Finding Happiness Through 5 Pillars of Well-Being
Udumbara
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One day, my oldest child, who was five at the time, asked if adults were allowed to have sugary foods whenever they wanted.
When she found out they could, she declared that she couldn’t wait to be an adult.
At that age, a kid might imagine that sugar and toys could keep them happy forever. As adults, we know those pleasures can’t possibly deliver a thriving life on their own.
Unfortunately, too many of us trade in sugar for the concept of “happiness” and imagine that something as simple and one-dimensional as positive emotional experiences can completely satisfy our deepest needs.
We might genuinely believe that other values are guiding our decision-making, but on a practical level, our decisions are influenced by whatever delivers the most moment-to-moment pleasure.
Why Hedonic Happiness Isn’t Enough
There are many definitions of happiness depending on your context and who you’re talking to. Some are quite thick and have proven to be stronger guides towards living a better life.3 Reasons Why Hedonic Happiness Falls Short
Such happiness is not wrong, per se, but it’s not enough. Hedonic happiness:1. Is too Dependent on External Factors
Just look at the world, and you can see that it’s filled with too much senseless suffering. While we can do what we can to stay safe and healthy, sometimes that isn’t enough. A worldview based on such a simple conception of happiness won’t hold up to reality—not when there’s so much outside your control.2. Is too Fleeting to Build a Life Upon
Happiness, when defined by maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain, isn’t sturdy enough to build a big, beautiful life upon. The highest mountaintops of euphoria don’t last, and they don’t compound their value over time like investments in relationships and meaningful work.3. Neglects Other Aspects of a Balanced Life
Ultimately, happiness doesn’t deliver the goods because it’s only one aspect of the good life we were made to enjoy. It’s not wrong to enjoy pleasure, and certainly not wrong to avoid pain, but modern life, with all of its advantages, has taken these good things for granted and now expects them at the expense of far too much else.The 5 Pillars of Well-Being
Expanding on his earlier work in resilience and optimism, psychologist Martin Seligman laid out the PERMA model of well-being in his 2011 book, “Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being.”In his book, Seligman suggests that five different elements make up the building blocks of a person’s overall sense of flourishing.
His contribution to the conversation on well-being is the idea that our subjective evaluation of our own life is not one simple thing called “happiness” but several different components coming together.
