Question

Hello!

Answer 1

Ben-Shahar talks about the emptiness that he felt when he was younger. He thinks that this emptiness will go away when he achieves his longtime goal of winning the Israeli National squash championships. This finally came true (i'd give the date here), and he is happy this day as he celebrates with his family and friends. But as he is getting ready to go to sleep, he realizes that he still feels an emptiness. This makes him feel hopeless because he thinks that if he can't feel happy at this moment, that he will never feel happiness again. At this moment, he realizes he must think of happiness in a different way. This is where his quest to find lifelong happiness begins. He talks about his study of several major philosophers and even psychologists. He also speaks about his realization that most people are trying to be happy by attaining goals that they set for themselves but never reaching a satisfactory point. This chapter concludes that the right question is not to ask "Am I happy?" because this suggests that the happiness is an endpoint, but rather, "How can I become happier?", because this acknowledges that happiness is a process and a pursuit.