Is there more to life than being happy?

Imagine yourself walking down the street. Suddenly you see something shiny on the pavement. You come closer and realize it’s a magical lamp. You rub it of course and surprise - a genie comes out and decides to grant you 3 wishes. What do you ask for? If you ask for happiness - hats off to you - only 6% of people would ask for that. Most people usually go for money, fame, success and relationships, thinking those things would make them happy. But do they really?

Not necessarily. Many of these people are actually chasing superiority through these things and the pursuit of superiority lowers happiness for two main reasons: first you keep comparing yourself to others, and since there will always be someone who seems to be better off than you are, you’ll end up being envious rather than happy; and second you become a materialist, which steers you away from genuine human relationships and makes you lonely and therefore truly unhappy.

According to Emily Esfahani Smith, thinking happiness is success and chasing perfection in all areas of life makes people feel anxious. Therefore, chasing happiness is often what makes people unhappy. The suicide rates have been rising around the world. Even though life is getting objectively better by nearly every conceivable standard, more people feel hopeless, depressed and alone. The problem is not a lack of happiness, it’s a lack of having meaning in life.

You may wonder what's the difference between being happy and having meaning in life. Well the latter is deeper than the former. The renowned psychologist Martin Seligman says “meaning comes from belonging to and serving something beyond yourself and from developing the best within you”. As obsessed as our societies may seem with happiness, seeking meaning has proven to be the more fulfilling path. Studies show that people who have meaning in life are more resilient, do better in school and at work, and even live longer.

So you may wonder… what exactly is a meaningful life?

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