Want to Live a Good Life? 9 Simple Strategies

“I want to be happy.”

Ask someone what they want, and that’s the answer ninety-nine times out of one hundred.

It was one of my answers, along with freedom.

It’s a solid-sounding response that’s hard to argue with; who doesn’t want to be happy?

Only one problem, it’s not a solid answer; it’s vague and empty.

We must understand that happiness comes in different flavors to answer the question meaningfully.

Understanding how to create harmony between the two forms of happiness below is critical to living a rich and meaningful life.

The two flavors of happiness we need to understand are:

Hedonic Happiness & Eudaimonic Happiness.

Hedonic happiness is achieved through experiences of pleasure and enjoyment.

It refers to the pleasure or happiness that we derive from doing what we like or avoiding what we don’t like.

Two common examples of hedonic pleasure are sex and food.

Eudaimonic happiness is achieved through experiences of meaning and purpose.

Examples are:

• Time with family.
• Experiencing awe and wonder.