Thedutylife's Podcast

Let me clarify the main idea behind what scientists call hedonic treadmill.         Making $1 million in one year, but nothing in the preceding nine, does not bring the same pleasure as having the total evenly distributed over the same period, that is, $100,000 every year for ten years in a row. The same applies to the inverse order—making a bundle the first year, then nothing for the remaining period.   Your happiness depends far more on the number of instances of positive feelings, what psychologists call "positive affect," than on their intensity when they hit. Mother Nature destined us to derive enjoyment from a steady flow of Pleasant small, but frequent, rewards. As I said, the rewards do not have to be large, just frequent—a little bit here, a little bit there.           Sadly, it may be even worse for you to make $10 million, then lose back nine, than to making nothing at all! True, you may end up with a million (as compared to nothing), but it may be better had you got zero.(This assumes, of course,