Why Are People Unhappy?

[F U Clock]

I talked to one of my friends last night (who is 14 years my senior), and he was very unhappy. He's single, and has a day-job but is working himself to death on an animation with the goal of getting a pilot on a network, but he sounds like if he can't get a show he'll be fucking miserable for the rest of his life. I feel like I see this all the time - people want to be rich and famous and if they can't be, they don't think life is worth living. Granted, this guy's talented and funny, but is there no other way for creative people to feel fulfilled in their life?

[AstronautClock]

its not about getting money but its about living easy and leaving behind something to be remembered by something that you can be proud of. atleast thats what I think

[Sinister Clock]

Personally I feel if I don't succeed in animation then my life will be worthless, since I have pretty much dedicated my entire life to animation now.

[DigitalLemonClock]

I wonder if him wanting a commercially succesful show through a network is because he wants to be rich and famous or wether it's because he considers commercial succes to be the most important barometer of accomplishment and status

It personally seems somewhat unhealthy to disregard all effort and results if something doesn't make it on a major network

[F U Clock]

Right, DLC that's sort of how I feel.

I mean, if you're a musician and you never "make it big," was it all a waste to have poured your heart and soul into your work? There were a lot of artists who were never famous in their lifetime, but now they're celebrated all across the world.

It's sort of a form of modern immortality - it used to be through worship of God and getting into Heaven, now it's being remembered by humanity through your works. But how long will that last? Eventually humanity will cease to exist. Fuck it. Make art for yourself. Sinister, would you have rather not made any animation? Hasn't it impacted people in your life in some way? All you can do is try, I think.

[BluezombieClock]

Well, for me at least, for sure it'd be great to be able to make a living off of music or animation, or anything that one becomes passionate about. I don't think it has anything to do with 'being rich and famous', but maybe it's just about being able to say: I get paid enough to live off what I love alone.

Money's important, but even an only-decent pay can become quite attractive if you love the task(s) required for the job.

[Kodiakclock]

because everything in this thread is tl;dr

[AMPEEEM]

Don't wanna sound new age, but maybe being satisfied and happy with your life and your product as it is is the only way TO get the great promotion and exposure.

[Kodiakclock]

Don't wanna sound new age, but maybe being satisfied and happy with your life and your product as it is is the only way TO get the great promotion and exposure.

[Robfire]

I think that as humans we're always going to want something more. Some people are more tolerant with others with certain things. People who are rich and have busy lives are usually depressed and wish they lived back in the years when life was "simpler", while the simple people wish they had a busier lives. It can be nice knowing that no matter what you're just going to try to find something to want naturally, so just fucking accept it and live on. It's hard for everybody, but, as cheesy as it sounds, most of the time to be moderately acceptant with your life is to accept the fact that you won't be noticed by millions of people, or at least be prepared for it.

[Thor]

By many peoples standards my life is terrible. Below poverty line, no hope of a career that will make me rich, single, ect


Yet I am extremely happy. I can't imagine life being much better than it is for me now; if I won the lottery tomorrow I don't think much would change at all, because I wouldn't want it to. In this sense I feel that I have "won" at life, more so than those that are rich and powerful. Some people may claim this is merely a defense mechanism that's blinding me to reality such that I can feel superior to others; that may be so, but I care not. I am happy, and that's all that matters.

Based on my own life, and my windows into the lives of others, I can say with some confidence (although this is only anecdotal evidence) that happiness is not a function of wealth or popularity or social status. Instead it is a result of state of mind, of genetics (which, sadly, little can be done about), and what you value as important. Some people will always be unhappy, no matter what happens. Others will always be happy.

I personally suggest the non-metaphisical aspects of Taoism for those seeking happiness.

Forgive me if this all sounds overly spiritual and pretentious, I've been reading a lot of Siddhartha lately.

[miracle fruit]

^lmfao

[Topcatyo]

Whenever I talk to people about what I want in life (an unsurprisingly frequent conversation given the age of myself and those who I know) and I view life as this:

I have a family who we all love each other like a family should, and I'm lucky to have that.

As for where I want to be in life, I'd be fine living a life of modest means so long as I had a job to support myself and I could spend time with my friends and family at the end of the day.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to make it big with whatever art form I pursue, but if I don't, so long as I'm not starving and the people I know aren't dead, I'm happy.

[l1fty]

some things im unhappy about:

- im 21 years old and i regret a lot of things i haven't done in my earlier years. things im never going to be able to change
- im on the verge of graduating and becoming a desk jockey and i dont think the field i studied for is something i want to do for the rest of my life.. hell i cant even see myself doing it day in day out for a year
- ive outgrown a lot of people because ive moved locations. i still have a handful of really close good friends i hang out with every week but other than that the people who used to be my friends are now just people i never see anymore
- when i die the world and the universe will move on infinitely without me being there to realize and that concept freaks me out

[VCRClock]

Make art for yourself. ... Hasn't it impacted people in your life in some way?

I've been in a general state of being a huge dipshit and not actively producing anything artistic for a while now, but at least in my head, my goal is to work on (what is for me) a big project and put it "out there." Of course, finishing a big project might make me happy in some respect. That would be the "making art for myself" part. On the other hand, at least in my current state of mind, I wouldn't be satisfied to finish something big and put it away in a drawer somewhere. I'm not looking to become a rock star, but if the only people appreciating something I've busted my ass on are people who already appreciated me for other reasons, it's sort of frustrating.

I feel like with animation, to generalize, you're either nobody, you're somebody who's shown a few things at festivals (which doesn't translate to a lot of impressions, and you or your work might be forgotten quickly), or you're on TV or something and have fans. Animation's also tough in that if you're not "successful" in the commercial sense, you probably don't have the manpower to produce your art with the same frequency as other artists, and even if you do, it's not always so easy to get someone to sit down and watch a cartoon.

[GreyClock]

some things im unhappy about:

- im 21 years old and i regret a lot of things i haven't done in my earlier years. things im never going to be able to change
- im on the verge of graduating and becoming a desk jockey and i dont think the field i studied for is something i want to do for the rest of my life.. hell i cant even see myself doing it day in day out for a year
- ive outgrown a lot of people because ive moved locations. i still have a handful of really close good friends i hang out with every week but other than that the people who used to be my friends are now just people i never see anymore
- when i die the world and the universe will move on infinitely without me being there to realize and that concept freaks me out

I feel a strong urge to comment on this, because it's pretty much a description of me, a few years back.

- Read that sentence again, you can't change it, so just move on.
- I was in that exact same situation. What I did was think long and hard about what I really wanted, what I really liked. What's wonderful is that you don't really have to think all that long and hard, it's likely a very obvious answer. You just have to admit it and dare take the leap. I quit and started a new study. If it truly is my calling or just some form of escapism only time will tell, but at least I tried and it's a hell of a lot better than your current outlook.
- Well you could call someone up or whatever, but they probably weren't that good a friend if this is how it turned out. Which is not a bad thing, it's a common process, it's sort of like natural selection I guess.
- I take comfort in that fact, I revel in my own insignificance. It's liberating.

[Munglai]

The thing with animation and film is that unlike painting or music or something like that, you can't really do it just to please yourself. It's such a drawn out process and so much of the emphasis is on being aware that you're working with an audience that it's only natural to want to seek acclaim a little bit.

Having a TV show of my own or something like that is kind of one of my aims but only because it means you get a consistent budget and audience. I'm not really interested in fame and fortune, just the means to make whatever I want. Then again, I'm perfectly happy doing occasional paid work on the side and slowly putting something together in my own time. If I had to just do shitty paid work all the time I would be pretty unhappy.

[PossumClock]

It seems to me that this guy is searching for "happiness" in the wrong placeââ,¬â€if he was truly passionate about animation then "making it big" shouldn't be what he's focussed on deriving his happiness from. I mean, sure, should the opportunity arise that he could get recognized and he ends up losing that opportunity then yes, that would suck and be worth some unhappy sentiment, but I think that he should have more appreciation for art than that, if that's what he's really into.

The primary focus of producing art shouldn't be to earn wealth and fame, I've always thought of it as more of a selfish discipline, if you will. And this guy could be doing animation for other reasons, I'm assuming he'd consider it an art or whatever, but my point still standsââ,¬â€I feel like he needs to reevaluate why he's doing what he's doing, and if wealth is more important than animation and stuff then he should go back to school and study Accounting, Business or Law or something that will guarantee green.

Of course, I'm of the personal persuasion that money can never fill that void (it can add, but it will never be the source of happiness), but that's just me. <:3

[AMPEEEM]

makeing fun of meeee

be unsatisfied, then.