What We Really Want From Life (But Might Not Know It)
I’ve asked dozens of people what they want most. The answers are not what I expected. The reality is even more surprising.
What do you want most in life? The one most important thing, deep down. Think about it. Now hold that thought…
I’ve asked this question, directly or indirectly, of dozens of people. I’ve pored over surveys and studies on the subject, and I’ve spoken to psychologists about it. What I thought was a simple query turns out to be somewhat of a trick question. Here’s what I can say with certainty: The answers are all over the place.
When I shared my findings with Anthony Jack, PhD, an associate professor of philosophy at Case Western Reserve University who teaches a class on happiness, he was not surprised.
“People don’t really know what they really want or what will make them content and satisfied,” Jack told me. “Discerning what one really wants is incredibly valuable — probably the simplest and most important thing one can do.”
So I’ve investigated this question deeply, to understand why people have such wildly different answers, and to learn what factors go into influencing what we want — or what we think we want. Here’s the takeaway: With a better…
