Would You Rather Be Successful But Unhappy Or Happy But Unsuccessful?

[Orange]

Which pill would you choose?

 

 

And why?

Edited October 3, 2016 by Orange

[kurt]

I'd rather be successful at being happy 

[Shin]

Why would anyone want to be successful and unhappy over the alternative ? 

 

Edited October 3, 2016 by Shin

[Orange]

Some people do..actually I was inspired to ask this question because I read a comment to an article on the internet where one person said: "because successful is more important than being happy...priorities!"

Edited October 3, 2016 by Orange

[jse]

Happiness is likely the result of success.
The two cannot be separated - non-duality at work.

[Orange]

10 minutes ago, jse said:

Happiness is likely the result of success.
The two cannot be separated - non-duality at work.

Not necessarily : https://makaylaheisler.wordpress.com/2014/06/08/a-psychological-analysis-of-marilyn-monroe/

[jse]

^ Perhaps we have different definitions of success.

[Orange]

3 minutes ago, jse said:

^ Perhaps we have different definitions of success.

Yea, I was assuming the society definition of success..what's yours? 

[jse]

3 minutes ago, Orange said:

Yea, I was assuming the society definition of success..what's yours? 

Self-Actualization

[ajasatya]

any definition of "success" that does not include real happiness is useless.

[reez]

Happiness is a sort of success in itself, ain't it?

[kurt]

If you think about it, the only reason people go for success is for the feeling of happiness, or at least the freedom from feeling of limitation.  So its all the same, ones conscious and one is unconscious.  All of us just want to be happy 

[Christian]

@jse Happiness and success are not intertwined at all. Happiness is a result of your inner psychology and success is the result of your abilities. And paradoxically, they are also linked in the sense that they are existentially indifferent. But the point still remains that success does NOT lead to happiness vise versa.

 

[Key Elements]

Once, I had the opportunity (a perk) to stay at a 5-star hotel for a month for free. Nothing was to be paid. I did not have to lift a finger, not even to cook or do my own laundry. 

After 2 days, I hated the experience. I was bored to death. Have you heard of the saying, "An idle mind is devil's workshop." For me, it was a grueling experience. That's cause at the time, I didn't practice meditation or self-inquiry. And most of all, I didn't figure out my life purpose yet. I didn't come close to it yet. That's why I highly recommended a life purpose before something like this happens. Life is not about the money. "Money doesn't buy happiness." That's the saying.

[QandC]

@jse No. It's not. I've found that the more success I acquire, I usually get a burst of happiness and then a feeling of emptiness. The happiness feeling comes from the journey towards the "goal", not the goal itself. 

[Frogfucius]

I would take losing it all and be a failure in the eyes of humanity over being a major success, if the former is to bring me more happiness. I would consider the man who is starving and dying on the side of the road a bigger success than the billionaire, if it meant the starving man was more at peace and fulfilled. It’s as Jesus said, Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.

[Self-Mastery]

 @Orange 

Can we be happy with no success? YES. A yogi that has been meditating for 10 years is happy but not successful. The real happiness can be achieved when it is not conditioned on anything, including success.  The real happiness is an unconditional happiness. 

Do we need success to be happy? NO. In fact, the opposite. If we are attached to our success, then, I can say that we are not really happy.

Can we be successful and happy? YES. As long as we are not attached to our success.

I prefer to be happy and successful. But, to answer your question specifically, I prefer HAPPINESS!. The reason is that you can be successful and miserable. In short, happiness is by far a higher goal than success.  

   

Edited October 4, 2016 by Seyed

[FindingPeace]

I would say that 'success' is actually counterproductive to 'happiness'. But that's a complicated issue to go in to right now.

But it really depends on your definition of 'happiness'. Because it seems that most people seem to think of it as some positive emotion such as joy, bliss, excitement, stimulation, etc. When in fact I see happiness as being the absence of emotion and more of a 'peace of mind' state. Which is all about the psychology of the person and not the circumstances of their life.

 

[Lawrence]

17 hours ago, kurt said:

I'd rather be successful at being happy 

Hahaha! 

[Lawrence]

16 hours ago, Orange said:

Some people do..actually I was inspired to ask this question because I read a comment to an article on the internet where one person said: "because successful is more important than being happy...priorities!"

Success without happiness is the worst kind of failure.

I mean, what does it even mean to be successful without happiness?

It's completely pointless.