You will never be happier than you are right now.
It might be a little overstated — if today is a particularly bad day for you — but generally speaking, research shows that we all consistently fall back to our baseline level of happiness regardless of external events (and we are remarkably bad at predicting what will make us happy).
The key, then, is to increase our baseline level of happiness.
This Week’s Image
This Week’s Riddle
It can be cracked, made, told, and played. What is it?
This Week’s Journaling Prompt
Reflect on a recent purchase or achievement that initially brought you great joy. Write about how your feelings towards this item or achievement have changed over time. Have you experienced a return to your baseline happiness level? If so, how long did it take for the novelty to wear off? What does this experience teach you about the nature of happiness and the concept of the hedonic treadmill?
This Week’s Challenge
This week, commit to not buying anything new. This includes online shopping, impulse buys, or even small items like a coffee or snack. Instead, focus on enjoying and appreciating what you already have. The purpose is to observe how refraining from acquiring new things affects your sense of happiness and contentment, helping to break the cycle of seeking short-term gratification through new purchases.
Riddle Answer: A joke