Why I No Longer Chase Money & How I Escaped Hedonic Treadmill to Find True Joy
The stronger I chased money, the weaker my chance was to catch it, but now I feel wealthier and more joyful without chasing it.
While money is a valuable tool for enhancing aspects of life, I don’t see it as the sole focus of my temporary existence. Finding true joy was impossible until I broke the hedonic treadmill intentionally, wisely, methodically, and diligently. But I found five viable solutions that I want to share with you.
The hedonic treadmill signifies our inclination to revert to a relatively steady level of happiness, regardless of our income. Simply put, no matter how much money we earn, we eventually adapt to it, and our happiness levels stabilize. Furthermore, I have noticed that when we are unhappy, the process of earning money can become more challenging.
As documented in this paper, “According to the hedonic treadmill model, good and bad events temporarily affect happiness, but people quickly adapt back to hedonic neutrality. The theory, which has gained widespread acceptance in recent years, implies that individual and societal efforts to increase happiness are doomed to failure.”
