Monday, March 2, 2009

Theory on Happiness #1: Sweet Sweet Irony

One of the most basic aspects of being a human being is the ability to learn from our experiences. This basic skill has allowed us to survive and thrive for thousands of years by helping us to avoid our past mistakes. Ironically, this same skill may also be the reason why it's so hard to find a successful relationship.


As we get older and learn from our mistakes, we get more selective because we weed out the types of people that have not worked out in the past, thus keeping us from getting hurt; however, this increase in our selectiveness also limits the chances that we'll find the person we're looking for because we're continually reducing the talent pool. On the other hand, our lack of selectiveness when we are young helps us to easily find relationships, but also increases the chances that the relationship will be inherently flawed in some way and that it will end spectacularly years later.

Therefore, a fine balance must be struck between being too selective and not selective enough in order to maximize the chances of finding the right person and, supposedly, being happy. This leads logically to the chart above and then, almost immediately, to tears.

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