Happiness Follow Up

This is a follow up to the preceding post about finding happiness. i had requested a copy of Seth Stephens-Davidowitz book, Don’t Trust Your Gut from my local library. It didn’t take long to receive and I happily picked up the book last week, ready to learn more about what Seth had to say.

There is an amazing amount of data collected on our wants, habits, and emotions. We all know that our data is being collected but we don’t know so much about how it is used. Seth’s book looks at the research that looks at our data, searching it for clues to our happiness. Often we make choices expecting to move forward on some continuum of happiness, hoping to increase our level of happiness. We choose our partners, our jobs, where we live, etc, all to the end of maximizing our happiness capacity. This makes sense, right?

Well, Seth says that data shows that the choices we are making do not increase our happiness quotient. Data, in some areas, can better predict what will make us happier — more happy than if we did not consult the data in making our choices.

The bottom line, I think, is that we are generally happier with people we like and love. Doing this boosts our happiness. Spending time alone scrolling through cute puppy videos or bingeing movies online, decreases our level of happiness. It may be tempting, Seth says, to stay home alone, hoping that some downtime, some me-time will be what we need, is contrary to what the data shows.

If you want to be happier, spend time with loved ones. If you don’t have loved ones, you may look into ways to develop these vital relationships. Counseling can help you overcome anxiety that may prevent you from interactions that could lead to beneficial relationships and greater happiness.