The secret to living a good life
Creative fulfillment means that we don't shy away from pain or friction.
Hey there,
Katina here, Daydreamers’ Co-founder and Chief Science Officer. Welcome to our first official newsletter from Creative Health - our free, weekly publication where we explore what it really means to live a creatively fulfilling life in an increasingly burned out, lonely and technology-driven world.
Going forward, I’ll be the main voice behind this newsletter so we’ll get to know each other quite well. And, you’ll learn that I tend to dive head-first into exploring the deeper parts of life (today is no different 🤓).
As I sat back and imagined how to introduce one of the most foundational elements of Creative Health - the science behind living a “good” life - I couldn’t help but think about how the world we live right now is quite the opposite. It feels like each day we wake up to more chaos and tragedy. More difficulty to process. More overwhelm, especially when our mental headspace feels already filled to the brim.
Experiencing that day after day can make us crave it’s antidote. How many of you have wondered, maybe during a particularly rough moment: Can I not just be happy - once and for all?
The idea of racing towards happiness - always and forever - can be tempting. But, unfortunately (😭) our human brains aren’t wired for that. And in fact, if we keep seeking happiness as a life goal instead of seeing it as a fleeting emotion, we’ll be more than disappointed. We’ll become sick, stressed and cynical.
Trust me.
I personally tried “achieving” happiness for years. I saw it like the golden snitch; if I could just grasp that tiny orb of light, I imagined that everything in my life would work out perfectly. Each time I felt happy, I thought I simply needed to hold onto it for a little bit longer and my life would drastically improve.
You guessed it - that journey left me miserable and frankly, feeling like a failure.
It may seem counterintuitive, but the root of living a creatively healthy life isn’t about checking happiness off your metaphorical To Do list; it’s learning how to actually live a good life. One that acknowledges pain, embraces friction, and seeks out windy roads over straight lines.
Most of us weren’t taught how to do this as kids - and definitely not as adults. That’s exactly why I’m so passionate about our definition of Creative Health at Daydreamers, because it gives us a tool, a way of being, and a framework to view the world through all the peaks and valleys - not just the bright spots.
So, let me explain the science behind why our new, collective version of a “good” life needs to shift - and how to begin living one.
Happiness versus fulfillment
At Daydreamers, we like to call emotions ‘data points.’
Happiness, anger, desire or pain - they’re all triggers that help us make better, more informed decisions in the moment. They aren’t personality traits, goals or forever states of being. They’re simply information.
If we take the most scientific perspective, happiness - and any other emotion for that matter - is literally designed to be fleeting. It’s essentially a blaring biological notification that tells our mind something about our current environment.
The problem begins when we treat emotions as a part of our identity instead of data passing through. That will not only change our physiology, but over time, it inhibits us from closing out important “stress cycles” in our bodies. Our emotions get stuck, leading to long stretches of burnout, exhaustion and even dopamine-seeking habits.
Seem familiar?
If this is news to you, you’re not alone. Our world has convinced us that cultivating never-ending “happiness” and avoiding pain (by buying, doing, achieving more stuff), we will solve all of our problems. Instead, the effect is quite the opposite; our life becomes a hamster-wheel.
Unfortunately, this kind of psychological bypassing has been going on for centuries. So much so that philosophers from all phases of history - like Socrates to Schopenhauer - have been drawn to explore one simple question: If achieving happiness isn’t the point of life - then what is? 🧐
Across every discipline, from societal rebels to scientists, we’ve come to a similar conclusion: It’s cultivating meaning - not simply feeling happy - that makes life worth living.
It sounds simple on the surface, but the true definition of a “good,” meaningful life is still quite murky in the scientific realm. Currently, it goes by many different names: Eudaimonia. Flourishing. Purpose. Each describes a core set of natural, human abilities that allow us to expand our satisfaction with life while strengthening our resilience to it’s challenges. And most importantly, it’s how we experience the full extent of being human - rather than avoid it.
It was actually one of my favorite scientific researchers, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, who led the beginning of this movement to explore the meaning of life from a psychological point of view. That was where he stumbled upon his world-changing discovery of creative flow.
In his research, Csikszentmihalyi wanted to understand what led to “peak” life experiences. Instead of finding happiness at the root of them, he found that moments of creative friction and personal growth underlie our most meaningful, engaging and euphoric parts of life. In his book, Flow, he shares:
“The best moments [in life], usually occur when a person’s mind and body are stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.”
In future newsletters, we will explore the scientific research and mechanics behind flow, fulfillment and other topics in depth (we do so deeply in the Daydreamers Universe!).
But for now, think of this as your introductory mind-shift to the foundations that underlie our entire thesis on Creative Health: Living a creatively fulfilling life is not about seeking never-ending happiness and avoiding the darkness; darkness is inevitable. It’s our ability to harness our inner softness consistently - our innate curiosity, compassion and creativity - and morph it into strength.
And, this isn’t just some lofty idea. You can start to put it into action right now: The more you practice being creative, purely for the sake of it, the more meaningful your life becomes. Don’t just take my word for it; this is what we call a virtuous cycle in psychological research - we’ll dive into the details behind it next week.
For now, let’s start simple. Try exercising your creative brain by asking yourself a different type of question: What kind of life do you want to live - a fleeting, happy one or a beautiful, challenging and meaningful one?
- Katina
Daydreamers’ Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer
Creative Brain Teaser 🧠
Think of this as a peek into what we do at Daydreamers. We’ll share a taste of a Creative Health concept or actionable tool from the Daydreamers Platform that will help you take this week’s newsletter from a learning into a real part of everyday life.
Eudaimonia
What it means: We talk about the concept of Eudaimonia often in the Daydreamers Universe because it combines two of our favorite areas of knowledge - ancient wisdom and modern science. Socrates often used to describe it as “what makes life worth living.” Nowadays, it is the north star within the positive psychology movement. It can be measured by our sense of meaning and purpose in life - or our ability to find enjoyment in the pursuit of challenging goals; cultivating self-awareness and growth; and using our unique gifts to express ourselves.
How to experiment with it: Within Daydreamers, we like to measure your creative fulfillment by finding your “perfect blend” of friction and flow. So, whether you’re writing, doodling, moving your body or even thinking differently at work, try not to avoid challenge - but instead, iterate until you find the right blend of difficulty and enjoyment. It might take a couple of tries!
One thing we’re into 🪐
In the name of simplicity, each week we’ll share something that myself, Katina, or our team @ DD HQ is obsessed with. It may be an idea, a quote, a book or even a product that’s helping us live a little bit more of a creatively fulfilling life.
Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
We’ve re-read this book 100 times and it’s on staple in the DD HQ bookshelf. If you’re curious about the science of flow, this book is a great place to start. Csikszentmihalyi explains the true definition of “flow” - not something to make you more productive, but the act of doing something worthwhile just for the sake of it.
Tell us in the comments: When in life do you feel most in ‘flow’?
Help us reach our goal of 20,000 community members here on Substack - we’re so close! Share Creative Health by Daydreamers with a friend or two who need a dose of creative living 🤍 We appreciate you helping us spread this movement with the world.