Life Strategy Trap
Strategy is NOT about success
The year is coming to an end, and this time I would like to talk about life strategy and goals.
I’ve been working with entrepreneurs for years. Our discussions always start with business matters. But we switch to another topic sooner or later – their personal goals and strategies.
And here is where the problems begin.
When I ask them about their life goals, they most often mumble something like ‘to become rich and successful.’
And I believe this is a totally wrong idea.
Get off the Hedonic Treadmill
Jack was a poor man. But in 1978, he suddenly won a big sum in the Illinois State Lottery. His material problems ended. He became rich by the standards of the time.
A year earlier, another man, let’s call him Mitch, became a victim of a car accident. He had to use a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
Then, a trio of researchers at Northwestern University and the University of Massachusetts asked Jack, Mitch, and some other women and men in similar conditions (the lottery winners and accident victims) to rate their level of everyday happiness.
And you know what?
Their answers were much closer than you’d expect. On average, the winners’ ratings of everyday happiness were 3.33 out of 5, and the accident victims’ averaged answers were 3.48.
As the researchers noted, “the paraplegic rating of present happiness is still above the midpoint of the scale and … the accident victims did not appear nearly as unhappy as might have been expected” (source).
Our mind is resilient. Even people who have experienced a personal tragedy or partial loss of physical abilities have a chance to become happy. And we’ve seen many great examples of such courage.
But what about the lottery winners? The money they got helped them emerge from poverty for good. Why weren’t they happier than accident victims?
The scientists called this effect ‘the hedonic treadmill’ or ‘hedonic adaptation.’
People tend to get used to the things that make us happy. They can change our sense of well-being, but only temporarily. Sooner or later, we return to our average level of happiness – even if our financial situation has changed for the better.
If your goal is to become wealthy and successful someday, you have to be prepared for the fact that it won’t make you happier for long.
In 2010, Daniel Kahneman and Angus Deaton published a fundamental study. They found that day-to-day happiness rose as annual income increased, but above $75,000, it leveled off, and happiness plateaued.
In 2023, the authors corrected the study results. Now, they believe that “for most people, larger incomes are associated with greater happiness.”
So, the research seems to motivate us to earn more. But it misses two critical points.
Two crucial points
Point #1
The research straightforwardly tells us that those with more money are happier than those with less.
But we can interpret it in two ways:
The direct one: people who have more money feel better.
The indirect one: individuals who do what they love earn more and get happier along the way.
Few people win a lottery.
Most people with above-average wages work hard and like their jobs – at least to an extent.
So, what makes them happy? It looks like a chicken-egg problem.
Point #2
What does big money bring to our lives?
We may worry less about tomorrow
We may do more things we enjoy (this is not always the case, but it’s true, at least in part).
Happiness is not about having. It is about doing.
Happiness is about doing
Remember the happiest episodes of your life. What were they?
Chances are that some of them are about your greatest accomplishments. You won a contest. You received a medal. Your university named you a student of the year.
However, most of such episodes are likely about activities you enjoyed:
Sitting on a sun lounger on a beach and watching a sunset
Riding a bike with your children
Enjoying a honeymoon with your spouse
Reading an exciting book
Traveling to an exotic country
There are many studies proving that experiences bring more joy than possessions do. Here is one of them. Many scientists have also tried to find out what precedes what – success to happiness or happiness to success (read more here).
But common sense tells us that success is trickier than it seems.
For instance, Emma Watson, Tobey Maguire, and Sarah Jessica Parker are superstars. They are successful – beyond doubt. But they became typecasts.
But Jeff Bezos, on the contrary, stepped down as the CEO of Amazon, the company he founded, and devoted himself to his dream – space travel.
What’s the difference?
Success means doing what you love
For me, success is the ability to concentrate on what you like to do.
If a writer strives for success, they dream of achieving the opportunity to write about what they want, how they want, and when they want.
When entrepreneurs aim for success, they dream about a time when they’ll be able to focus on what they enjoy most in their work – strategy, for example.
When a movie actor seeks success, they want to be famous and influential enough to select scripts, directors, and genres.
Success itself gives us temporary, fleeting pleasure. It will fade away sooner or later.
The ability to engage in a favorite activity and pursue a passion may bring us long-lasting joy.
For me, it is the only reason to work tirelessly.