Why So Many Smart People Aren't Happy
Curated from: theatlantic.com
Ideas, facts & insights covering these topics:
5 ideas
·3.15K reads
4
Explore the World's Best Ideas
Join today and uncover 100+ curated journeys from 50+ topics. Unlock access to our mobile app with extensive features.
Things that make us happy
- Having meaningful social relationships
- Being very good at something you do
- Having the freedom to make life decisions independently.
Three things that don't necessarily contribute to your happiness:
- Being better educated
- Being richer
- Being more accomplished
354
1.03K reads
Irrelevant criteria
We know what will make us happy, but we don't know how to measure it. We measure our success by using social comparisons, like a salary, or with awards.
Because people tend to use vague criteria, they are never satisfied when they reach it and always want more. This leads to an unsustainable source of happiness.
164
538 reads
Do what you enjoy
If you do what you enjoy and are naturally good at, and if you focus on it long enough, you will probably advance toward mastery anyway, and fame and money will be a byproduct.
206
548 reads
Scarcity vs abundance oriented
We view the world in one of two ways:
- Scarcity-minded approach: My win will make someone else lose. The scarcity mindset plays an important role when we have to fight for our survival.
- Abundance-oriented approach: There is room for everybody to grow. Doing something meaningful, instead of focussing on a goal, contributes to a happier life overall.
206
512 reads
Tying happiness to outcomes
It is not good to tie your happiness to outcomes since that can affect your happiness.
Overcoming some obstacles might pose more obstacles, while other events that we thought would be bad for us might make us grow and learn.
160
518 reads
IDEAS CURATED BY
Aarna Agarwal's ideas are part of this journey:
Learn more about personaldevelopment with this collection
The importance of physical activity
The role of genetics in lifespan
How to maintain a healthy diet
Related collections
Similar ideas
4 ideas
4 Simple Habits to Build Wealth Faster
kiplinger.com
3 ideas
Read & Learn
20x Faster
without
deepstash
with
deepstash
with
deepstash
Personalized microlearning
â
100+ Learning Journeys
â
Access to 200,000+ ideas
â
Access to the mobile app
â
Unlimited idea saving
â
â
Unlimited history
â
â
Unlimited listening to ideas
â
â
Downloading & offline access
â
â
Supercharge your mind with one idea per day
Enter your email and spend 1 minute every day to learn something new.
I agree to receive email updates