The Paradox of Pursuing Happiness: Insights From Existential Psychology
Jude Star
The article explores the complexities of happiness and fulfillment, emphasizing that pursuing pleasure or success often leads to disappointment. It suggests that true happiness comes from finding personal meaning and connection to something larger than oneself. The author highlights insights from Existential Psychology, noting that meaningful relationships and responsibilities are key to genuine fulfillment.
14 Oct 2024
“The more you forget yourself in love or in work for the sake of a cause to serve or a person to love, is the very extent you will become happy.” -Viktor Frankl
Frankl is saying that happiness is the result of taking on meaningful responsibility. It doesn’t come from pursuing individual comfort, success, or desires. Instead of contemplating what we want out of life, we must ask what life wants from us.
Seeking individual comfort, success, power, and even happiness just further isolates us from our community, nature, and the world at large. People are much happier when they feel connected to something larger than themselves — whether it be other people, community in general, a creative process, or the natural world.
Put simply, happiness comes more from giving than from taking.
It comes from having meaningful reciprocal relationships, where we give but also receive.
Kierkegaard, widely regarded as the first existential philosopher, viewed anxiety as essential because it served as a reminder of the weight that comes with the freedom of choice. He argued that actively choosing to be oneself was necessary to avoid falling into a cycle of self-loathing and despair.