Achieve long-lasting fulfillment in 3 effortless methods: Why settle for temporary happiness when long-term satisfaction should be our ultimate pursuit?
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In today's fast-paced world, finding lasting fulfillment can sometimes feel elusive. However, according to author Marc Kielburger, who has worked with numerous CEOs and high net worth individuals for over two decades, the key lies in redefining personal success and prioritizing deeper connections.
The Polyvagal Theory, developed by Dr. Stephen Porges, suggests that we have a basic human need to connect significantly with others. This need is crucial for our well-being, as happiness and fulfillment are deeply tied to the quality of our relationships.
A 2018 study revealed that an astonishing 49% of CEOs report struggling with some mental health disorder. This statistic underscores the importance of focusing on well-being, not just success. The common idea in Western culture that happiness comes from success, generally associated with wealth, fame, and power, is wrong. Pursuing fleeting happiness based on these factors creates a vicious cycle of never having enough, leading to more stress and unhappiness.
Instead, the ultimate goal, the true purpose in life, should go beyond the self. Fulfillment is essentially deep and lasting happiness, often coming from committing to something greater than oneself.
So, how can we achieve lasting fulfillment instead of pursuing immediate satisfaction? Effective strategies involve delaying gratification, focusing on meaningful, outward connections, and redefining personal success through intentional goals and values.
Key strategies include:
- Practice delayed gratification: Resist immediate pleasures, such as social media or junk food, in favor of more meaningful, long-term rewards. This strengthens emotional regulation, decision-making, and contributes to lasting well-being.
- Cultivate meaningful relationships: Lifelong happiness is deeply tied to the quality of relationships—not quantity or wealth. Invest intentionally in connections where you feel seen, supported, and loved to greatly enhance life satisfaction and health.
- Make deliberate, value-based choices: Happiness and fulfillment come from consciously deciding "what is worth saying yes to," setting priorities that nurture self-growth and meaningful engagement rather than succumbing to distractions or instant pleasure.
- Define personal vision and mission: Clarify your core purpose and values through reflective work such as writing a personal mission statement. This helps align daily actions with what truly matters, fostering a grounded sense of progress and fulfillment.
- Shift mindset from short-term pleasure to long-term success: Recognize that instant gratification releases dopamine, providing a false sense of accomplishment that often leads to procrastination. Instead, focus on consistent action towards goals and embrace the process as the source of genuine success and satisfaction.
- Value intrinsic rewards: Highlight personal growth and mastery as intrinsic rewards to deepen satisfaction beyond external validation or immediate results.
By integrating these approaches—building patience, nurturing deep relationships, intentionally shaping your life’s direction, and prioritizing sustained effort over quick rewards—you foster a foundation for deep, lasting personal fulfillment.
A good starting point for improving well-being is proper nutrition and exercise. For instance, walking just 20 minutes a day, five days a week, produces significant health improvements, such as halving the incidence of obesity, reducing joint pain, lowering cancer risk, and boosting the immune system. Additionally, a 2013 study found that without regular exercise, we lose between 1% to 2% of our lean body mass per year and between 1.5% to 5% of our total strength annually after age 40.
In practice, fostering well-being can be as simple as having coffee with an elderly neighbor or volunteering at a community center. Prioritizing momentary satisfaction over deeper fulfillment often leads to stress, poor health, and mental illnesses like depression or addiction.
In 2023, the Surgeon General of the United States warned that loneliness, a phenomenon that has worsened with the pandemic and the inherent isolation of the digital world, poses a health risk as lethal as smoking, with effects equivalent to consuming up to 15 cigarettes a day. Therefore, nurturing meaningful connections should be a priority for everyone.
The author, Marc Kielburger, has helped these individuals achieve both business and personal goals through legacy project creation. Focusing on one's well-being, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, is the foundation for any other achievement.
[1] Baumeister, R. F., & Tierney, J. (2011). The Self-Control Solution: Strategies for Strengthening Your Most Important Muscle. Penguin.
[2] Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: an introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5-14.
[3] Duckworth, A., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2005). Self-discipline: The Perseverance and Passion to Succeed. Free Press.
[4] Kielburger, M., & Kielburger, C. (2015). The Global Citizen: How Our World is Transforming and What You Can Do to Make a Difference. Walker & Company.
[5] Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. Harper & Row.
- In the realm of science, the importance of workplace wellness and health-and-wellness, including fitness-and-exercise and nutrition, cannot be overstated, as they significantly impact an individual's mental health and overall well-being.
- Education-and-self-development and personal-growth, such as skills-training and self-discipline, are crucial for career-development, enabling individuals to redefine personal success and prioritize deeper connections, as advocated by authors like Marc Kielburger.
- A life with meaning is often found through committing to something greater than oneself, aligning daily actions with values, and focusing on outward connections, rather than fleeting happiness based on wealth, fame, or power.
- The Polyvagal Theory underscores the human need for significant connections, suggesting that happiness and fulfillment are deeply tied to the quality of our relationships, not just our success.
- The pursuit of lasting fulfillment can be achieved through effective strategies like practicing delayed gratification, cultivating meaningful relationships, and intentionally shaping one's life direction, among others, as recommended by experts like Dr. Stephen Porges and authors such as Marc Kielburger.
