655-How Satisfaction Plays into Happiness

Did you know that satisfaction is one of the key components to happiness, but writing a traditional bucket list won’t help? However, a reverse bucket list will! Tune in to find out more!

 

Transcript:

 

Welcome to Everyday Happiness where we create lasting happiness, in about 2 minutes a day,  through my signature method of Intentional Margins® (creating harmony between your to-dos and your priorities), happiness science, and musings about life. 

 

I'm your host Katie Jefcoat, and yesterday we discussed Arthur Brooks’ concept of the reverse bucket list. What Arthur Brooks is trying to achieve with a reverse bucket list is for you to feel more satisfied with the dreams you've accomplished and the things you already have. He says it can solve that satisfaction problem!

 

What is the satisfaction problem? Satisfaction is not a function of what you HAVE - it’s actually an equation of what you HAVE and what you WANT. Think of it like a fraction: the top is what you have, and the bottom is what you want. When you don’t manage the denominator, the bottom, the wants will expand and sprawl. This is your traditional bucket list.

 

Instead, we have the reverse bucket list. You write a list of your haves and try to detach yourself from the wants by focusing on those haves. Then, your denominator will fall, and satisfaction will rise. That is the reverse bucket list exercise.

 

Now, how does satisfaction and that reverse bucket list play into hedonic adaptation?

 

Perhaps, you remember from previous blog posts or podcasts on hedonic adaptation prevention? As a reminder, hedonic adaptation is the natural process where heightened happiness due to some new circumstance inevitably loses its shine, and your happiness levels return to where they were before the change occurred.

 

When we achieve something new on a traditional bucket list, the joy behind it fades quickly away, and it just becomes another check mark. However, the Hedonic Adaptation Prevention theory assumes that hedonic adaptation is not inevitable as long as you continue to interact with the new circumstance in a positive way that continues to boost your happiness. That is where a reverse bucket list comes in! When writing a reverse bucket list, you get to revisit that happiness and satisfaction all over again.

 

Tomorrow, we are going to dive into the details of writing a reverse bucket list, so make sure to tune in!

 

Life is heavy enough, we shouldn’t have to search for happiness.  Get the exclusive happiness email, the happiest email in your inbox, delivered with a smile twice a month. https://www.katiejefcoat.com/email 

 

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