Stop trying to be a know-it-all!
If you want to get the most pleasure from life, stop trying to be a know-it-all! According to Psychology Today, mystery not variety is the spice of life.
A new study finds that when we try to understand every little thing that happens to us, our experiences don't have as much of an impact. Researchers at the University of Virginia had volunteers watch a movie about a struggling sports figure who beat the odds and rose to the top. Then half the volunteers were told what happened to the athlete later in life, and the other half were left wondering.
The results? Even though the story had a happy ending, the people left wondering about the athlete's fate were more cheerful because they were able to envision what great things COULD have happened to him.
The researchers chalk this up to what they call the "pleasure paradox" which means that our urge to understand events can reduce the joy we take in them. Study author Timothy D. Wilson says this happens because of our mind's ability to make sense of things in a complex world. When we have a negative experience, our knack for finding meaning in it helps us cope. But on the flip side, when we rationalize positive experiences, they lose their emotional intensity.
So basically, the key to happiness is allowing for a little mystery in our lives. That means don't be upset if you can't get to the bottom of every good thing that happens to you. Because if you could, you wouldn't enjoy it as much.
A new study finds that when we try to understand every little thing that happens to us, our experiences don't have as much of an impact. Researchers at the University of Virginia had volunteers watch a movie about a struggling sports figure who beat the odds and rose to the top. Then half the volunteers were told what happened to the athlete later in life, and the other half were left wondering.
The results? Even though the story had a happy ending, the people left wondering about the athlete's fate were more cheerful because they were able to envision what great things COULD have happened to him.
The researchers chalk this up to what they call the "pleasure paradox" which means that our urge to understand events can reduce the joy we take in them. Study author Timothy D. Wilson says this happens because of our mind's ability to make sense of things in a complex world. When we have a negative experience, our knack for finding meaning in it helps us cope. But on the flip side, when we rationalize positive experiences, they lose their emotional intensity.
So basically, the key to happiness is allowing for a little mystery in our lives. That means don't be upset if you can't get to the bottom of every good thing that happens to you. Because if you could, you wouldn't enjoy it as much.
