Quite often I hear people, including myself, refer to doing something relaxing or just for fun as “being bad.”  New research out of the University of Zurich may be just the thing we need to hear.  It turns out that it’s actually really good for us to be hedonistic at times, and that the better you are at it, the more it helps!

We all tend to think that self control is the key to well being, as it allows us to sacrifice short term pleasure to reach long term goals, such as getting in shape, saving up money to travel, etc, all things that lead to feeling happy.  And those of us who are good at this often feel guilty when we hang out on the couch to watch a movie or just sit out in the yard to read a book.  We ruin our fun by telling ourselves that we “should be productive” and we judge ourselves for being slackers.  It turns out, though, that the ability to let ourselves enjoy the down time is just as important to happiness as reaching long term goals.  In fact, this new research shows that enjoying short term pleasurable activities that don’t lead to long term goals contributes at least as much to a happy life as self control.  The trick is being able to let ourselves really enjoy it!

Researchers Bernecker and Becker found that certain people get distracted by intrusive thoughts in moments of relaxation or enjoyment by thinking of things they should be doing (sound familiar inner task master in my head?).  “Those thoughts about conflicting long term goals undermine the immediate need to relax.”  But those people who can fully enjoy themselves in relaxing situations tend to have a higher sense of well being in general, not only in the short term, but are less likely to suffer from depression and anxiety.  “The pursuit of hedonic and long term goals needn’t be in conflict with one another,” Bernecker writes.  “Our research shows that both are important and can complement each other in achieving well being and good health.  It is important to find the right balance in everyday life.”

With so many of us working at home right now it can be even more difficult to allow ourselves to relax.  With the boundary between work and home much more blurred, it’s harder to keep work and down time separate.  For me, this research is a big motivator and a “Get Out of Jail” card.  Not only does it give me permission to relax when I can, but prescribes that I not allow myself to feel guilty about it!  The article’s authors suggest much more needs to be known about the role of pleasure in well being. So, when you finish reading this, my suggestion is to do your own research on hedonism.   Go out and have some fun, and don’t let yourself get distracted by your inner critic.  Remember, to really have a healthy happy life, you need to be good at “being bad.”