Success Versus Happiness – What is More Important?

What is more important to you, happiness or success? Happiness is the ultimate goal of virtually all the decisions we make in life.

But what comes first – happiness or success?

The real truth is that happiness is often subjective and difficult to measure and often judged by comparison to other people.

Happiness is usually an attribute of an individual whereas success can be attributed to an individual or to a group.

Happiness is a goal that many people aspire to. Most people also have a strong desire to be successful in life and they tend to believe that through this success they will automatically become happier.

The Relationship Between Happiness and Success

According to Lyubomirsky (2005), numerous studies have shown that happy people tend to be successful across multiple domains in life, including work performance, health, income, friendship, and even marriage.

The results of the findings revealed that happiness is associated with and precedes numerous successful outcomes.

The real question is what comes first, happiness or success?

If happiness comes first, then you have to figure out how to be happy before your success comes in.

On the other side of the coin is the idea of success coming first, before happiness.

What does it take to really be happy? Do you have to be successful in order to be happy?

There are just as many people out there who say they’re happy, but not successful, as there are successful people still trying to figure out how to be happy.

The Difference Between the Two

Defining happiness is not easy. Everyone defines it differently. Some people may find happiness in simple small things like a day in the park or a happy moment.

Happiness is also related to life satisfaction, appreciation of life, and moments of pleasure.

Overall, happiness has to do with the positive experience of emotions.

Which One is More Important?

When it comes right down to it, success and monetary wealth don’t necessarily equate to happiness and security.

It doesn’t do you much good in terms of your level of happiness if you are successful monetarily, but miserable in your personal life.

On the other hand, you may be incredibly happy with your personal life or other relationships, but still struggling with success or struggling financially.

Both of these indicators are interconnected in a sense. Happiness affects your level of success and your level of success affects your happiness.

Does Success Bring Happiness and Fulfillment?

Richard St. John, a marketer and success analyst talks about the idea that success is not a one-way street but a constant journey. In his Ted Talk, St. John talks about his personal journey of success.

St. John talks about the concept of reaching success and the fact that the work does not stop once you reach this point.

In order to continue being successful, you have to constantly create new ideas and new passions. You have to remember why you started doing what you are doing in the first place.

If you reach the pinnacle of your success and stop – you will not be able to keep the success going.

Each of us is taught at a young age that achieving certain milestones of success in life is important.

We work to do well in school, work to get into college, work to have a prestigious career, and then work on living in the right house or marrying the right person.

This happiness and success quest continues throughout our lives.

What really happens is we reach our individual goals and feel happy for a while. Eventually, we discover we need to set new goals to achieve an even higher level of success to get the same buzz.

 

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