Arthur C. BrooksThe Art and Science of Happiness

What Happens to Happiness When You Achieve a Lot Early On

20 Oct 2022 · 0 min

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A short spoken excerpt (single speaker) arguing that people who achieve a great deal early in life tend to be among the most unhappy at the end of their lives. The speaker (a social scientist) explains this is because early success raises expectations to unattainable levels and because the inevitable decline after highs makes sustained happiness unlikely.

And furthermore, looking at the data, as a social scientist, I know perfectly the people who tend to be most unhappy at the end of their lives are the people who achieve the most earlier in their lives. It's exactly the opposite of what the world tells us, because if you achieve a lot early on, you can never, ever live up to your impossibly high expectations. And furthermore, when the party's over, you know it, you know, what goes up must come down.