The Hedonic Treadmill
Why nothing is ever "enough"
Whats Up ! :)
Good to be back.
This week I read an interesting article about the hedonic treadmill. I’ve been sharing this concept lately on my latest Youtube Video about starting your Chartered Accountancy journey.
As I reflected on the actual reasons I decided to start to study for my ACCA qualification I realized it was mostly because of material success reasons. A big problem that I think we all struggle with is having this idea that once I’ve achieved X, I will be happy.
Then I thought to myself -
Why does everything have to bring in money in order to validate its existence in our lives? For example my YouTube channel - I’ve been trying to make it successful now for the past year and I’ve only managed to grow it to a mere 165 subscribers. It hasn’t brought in a single penny, instead, it’s cost me time, money, and a whole lot of anxiety Yet, it’s my escape from the harsh reality of being an employee and a full-time student.
So what’s the point of setting external goals? (I want 100k before I turn 25). Let’s start setting input goals - I want to make 1 good video per week. That way, it is focused on things that we can control. External factors such as pay, views, and subscribers are a result of our actions now.
Anyway. One of the only ways to avoid getting on this hedonic treadmill is by exercising gratitude. I’ve tried gratitude journaling, but it doesn’t really work for me. Instead, I like to just think of everything I’m grateful for just before I go to bed. It has two benefits then - a restful sleep and the elimination of always thinking “what’s next.”
Anyway, I am going to commit to publishing one good video per week now for the upcoming week. Also, I’d like to share my thoughts every week on this website for those of you who might be interested.
Podcasts/videos I’ve been enjoying this week:
Alex Cooper - Call her daddy interview - It was interesting to hear the emotions behind a podcast that sold for $60m to Spotify. Alex Cooper is an extremely interesting person.
Ali Abdaal Personal & Business goals video It was interesting to hear that he focuses on the optimization of happiness and flexibility in his businesses and not just profitability.
Books I’ve been reading:
Lately, I’ve been reading Oversubscribed: How To Get People Lining Up To Do Business With You Kindle Edition by Daniel Priestley. I have found his business model super interesting. I genuinely recommend this book if you are into entrepreneurship.
My latest video
How To Know If You Should Study ACCA - super interesting factors that you should think about before you start your ACCA journey. Hopefully, you enjoy it!