Should you be striving for eudaimonia rather than happiness?

In life we are all told that we should be aiming to pursue happiness to give us fulfilment and make life as good as it can be. The idea of this even extends back to the US constitution giving reference to the pursuit of happiness.

But is that really correct?

Happiness by definition is an emotion with a range of positive feelings from contentment or joy. It is often associated with specific experiences such as achieving goals, spending time with those we love or engaging in an enjoyable activity.

But the potential problem with that is that is can be short lived. It would only take one minor things to happen to change our emotion and take us out of this state of happiness. This could from an interaction, our health and energy levels or an activity.

Unless you are a reader of philosophy and stoicism you may not actually be aware of what the theory of eudaimonia actually is.
Eudaimonia is a concept brought about and written on by the philosopher Aristotle (namesake of the business) which explains that the purpose of mankind is to achieve a state of serene and permanent happiness.

So what’s the difference?

Happiness itself comes from the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain, whereas eudaimonia comes from the pursuit of being authentic, having meaning, purpose and growth in your overall life.

Therefore, it would make a lot of sense to be striving for that given that it is more consistent, not subject to short term events and experiences and potentially event be dependent upon factors outside of your control.

It can also mean that doing something that makes you unhappy but is also the right thing to do. A simple example of that might be that you need to say something honest but you know could make someone unhappy, but because it is virtuous and moral can provide a sense of calm to your life.

And it is not about constantly seeking to be in this state, but overall finding balance.

So rather than looking to seek constant bursts of happiness, maybe we should consider whether overall we are achieving eudaimonia and work towards that.