It is commonly held that we ought to try to choose careers and
lifestyles which make us happy, rather than those which are
productive. That is, if you give me the choice between Door #1,
behind which lies a happy life, but also a less important, less
productive, less useful life, and Door #2, behind which lies a
considerably less happy but considerably more important, productive,
and useful life, I ought to choose Door #1.
[For now, I'll assume that such a choice actually exists and is a
relevant decision. The argument that "happiness makes you more
productive" is a point well taken. Nonetheless I assume that, despite
the fact that happiness can make you more productive, sometimes there
is a (potentially rather large) tradeoff between happiness and
productivity.]
The argument for choosing a happier life over a more productive life
makes a great deal of sense in the face of impending mortality.
You're bound to die eventually, the argument goes, so you might as
well get as much out of life as you can before that happens.
Productivity, it might be argued, is only there so as to bring about
happiness; if you spend your whole life being productive, you may
never get around to being happy.
This argument, as I say, is certainly right if I'm going to die. But
what if I'm not? What arguments might I bring to bear if I know that
there's a chance that I'll live?
Or, to make the choice more difficult, what if I'm more likely to live
by choosing productivity over happiness?
Clearly, if I set the imaginary payoffs of my imaginary Doors just
right, choosing productivity behind Door #2 over happiness behind Door
#1 might not only be a good idea, it might be downright irrational to
the point of stupidity to choose today's happiness in exchange for the
free time of an eternity.
Though I have begun this question (perhaps) unnecessarily
theoretically, I ask for rather concrete reasons: I'm graduating from
Yale this year. I'm a biomedical engineering / philosophy double
major. There are a number of potential career opportunities before
me, some of which, it seems to me, would make me substantially more
likely to survive than others; unfortunately, it also appears to me
that the career opportunities which have the potential for reaping me
the most happiness right now are not the opportunities which maximize
my fitness.
This leaves me wondering: is there really a tradeoff between happiness
and productivity? Just how important is it that I tradeoff happiness
for productivity right now and in the years ahead? Just how likely is
it that I'll make it? How does a 21st century fellow go about living
a good life?
-Dan
-unless you love someone-
-nothing else makes any sense-
e.e. cummings
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