How to Follow the Right Star

A much-loved Christmas story tells about the journey of the Magi—the three Wise Men who came seeking the baby Jesus in Bethlehem. “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?” they ask . “For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” The essence of the tale is their unshakable faith in a worldly sign—a star in the sky—which the Magi trusted would guide them to the savior of the world. This story has inspired Christians for more than two millennia to believe that they can find metaphysical truth and eternal life by following something tangible—the words in a book, say, or a physical sacrament. For some nonreligious people, this belief might seem nonsensical or superstitious. Yet almost everyone acts in some analogous way in their regular life—just as almost everyone wants to be happier. The problem is that striving for happiness directly, in the abstract, is not possible. Instead, you must choose proxy goals : metaphorical stars in the sky that you can see and judge to lead you to the greater well-being you desire. This sounds right, but is it true? Is the star you choose really the one that marks the stable you hope to find? Consider the risk that your stated goals are a mirage and lead to nothing—or, worse, to un happiness. This column is about how you can tell whether you’re following the right star. P roxy goals are important because they create a sense of direction, without which you cannot make progress, which is itself a source of great satisfaction, at least temporarily. Psychologists have shown in experiments that when people set concrete goals, life feels more manageable, especially for those experiencing depression or anxiety. In fact, goals can be protective against adverse life circumstances: If you don’t like your current employment, professional goal-setting can make your job more bearable . Arthur C. Brooks: How to make the most of bad gifts To improve your long-term well-being, however, not all proxy goals are created equal. They must align with your internal values and interests, which psychologists call “ self-concordance .” Self-concordant proxies have three basic characteristics, which bear careful consideration. The first is that a good proxy goal is non-zero-sum : Achieving it does not mean that someone else cannot also achieve it. An example of a zero-sum goal would be striving to become the CEO of your company: If you’re the CEO, no one else can be (until you quit or get fired). Nothing wrong with wanting to be the leader—but a better, non-zero-sum goal would be an honest assessment of how interesting and challenging you find your work. These are qualities of a role that can be enjoyed by anyone else, not just you. Why is this better? A researcher in 2006 found that non-zero-sum goals such as this raise life satisfaction, whereas competitive, zero-sum goals lower it. You could be a happy CEO, but holding the corner office per se isn’t...

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