I decided to write this guide because I have been pretty happy recently. I would go as far as to say that I am the happiest I’ve ever been (in a sustained way) in my adult life, and completely independent of my external circumstances. This is how I’ve done it.
Background In our society today it is easy to get caught on the hedonic treadmill: the belief that happiness is just around the corner if one can only achieve the next milestone, or experience the next life experience. This is a trap. As someone who has achieved more and more success over time, and experienced more and more fun, positive, exciting things, no achievement or experience has ever resulted in a sustained increase to baseline happiness for me.
Expectations for how you will feel once you achieve your goal lead to an endless cycle of suffering. Either you get what you want and then set new, higher, loftier goals, or you don’t get what you want and end up feeling miserable. In The Score Takes Care of Itself, Bill Walsh tells of winning three S