actually understand? Look again.

Now let’s check Figure 2. Ironically a filthy rich guy will suffer far more to manage his schedule to spend quality time with family and friends. So, his feeling of ecstasy will be far more than the middle-class person who will go through no trouble for the same task.

The Road To Happiness

We have been coveting to experience pleasure by achievement. Well, it’s perfectly alright. But then we lose our way once we embark on the journey to achievement. Let me explain you with the help of a simple example. We all need a daily amount of nutrition in the form of meals which can range from 2, 3 or 4 depending on our preferences. If we calculate that we have daily 3 meals and in two days we have six meals. So if we can have 6 meals in one sitting we can go without meals for 2 days. Or even better, if a doctor prescribed us ten tablets for some ailment and we are to take 1 tablet each day for ten consecutive days. Can we take all the ten tablets in a single day and have the same effect? No? Why not? The amount of meals or tablets consumed by our bodies is the same whether we consume them over a continuous period or all at once. Then in all your wisdom do you still think both situations can have the same effect. Simply no, because our body requires a certain amount of nutrition at specific intervals and for a continuous period, in this case, our entire life.

What We Are Getting Wrong?

When our picture of a happy life is that we should be retired at the age of 35 by earning millions of dollars. We have consumed a lifelong dose of dopamine at once. Now when this doze has phased out and the bloodstream becomes devoid of dopamine the body starts to urge for it. Now we have all the money in the world to acquire whatever we want. But remember our pictures above (the greater the effort the more the pleasure), now when having the power which comes with the money our efforts or hardships start becoming lesser and lesser even for bigger accomplishments. So, in turn, we get lesser delight. As a result, the amount of dopamine released into the blood is less than what is required. Now we start living in a rich man’s dilemma. We need a hit of that happy hormone but no matter what we do we can get most things without any difficulty so we don’t feel much happiness hence very less dopamine. This is the time when the rich start acting out weirdly. Some get into drugs, some get onto a shopping frenzy because just expensive clothes won’t satisfy them. Exotic vacations are another option because just going to a good hangout in their neighbourhood won’t give them the required amount of joy. Ordering gold-covered Lamborghinis, buying whole islands and hotels, marrying supermodels are all indicating that they are desperately looking for that desired amount of hit of the same old dopamine which a lower-middle-class person can get by saving money from weekly wages and buying himself and his family or friends a reasonable dinner.

So How Do We Experience Pleasure?

Now the take here is don’t run from your small struggle. The Body and Seoul need both little and gigantic problems in life to get the small and large amount of dopamine hits. Do dream bid but also learn to cherish what you already have. Remember if by magic you can eliminate your daily, weekly, monthly and yearly struggles no more pleasure and joy for you.