In his recent book, Flourish, Martin E. P. Seligman puts forward the idea that while happiness is one worthy goal in life, it cannot be the only goal According to him, well being is constituted of five things, which can be put into the acronym of PERMA.
P--Positive emotion, happiness. Seligman does list happiness as part of the goal of life and part of the measure of well lived life. In his previous work, it was the capstone of life. Now he lists it as one worthy aspect of living.
E--Engagement--This diverges from sheer positive emotion. It is doing something which engages the person in life, whether it is operating a business, pursuing a creative activity, raising children, or something else.
R--Relationships--This speaks for itself. Relationships are in themselves a worthwhile aspect of living.
M--Meaning--The finding of something which makes sense of life, which gives it a larger context than just doing something for the moment, and involves something more than just feeling good.
A--Achievement--Accomplishing something which has value or worth.
Now some of my definitions here may not be exactly what Seligman would approve of, but I think they come close enough.
I am not sure why he left out three other pursuits, although I guess he would say they are included in the above. The three others which I would list are creativity, the shaping of the will, and altruistic love (referred to by Christians as agape). Creativity might be subsumed under engagement, or even under achievement, but I would like to see it have its own acknowledged place. The importance of the shaping of the will has been pointed out in the book Willpower by Baumeister. I think it deserves its own place, too. Seligman would most likely subsume agape under relationships.
However, one could probably keep coming up with more and more indispensable categories.
I don't know if the ultimate goal of life is happiness, PERMA, or altruistic love. I suspect it is all of these. But when I think of what constitutes a sense of life satisfaction for me, I realize that it is not just one thing. It is the resonance created by a variety of things happening in my life. It is like a symphony orchestra. The musical score for my life doesn't have just violins, trumpets, and French horns. It has a great variety of instruments and many people playing those instruments. In a symphony, it is the diversity, unity in diversity, and overall resonance which produces such a pleasing and satisfying effect. The total result is something above and beyond what any one instrument can produce by itself and beyond what any one musician can create by himself/herself. It is a situation where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.
On the other hand, while I am emphasizing here the importance of having a diversity of pursuits, I will admit that I have six goals listed above all others for myself. I keep them on my Yahoo calendar "to do" list, so that I see them every time I log on to it.
I would encourage you to read both Flourish and Willpower. Make up your own mind as to what is important in your life. What are you aiming at? Remember that according to Socrates (as quoted by Plato in his Dialogues, Apology), "The unexamined life is not worth living." That may be a little harsh, but it is not far off the mark. But I think that the point in this blog is a little different: if you have not examined your life to know what is likely to bring you the greatest satisfaction, then you are likely to accept lesser satisfactions or to use your time in less than optimal ways.
(Now I would like to point out that I do also believe in "goofing off." But it does not bring me any deep satisfaction.)
Hopefully, you have a variety of aspects of your life that bring fulfillment, and hopefully you experience that sense of resonance which comes from pursuing not just one focus but several. Now I don't want to be a snob here. I know that there are many people in the world who cannot really get involved in a variety of activities because of financial reasons. However, I think that at least in American society, there are almost always opportunities for relationships with others, hobbies, and educational advancement. (These days one can practically get a college education online for free--not a degree but an education.)
Now what about people who have singlemindedly pursued one major area: explorers, artists, athletes, and so on? I suspect that even for these people, one area of pursuit isn't enough. While they may initially channel all of their energy into one area, eventually most people seem to need a diversity in their experiences.
I asked an acquaintance of mine about how she felt about being retired. She said it was wonderful; it was like being a third grader without parents telling you what to do. This view of life has much to commend it. There is so much to explore and learn about in the world. I hope that you are successful in finding a sense of richness, well-being, and resonance in your life.
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