Typically, there are three lanes on the expressways.
- Rightmost = Lane 1 – sports cars
- Middle = Lane 2 – majority of the passenger cars
- Leftmost = Lane 3 – trucks, lorries and slow moving vehicles
The expressways reflect our society’s wealth pyramid.
People living in Lane 3 tend to be poorer. They are the blue collar workers driving unglamorous trucks but they play important roles to supply society with the necessities. They would prefer to drive cars in Lane 2 than trucks if they have a choice. They envy those who get to work in brainy jobs in air-conditioned office.
The middle class are in Lane 2. They move faster in life and travel more comfortably than those in Lane 3. But they could be equally unhappy – they are stressed at work and worried about the many bills to pay. Life would be better if they have enough money so as not to be worry about the lack of it. How nice it would be to retire and enjoy life, like those who could drive Ferraris on Lane 1.
The Ferraris and Lamborghinis love Lane 1. They are head turners and an envy for many. But that doesn’t mean that they are happy. They probably felt they aren’t rich enough. There are always people richer than them and it is an endless race. The next exclusive party is coming and they must get new stuffs to impress if they want to stay in the circle.
The secret formula is to happiness is Happiness = Reality – Expectations. You can be happier by simply having less expectations.
But that doesn’t mean you should just ‘resign to fate’. You can also be contented and ambitious at the same time – just like a rose seed:
“at no point are we dissatisfied with the current state of the rose seed. It is perfectly all right at each moment. Yet, it is also incredibly ambitious. The rose seed never stops growing. It is constantly seeking to get to the next level. Every day it is moving forward, and yet, every day it is just as it should be.”
James Clear