Hedonic Adaption pt. 2 [#019]

Avoid the trap of the hedonic treadmill and embark on your happiness journey.

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”
― Epicurus

Yesterday, I’ve written about the concept of hedonic adaption. In short, it describes that humans tend to adapt quickly to major positive and negative events and hence have a relatively solid base level of happiness. Let me explain why this concept can be viciously dangerous for your life.

The hedonic treadmill functions like this: Once you have a desire (e.g. a new car), you strive very hard to obtain it. Once you obtained it, you enjoy your newfound pleasure. Unfortunately, this doesn’t last for a long time as you adapt quickly to this new situation after which you desire more. This new desire leads you to strive for it, obtain it, enjoy it, adapt to it, desire more, and the show goes on. This never-ending cycle is the reason why many people get hung up on materialistic needs with ever-increasing wants.

The lesson is simple: There is no absolute measure for happiness. Every external shiny new desire you satisfy just leads to you adapting and wanting more. Even as your absolute wants and possessions increase over time, your enjoyment stagnates. You are not happier than you were before.

So how can you be happy? Well, the answer is different for everyone. But one thing is for sure: True happiness is never found on the outside, but only on the inside. There are no external things that make you happy in a sustained way. The only path is through your inner world. Through self-discovery and self-exploration. This is a long process, but knowing the pitfalls of our human nature in the form of the hedonic treadmill is a good first step to enlightenment. A good first step for sustained happiness. And that’s all that counts.