Hedonic Adaptation vs Burnout: Tortoise and the HAre
I came across the term Hedonic Adaptation (HA) on Twitter, and I was curious so I Googled the best source I could find. This article is what I read. Simply put, we humans seem to have a 'happiness set-point' where we go back to the same level of satisfaction, in spite of external changes to our environment and lifestyle.
1. You Can't Get Happier Even When Your Wildest Dreams Come True
According to a link in the article, even lottery winners don't end up happier (or even as happy) after they win the lottery. Money doesn't buy happiness indeed.
2. A Tragic Set-Back Can't Keep You Down
Conversely, after a habituation period, those who had terrible accidents and lost the use of their legs were able to return to similar levels of happiness.
3. Pleasure
Researchers categorized events or occurrences that increase happiness into 3 categories; the first are pleasures. Pleasures are short-term and immediate
4. Gratifications
Gratifications are longer-term or more challenging activities that have longer-term rewards including an obvious sense of achievement.
5. Altruistic Meaningful Activities
Volunteering and other such activities often don't bring much happiness at the moment when they are being executed, but their longer-term effects on inner peace are well documented.
6. Increasing Happiness and Beating HA
The key is apparently to find a balance of all 3; we do need pleasures for the short-term, though we can't count on them to effect any permanent change.
7. What Does Burnout Have To Do With It?
At a high level, the World Health Organization defines burnout as “a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” Victims of true burnout don't seem to get better even after a little vacation. Some go on long-term disability and really struggle to get back into a mental state where they could tolerate their former work environment or any other.
8. The Tortoise and The Hare
It seems a little unfair because trauma or an overload of corporate (or any other) stress can damage someone's mental well-being after a fairly short period, but increasing happiness is a war of attrition or a game of inches. To win the race of misery vs happiness, one needs to be slow and steady like the tortoise, and ring in those pleasures, gratifications and/or meaningful activities.
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