The Never Ending Hunt: Happiness

A typical 10th grade student in India faces a clear path that many follow without question. This path promises happiness at the end of each achievement, but somehow that happiness always seems to stay just out of reach.

First comes the board exam pressure. Study hard, score high marks, and you'll be happy. The student sacrifices sleep, time with friends, and hobbies. When good marks arrive, there's barely time to celebrate before hearing: "Now focus on IIT entrance exams."

IIT preparation takes over completely. Two years pass in coaching centers and practice tests. The student is told that cracking IIT will bring success and happiness. But most students don't make it into IIT.

The tragedy isn't in failing to reach destinations. It's in missing the journey's landscape while fixating on distant horizons.

Instead, they settle for decent private engineering colleges. "It's still good," everyone says. "Get a high GPA and you'll be set." Four years of college go by with little exploration or enjoyment. The focus remains on grades and eventual job placement.

Senior students offer advice: "Learn DSA (Data Structures and Algorithms). Build projects. Get placed in a good company." The student spends nights coding and practicing interview questions. Social life takes a backseat.

Finally, a job offer comes. The first salary brings brief joy. But soon new advice arrives: "This package is too small. Switch companies after one year for better pay." And so begins a cycle of job-hopping every couple of years, chasing higher salaries and better titles.

By age 30, despite having financial stability, something feels missing. The question emerges: "Is this all there is?" After following all the prescribed steps, happiness remains elusive.

What went wrong?

The truth is simple: happiness was never waiting at these destinations. It existed all along in:

• Conversations with friends during study breaks
• Family dinners before rushing back to coaching
• College festivals that seemed like "time wasters"
• Small moments of connection between all the achievement hunting

The mistake isn't failing to reach goals. It's missing life while chasing future accomplishments. It's believing that happiness comes tomorrow instead of finding it today.

Real happiness exists in:

• Present moments, not future achievements
• Personal connections, not competition
• Defining your own success, not following others' definitions
• Appreciating what you have, not always wanting more

Happiness isn't found at the end of a checklist. It's found alongside the journey when you take time to notice what's already around you.

The key lesson: Achievement without enjoying the present creates an empty life. Stop treating happiness as a destination. It's the path itself.

The happiness hunt ends when you realize what you're chasing has been within reach all along – in simple moments of connection, purpose, and presence that no degree or salary can provide.