Why do you think so many people sare unhappy into today's world?
No matter how good a person's life may seem on the outside, if you scratch below the surface, you'll often find they're miserable.
You have probably heard the old saying: "Money cannot buy happiness." And evidently neither does materialism.
So why are so many people in today's world so unhappy? What are they missing? I mean we are more adanced in so many ways now, then at any other time in human history!
The reason I ask this question is because I have seen so many people that I know, whether from work or who I know socially, and they are all unhappy.
Eventually, you learn to see past the happy front that many people put on. You learn to read the cues, whether it be that the person is a drinker, a drug user, or etc.
Anyway, what is wrong with the world today, and why are so many people today are unhappy in their lives?
Comments
cause life's a bitxch and then u die
People aren't satisfied with what they have... or they have a chemical imbalance in their brain, which causes all sorts of issues.
Whether it's the death of "the American dream", or hatred for their job and finances, people just aren't satisfied with their lives.
Speaking about the former, the days of selling fruit out of the back of your truck leading to owning a chain of stores, is all but gone. Nurturing a business from nothing to something, just doesn't happen to the 99% in one lifetime anymore. A lot of people miss the boat too by joining an over-saturated market after they see other's successes(I'm talking Youtube, podcasts, etc these days. Again, the 99%, you are now a good 5 years too late). I know people whom attempt these things... way too late, end up failing, then blame the world(If this sounds familiar, yes, I've brought this guy up before).
Now, about the latter. Some people just aren't skilled, one way or another, in the professional field they like most. So no matter what job they do, they are never satisfied or happy with it. Others just don't have a comfortable paycheck and the constant stress of finances continually weigh them down(money would solve this one though). Perhaps they just never got the same opportunities to succeed as others and won't let that go.
It's up to us to find our own happiness with the world we have(assuming finances aren't the issue here). Have a job where you enjoy at least some aspect of it and thank whomever you're not doing a job you completely despise. Find happiness with your friends and family. Shit, just be glad you get to do things you enjoy, even if it's for short periods at a time. For some people, it is that simple. For others whom dream big, life can be hard to enjoy.
It's not the world's fault exactly. Bad things happen and some people take it harder than others. Whether it be a mental illness, a death in the family or life just hasn't turned out the way you wanted it to. There's no direct cause.
But as much as there is bad, there's also good. If you don't actively try to enjoy life or spend time with family and friends then nothing's going to change.
EDIT: Not everyone is unhappy. There are happy people who enjoy their lives. I'd like to think I'm one of them.
People have always been unhappy its nothing about today's world, just human nature. Though I do think we are more suited to the hunter gatherer tribe lifestyle, and the one we live now is so different to that, what with the crap food, sedentary lifestyles etc that our brain hormones are out of whack because of it.
My dad used to say that I was unhappy because I read too much and expected my waking life to be like Harry Potter. He's since read the series and now doesn't say that anymore.
It's a mix of things, to be honest.
Different reasons for different people, it's never as easy as a straightforward answer - emotions are very complex after all. Heck, sometimes they themselves don't realize why they're sad, for me, I try to be optimistic and nice to everyone I talk to but I just feel a pang of sadness inside of me that I can't quite explain :x
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Because life is unfair and everything sucks. There's negativity everywhere, everybody criticizes but nobody's constructive, not enough people do something nice, but everyone does something scummy. When it comes to good vs bad, bad outweighs the good despite how much of it there is, and our only solace is either death or the sheer luck of a chance that we'll get as rich as PewDieCunt and make it big so we don't have to suffer anymore. The world is a joke and it takes every ray of sunlight and crushes it into dust. The best anyone can do is look at the good stuff and keep their optimism placed in that. Whether it's friends, video games, music, creativity or just making reasons to smile yourself.
Definitely being ungrateful is a reason. I am very happy and life hasn't been easy to me ever. This year has been a great year and next will be even better. I enjoy the little things in life. I own a Xbox 360 and am happy with it. I have an Android phone and am happy with it. There's so many people that cry over first world problems. "If only I had that new IPhone or game console" lol. On the other end of the spectrum there's people that are constantly negative with "Meanwhile in Africa or Mexico" honestly, who cares. We can't change anything there so why talk about it ? Be happy with your life and strive to make your life better everyday.
I think unhappiness is a result of getting used to everything that previously seemed good. It is always like that, when you get happiness from outside.
True happiness is only earned by work (and I mean work in broad sense), because true happiness is the reward of your brain to your body when you do good things, help others, achieve goals, get acknowledged and respected, and get loved.
Laziness and egoism are the reasons of being unhappy.
I totally agree with you regarding social media. People can the very best portions of lives, the stuff that they actually want you to see, and act like they're doing so well.
And therefore can jealousy and even depression in those whose lives perhaps are not successful as the other person's lives seem to be.
Here's some videos that discusses the subjects, that's lying to you, why you may wish to get off social media, and if you do decide to stay on it, what you should and should not do.
Listen to the information presented, and think long and hard before posting, if you post at all.
I personally post nothing personal because it is nobodies business what my thoughts are, who I am with, or where I am at.
People are missing freedom. In the same time authorities keep lying how great our world is, how everything works fine. But I can't express my feelings, must watch my every word, and I'm still under attack. Political correctness is terrorizing western civilisation.
People are a bunch of self centered egotistical maniacs who think they know how the world should function mean while they're easily convinced to one political side of an argument from a single youtube video which is so obviously bias that it's a joke in the eyes of someone who is remotely observant. Then these 99%ers wonder why the system is so messed up because they lack the skills needed to understand politics, or the world in general to know, but still claim they know. Doesn't matter if you're a conservative thinker, or liberal, I think most on both sides are a bunch of idiots.
So when you put it that way. How can they not be unhappy? Happiness is a State of Mind. It isn't based on one's wealth or social status, who is in political control, or how many freedoms you have. When people view everything so hateful, and negative they will in turn be hateful and negative themselves.
It's hardly just today's world, I believe Camus said the world was filled mostly with unhappy people, and that 70-odd years ago. Combine that with Machiavelli's acknowledgement that people only remember to their grandfather's time and you know people have been unhappy throughout human history. I think it was Schopenhauer who defined happiness as a negative state, where it designated the absense of suffering moreso that than positive emotion. Humans naturally feel lack of food, water, sex, connection, far more deeply than they do their presence, as the former is treated as a motivator to seek the lacking element out whereas the latter is like a ship passing through the ocean - notable only by its lack of turbulence.
Personally, I'm just pissed that I found out the other night that my favorite bar closed.
It's hard to convince some people that the political world hasn't changed a dime in over a 1000 years, just the social systems have changed, and the form of governments themselves have changed, but basic politics remain the same. When i mean basic politics, I mean how politicians are, how they behave, how special interest plays and controls them, etc.
I often state for example about the WWII generation. "If the generation that fought WWII are our greatest, then the men that lead that generation are our worse." When you dig deep into the politics surrounding the war, and what ignited it, it goes well beyond some butt-wipe with a funny mustache yelling in a microphone. No one's hands were clean in short. As another phrase I've often said before. "It was only fortunate that the Nazis conducted any war crimes during WWII. We would of been at war with them regardless, but it gave us the perfect tool to demonize them into the mud while painting ourselves as heroes." Referring to why WWII is often viewed as the only black/white war in modern history.
Alienation of labor is a big part of it, IMO. Along with things mentioned by other.
Humans are social and creative creatures. We thrive in environments of autonomy, equality and creativity (while corporate life is inherently hierarchical and stresses conformity to the corporate culture. Putting people, even well paid ones, in a glorified box for a large portion of their lives and denying them all three can be detrimental to mental (and physical) well-being. This is made worse by how thoroughly work has come to monopolize our time and thoughts. My Dad almost committed suicide a few years back because of shitty bosses and a horribly depressing workplace. A bad company can just suck the life out of you.
Consumerism is a coping mechanism that also fuels the cycle.
School is often just as shitty.
And finally, social media and the bad shit happening lately have left a cloud of crisis anxiety hanging over a lot of people.
You think people were happy in the past?
And "money can't buy happiness" was never said by someone with a lot of money.
I think unhappiness largely stems from a mismatch of expectations versus reality, and how equipped you are to deal with that mismatch. This can appear in superficial things like getting onions on your burger when you asked for none, or larger picture items like what you do to survive versus what you actually believe you're capable of.
I also see experience as cyclical, like energy through a system. The happy times follow the unhappy, and vice versa. There are peaks and there are troughs. Happiness, too, I think depends on whether that graph's overall trend is upwards towards self-actualization, an average flatline, or downwards towards destruction.
It also depends on your attitude toward uncertainty. Do you welcome challenge when the good times begin to dip, or do you dread it? Are you optimistic about the trend of your 'graph', or is it a bubble about to burst? What about the people around you and what they are going through? This attitude is mutable based on what you perceive to be at stake.
Also, context. Physical, psychological, socio-economic, and cultural foundations can enhance or limit a person's potential for happiness.
Oh, and to hell with Facebook.
I don't know about, you but I get crazy triggered when someone puts tomato on my burger AFTER SPECIFICALLY ASKING THEM NOT TO. It leaks! Get that leaky shit out of my burger!
What the hell was I saying about superficial unhappinesses? Burgers are serious business
Lack of meaningful human interaction and true purpose.
People are just so unaccepting. I hate myself because every day I get stares and laughs for being....me.
Prejudice.
There are others I could name, but they either don't really affect me personally so much as people I care about or don't have more defined names.
I totally agree with your list. I was born intersex, and I'm bisexual. I'm also an atheist as well, though that's pretty obvious if you know me.
I can't say that racism affects me because I'm Caucasian, but I hate racist jokes, remarks and beliefs.
Cities and towns are overwhelming. We used to live in really small groups.
People also feel controlled - go to school, go to work, etc.
They also struggle with finding meanings to their lives. It's odd, but it seems like people get bored of life when they don't have to fight for it.
Personally, reason i'm unhappy with my life is because i'm painfully anti-social, from young age. I also didn't eat much. It resulted in bad bone structure which resulted in slightly deformed chest, which is a huge hit to my self-esteem, especially when going through puberty. The worse it got, the harder it was for me to get out of this circle. And i'm still in it.
One of the things from people's unhappiness can come from stress. They are so many things that a person can be stressed about and it makes them feel down and unhappy.
I think it has already been explained previously pretty well by previous posters, but this video does a pretty good job of summing it up even if it is 15 minutes long.
