"We all have direct experience with things that do or don't make us happy, we all have friends, therapists, cabdrivers, and talk-show hosts who tell us about things that will or won't make us happy, and yet, despite all this practice and all this coaching, our search for happiness often culminates in a stinky mess. We expect the next car, the next house, or the next promotion to make us happy even though the last ones didn't and even though others keep telling us that the next ones won't."

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Source: Daniel Gilbert (2006). “Stumbling on Happiness”, p.196, Vintage

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Daniel Gilbert

Businessman

Daniel Gilbert is a prominent psychologist known for his research on happiness and human behavior, particularly through his book 'Stumbling on Happiness.'

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