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What would happen if we only got what we asked for?

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  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
    Given that the majority lack the self awareness to fully understand the ramifications of what they want this will be disastrous.

    Asking questions, receiving answers, discussing and refining thoughts, engaging and debating ideas are all part of the process which brings us closer to the truth.

    H. Roy Kaplan conducted multiple studies into the sociological impact of wealth and happiness. As part of this he investigated the lives of lottery winners and in nearly all cases this perceived positive change upended their lives, making them far worse off as the people never addressed the root causes of their unhappiness.
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,871 Member
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    Given that the majority lack the self awareness to fully understand the ramifications of what they want this will be disastrous.

    Asking questions, receiving answers, discussing and refining thoughts, engaging and debating ideas are all part of the process which brings us closer to the truth.

    H. Roy Kaplan conducted multiple studies into the sociological impact of wealth and happiness. As part of this he investigated the lives of lottery winners and in nearly all cases this perceived positive change upended their lives, making them far worse off as the people never addressed the root causes of their unhappiness.

    Isn't there a sweet spot for annual income after which most people don't actually get any happier, and in some cases happiness decreases? (Would vary based on COL I'd guess.) Or maybe I just bought into a pile of woo designed to make me feel better about not being a billionaire :lol:

    Many lottery winners follow self-destructive paths straight to drug abuse, gambling addiction, excessive luxury spending, etc. Not a fate I'd envy.
  • yukfoo
    yukfoo Posts: 871 Member
    What would happen if we only got what we asked for?

    The First Truth is that all life is suffering, pain, and misery. The Second Truth is that this suffering is caused by selfish craving and personal desire.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    yukfoo wrote: »
    What would happen if we only got what we asked for?

    The First Truth is that all life is suffering, pain, and misery. The Second Truth is that this suffering is caused by selfish craving and personal desire.

    Well that's a sad way to look at things.
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
    pinuplove wrote: »
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    Given that the majority lack the self awareness to fully understand the ramifications of what they want this will be disastrous.

    Asking questions, receiving answers, discussing and refining thoughts, engaging and debating ideas are all part of the process which brings us closer to the truth.

    H. Roy Kaplan conducted multiple studies into the sociological impact of wealth and happiness. As part of this he investigated the lives of lottery winners and in nearly all cases this perceived positive change upended their lives, making them far worse off as the people never addressed the root causes of their unhappiness.

    Isn't there a sweet spot for annual income after which most people don't actually get any happier, and in some cases happiness decreases? (Would vary based on COL I'd guess.) Or maybe I just bought into a pile of woo designed to make me feel better about not being a billionaire :lol:

    Many lottery winners follow self-destructive paths straight to drug abuse, gambling addiction, excessive luxury spending, etc. Not a fate I'd envy.

    The sweet spot is more based on sense of purpose as opposed to income. Income isn't as important as management of income. I suspect as long as all needs are met and wants are perceived achievable this would be the sweet spot.

    The research suggests it's more of a matter of thriving in established social circles. Sudden changes cause unseen upheaval within these social circles. You see the same behavior in all changes - athletic performance, weight, education, occupation, etc.

    When someone near you (or yourself) implements a change two distinct things happen. First, the commonalities between the person changed and those who did not change decrease. Second, the person changed does not have immediate access to a social circle to establish new commonalities.

    This creates a great deal of stress on the person changed if they haven't prepared themselves for this. Most don't. Most aren't even aware enough to know that this potential exists, have no idea how to handle it and when confronted with this choose a return to the familiar - often through self destruction. I would venture a guess this plays a part in yo-yo dieting.

  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
    yukfoo wrote: »
    What would happen if we only got what we asked for?

    The First Truth is that all life is suffering, pain, and misery. The Second Truth is that this suffering is caused by selfish craving and personal desire.

    It's sad if you stop there....

    The Third Truth is that suffering ceases when attachment to desire ceases
    The Fourth Truth is that freedom from suffering is possible by practicing the Eightfold Path:

    Right view
    Right intention
    Right speech
    Right action
    Right livelihood
    Right effort
    Right mindfulness
    Right concentration
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    yukfoo wrote: »
    What would happen if we only got what we asked for?

    The First Truth is that all life is suffering, pain, and misery. The Second Truth is that this suffering is caused by selfish craving and personal desire.

    It's sad if you stop there....

    The Third Truth is that suffering ceases when attachment to desire ceases
    The Fourth Truth is that freedom from suffering is possible by practicing the Eightfold Path:

    Right view
    Right intention
    Right speech
    Right action
    Right livelihood
    Right effort
    Right mindfulness
    Right concentration

    Not to mention that the First Truth is actually not that dire. Not all of life is suffering. It's just that suffering exists.
  • clicketykeys
    clicketykeys Posts: 6,610 Member
    pinuplove wrote: »
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    Given that the majority lack the self awareness to fully understand the ramifications of what they want this will be disastrous.

    Asking questions, receiving answers, discussing and refining thoughts, engaging and debating ideas are all part of the process which brings us closer to the truth.

    H. Roy Kaplan conducted multiple studies into the sociological impact of wealth and happiness. As part of this he investigated the lives of lottery winners and in nearly all cases this perceived positive change upended their lives, making them far worse off as the people never addressed the root causes of their unhappiness.

    Isn't there a sweet spot for annual income after which most people don't actually get any happier, and in some cases happiness decreases? (Would vary based on COL I'd guess.) Or maybe I just bought into a pile of woo designed to make me feel better about not being a billionaire :lol:

    Many lottery winners follow self-destructive paths straight to drug abuse, gambling addiction, excessive luxury spending, etc. Not a fate I'd envy.

    The lottery winner proverb is overstated. The people who overspend and ruin their lives and end up worse off than before make a more marketable story than those who hire an accountant. ;)

    The US number was reported to be around 75k in I think 2010. It does vary by location based on COL. However, what I found more interesting was that the cap only exists for questions like "how often do you feel happy?" and "have you experienced joy in the last week?" Once people are able to meet basic needs and can have some security about meeting unexpected challenges (injury, car repairs, etc.) then day-to-day emotions tend to follow the same ups and downs pretty much equally.

    However, questions like "how satisfied are you with your life?" did NOT have any apparent maximum that correlated to wealth! There are diminishing returns on the rate at which happiness increases, but it does continue to increase as wealth does. So in an overall sense, the richer you are, the happier you are.
  • Unknown
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  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
    Frazdogg wrote: »
    I try to always remember that every single thing I think I know, will eventually either be wrong, or at least, adjusted. This is relevant because it teaches me to listen to the answer to a question I didn’t ask. Easier said than done though.

    Tremendous amount of wisdom packed into this statement my friend.
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