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Different types of happiness have different levels of importance, according to a recent article in the . Eudaimonic well-being, caused by engaging in meaningful activity, is more important to physical health than short-term pleasure or positive feelings.
In other words, people who live with a sense of purpose will likely live longer and enjoy better mental health than people who focus on immediate happiness. So, for example, winning your bracket might give you hedonic well-being, which is fleeting, but a decade of coaching your kids' basketball team — through all its ups and downs — will be more fulfilling in the long run. “Sometimes things that really matter most are not conducive to short-term happiness,” says Carol , a professor and director of the at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Eudaimonic and hedonic well-being overlap, of course, but people who primarily seek rewards such as fame and fortune aren't as happy, according to, a professor of psychology, psychiatry and education at the University of Rochester. , a retired professor at the University of Illinois, says the best way to improve eudaimonic happiness is to focus on relationships and work you enjoy: “Quit sitting around worrying about yourself, and get focused on your goals.”
–Whitney Dreier