Hedonic Treadmills

Running the hedonic treadmill is a societal norm. For example, at my school the University of Waterloo, you can never have enough California internships, enough credentials, enough total compensation. The happiness felt when first achieving these things is fleeting. It then becomes normalized, then we’re off chasing the next thing.

Part of getting off the hedonic treadmill is realizing you’re on it, and realizing that chasing one thing to the next isn’t going to lead to happiness.

The first step in getting off the hedonic treadmill is realizing you’re on it. The next step is defining success on your own terms.