I think a trick with happiness, is that, for evolutionary/social purposes, the waters are very muddied when it comes to what we've been taught/think will make us happy, and what actually makes us happy.
Cruelly, on top of that, I think the game has been rigged so that we end up being unhappy through the pressure of social norms in situations where maybe we could be happy.
Society needs people cleaning toilets 40 hours a week for 50 years of their 80 years on the planet for very mediocre compensation. To get that, they have to sell you on a shitload of BS about it being 'honest work' and 'noble' and 'providing' and 'independence' and all kinds of bullshit.
Evolution requires kids. Society reflects that. Single? Feel the pressure to be married. Married? Why no kids? One kid? Why not 2 or 3? So even if you are happily married with one kid, you are going to be made to feel unhappy because the system has been set up to tell you having only one kid is wrong. Heavens forbid you have 0 kids, you god damn monster.
The point being, we're all being pushed down this path, and told we're bad if we don't keep going. But for many, going down the path is also going to make us feel bad. It's almost humorous how rigged against happiness it all is.
I think the solution, individually, is just to try and be honest with yourself what makes you happy. If you like playing World of Warcraft 60 hours a week, and not talking to anyone in the real world, do what you can to make that as close to a reality as possible. People will bombard you with "wasting your life" and "anti-social" and "loser" etc... I think people able to ignore that, and live as true as possible in terms of maximizing their happiness end up being the happiest.
But trying to sort through everything and identify what makes you happy is tough work in this world with the decades of conditioning tossed on us.
Cruelly, on top of that, I think the game has been rigged so that we end up being unhappy through the pressure of social norms in situations where maybe we could be happy.
Society needs people cleaning toilets 40 hours a week for 50 years of their 80 years on the planet for very mediocre compensation. To get that, they have to sell you on a shitload of BS about it being 'honest work' and 'noble' and 'providing' and 'independence' and all kinds of bullshit.
Evolution requires kids. Society reflects that. Single? Feel the pressure to be married. Married? Why no kids? One kid? Why not 2 or 3? So even if you are happily married with one kid, you are going to be made to feel unhappy because the system has been set up to tell you having only one kid is wrong. Heavens forbid you have 0 kids, you god damn monster.
The point being, we're all being pushed down this path, and told we're bad if we don't keep going. But for many, going down the path is also going to make us feel bad. It's almost humorous how rigged against happiness it all is.
I think the solution, individually, is just to try and be honest with yourself what makes you happy. If you like playing World of Warcraft 60 hours a week, and not talking to anyone in the real world, do what you can to make that as close to a reality as possible. People will bombard you with "wasting your life" and "anti-social" and "loser" etc... I think people able to ignore that, and live as true as possible in terms of maximizing their happiness end up being the happiest.
But trying to sort through everything and identify what makes you happy is tough work in this world with the decades of conditioning tossed on us.
