Want to be happier? Stay in the moment | Matt Killingsworth

Summary

In this insightful talk, the speaker explores the paradox of happiness, noting that despite increased wealth and technological advancements, Americans have not become happier. The speaker introduces 'trackyourhappiness.org,' a platform using the iPhone to monitor real-time happiness, and shares findings from over 650,000 reports. Key insights include the negative impact of mind-wandering on happiness and the high frequency of this phenomenon across daily activities. The discussion suggests that a scientific approach to understanding happiness could pave the way for a richer, healthier, and happier future.

Takeaways

• 😇 Aristotle considered happiness as 'the chief good,' the ultimate goal towards which all other pursuits lead.
• 🏡 The traditional markers of success like wealth, a nice car, or a good job are not sought for their own sake but for the happiness they are expected to bring.
• 📈 Despite significant improvements in living standards over the past 50 years, including wealth and technology, happiness levels in America have not risen proportionally.
• 🔍 There has been a surge in scientific research on happiness in recent years, exploring demographics and their relationship to happiness.
• 💰 While higher income and education levels are generally better, their impact on happiness is relatively small compared to other factors.
• 🤔 The search for the significant causes of happiness is ongoing, with a focus on the content of our daily experiences and how they influence our mood.
• 📱 The 'Track Your Happiness' project uses iPhones to monitor people's happiness in real time, sending signals at random times to gather data on their experiences.
• 📊 The project has collected over 650,000 real-time reports from a diverse group of over 15,000 people across various demographics and countries.
• 🧠 Mind-wandering, the ability to think about something other than the present, is a unique human capability that can be both beneficial and detrimental to happiness.
• 📉 Data from the project indicates that people are generally less happy when their minds are wandering, regardless of the activity they are engaged in.
• 🔄 The correlation between mind-wandering and unhappiness suggests a causal relationship, with mind-wandering likely causing unhappiness rather than being a result of it.
• 🌏 Mind-wandering is a common and ubiquitous phenomenon, occurring in at least 30% of the time across a wide range of activities, from work to exercise.

Q & A

What did Aristotle call happiness and why is it significant?

Aristotle called happiness 'the chief good,' signifying it as the ultimate goal towards which all other things are directed. This view suggests that the pursuit of material possessions or status is driven by the expectation that they will lead to happiness.

What is the paradox of happiness mentioned in the script?

The paradox of happiness refers to the observation that despite significant improvements in objective life conditions such as wealth and technology, people in America have not experienced a corresponding increase in happiness.

What is the purpose of the research on happiness that has seen an explosion in recent years?

The purpose of this research is to understand the factors that contribute to happiness. It aims to answer the question of what causes happiness, given that traditional markers of progress like wealth and education do not have as strong an effect on happiness as expected.

What is trackyourhappiness.org and how does it function?

Trackyourhappiness.org is a platform that uses the iPhone to monitor people's happiness in real time. It sends signals to participants at random times throughout the day and asks them questions about their immediate experiences, allowing researchers to study the ups and downs of happiness throughout the day.

How many real-time reports were collected from the Track Your Happiness project?

The project collected over 650,000 real-time reports from over 15,000 people, providing a vast and diverse dataset for analyzing happiness.

What is the relationship between mind-wandering and happiness according to the script?

The script suggests that people are generally less happy when their minds are wandering compared to when they are focused on the present. This holds true regardless of the activity they are engaged in.

What does the speaker suggest about the content of people's thoughts when their minds wander?

The speaker suggests that when people's minds wander, they often think about unpleasant things, which makes them less happy. Even when thinking about neutral or pleasant topics, they are still less happy than when not mind-wandering.

How does the speaker propose to disentangle the correlation between mind-wandering and unhappiness?

The speaker proposes using the temporal sequence of events to determine causality. Since time moves forward, if mind-wandering precedes unhappiness, it suggests that mind-wandering may be a cause of unhappiness.

What percentage of the time do people's minds wander and what does this suggest about mind-wandering?

People's minds wander 47% of the time, suggesting that it is not only frequent but also a ubiquitous aspect of human experience that pervades almost all activities.

What is the speaker's hope for the future in relation to the study of happiness?

The speaker hopes that by tracking people's moment-to-moment happiness and experiences in daily life, a scientific understanding of happiness can be developed, which may contribute to creating a future that is not only richer and healthier but also happier.