jerrytz
JF-Expert Member
- Oct 10, 2012
- 5,975
- 4,266
What role do success and achievement play in our happiness?
Most of what we know about the effects of success and achievement on individual happiness comes from household surveys, which means that we are studying people who are already somewhat successful. These surveys don't usually capture the homeless, for example, or those living in institutions. What we have learned is that the less you have, the more that getting ahead matters to your happiness. If you don't have very much money, for example, then money matters a lot.
But the more money you have, the less getting more money affects how you feel. In addition, achieving more economically is more closely related to your evaluative happiness than your experiential happiness -so, to whether you think life is going well, rather than whether your experiences actually are going well.
Achievement can be great but it can also have costs, such a change in one's identity, different friends, and less free time. Whether or not achievement makes people happy depends upon how the costs of achievement are balanced with the benefits in their experiences.
It's also worth saying that the relationship goes in the opposite direction too, happiness brings about success and achievement. Many studies show that happy people are more productive at work and successful in their careers.
Next time!
Most of what we know about the effects of success and achievement on individual happiness comes from household surveys, which means that we are studying people who are already somewhat successful. These surveys don't usually capture the homeless, for example, or those living in institutions. What we have learned is that the less you have, the more that getting ahead matters to your happiness. If you don't have very much money, for example, then money matters a lot.
But the more money you have, the less getting more money affects how you feel. In addition, achieving more economically is more closely related to your evaluative happiness than your experiential happiness -so, to whether you think life is going well, rather than whether your experiences actually are going well.
Achievement can be great but it can also have costs, such a change in one's identity, different friends, and less free time. Whether or not achievement makes people happy depends upon how the costs of achievement are balanced with the benefits in their experiences.
It's also worth saying that the relationship goes in the opposite direction too, happiness brings about success and achievement. Many studies show that happy people are more productive at work and successful in their careers.
Next time!