As a psychiatrist, I’ve seen how chasing happiness leads to misery | Psyche Ideas
Note that seeking happiness as an end might be counterproductive. Many people report that constantly checking to see if they are happy actually decreases their happiness - a report that fits with the research on "flow." It may be better to seek some of the above goals as ends, and happiness will be a side-effect.
LessWrong • How to Be Happy - LessWrong
“Happiness is not achieved by the conscious pursuit of happiness; it is generally the by-product of other activities.”
— Aldous Huxley
The Wisdom Letter #171
Rather, the real root of suffering is this never-ending and pointless pursuit of ephemeral feelings, which causes us to be in a constant state of tension, restlessness and dissatisfaction.
Yuval Noah Harari • Sapiens
Man chases “happiness.” But in actuality, he doesn’t chase happiness at all. He chases freedom from pain. And he believes that happiness is the opposite of pain. And it is this that sinks him. He chases and hopes for “positive events,” something to go his way, so that he can gain a moment of happiness. But he does not understand that no matter how
... See moreKapil Gupta • A Master's Secret Whispers
The great irony is that those who dedicate their lives to hunting the chimera are the least likely to find it. As the psychiatrist Viktor Frankl warned, you can’t pursue happiness head-on. It will find you, but only as an unintentional byproduct of some worthier goal. Instead of chasing a mirage, eyes forever fixed on the destination, all we can do
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