I remember the excitement after my first meaningful raise: for a few weeks I felt lighter, more confident, and enjoyed small upgrades I had resisted before. Then life resumed its rhythm and the thrill faded. If that sounds familiar, you're not alone. The hedonic treadmill is a psychological phenomenon that keeps us adapting to improved circumstances, leaving us perpetually wanting the next thing. In this post I’ll walk you through what the hedonic treadmill is, why big purchases or raises tend to disappoint in the long run, and what evidence-based steps you can take to create more stable, lasting satisfaction.
What the Hedonic Treadmill Is: Science and Psychology
The term "hedonic treadmill" (also called hedonic adaptation) refers to the human tendency to quickly return to a relatively stable baseline level of happiness despite major positive or negative events or life changes. The concept was popularized by psychologists who observed that lottery winners and people who suffer serious injuries often return to similar levels of subjective well-being over time. In short, we adapt — and that adaptation is surprisingly efficient.
From a psychological perspective, adaptation serves an evolutionary purpose. Rapidly shifting emotional responses to new circumstances would be maladaptive; if we remained euphoric indefinitely after every success, we might fail to respond appropriately to threats. Adaptation helps prioritize attention and motivate further action: once a new status is normalized, attention shifts to new problems or opportunities. While this is useful for survival and progress, it has the downside of eroding long-term satisfaction from gains that might otherwise feel permanently rewarding.
Neuroscience helps explain the mechanisms. Dopamine and other reward-related neurotransmitters respond strongly to prediction errors — the difference between expected and received outcomes. A sudden raise or a new car often produces a prediction error that triggers a dopamine surge and positive affect. As the new reality becomes expected, prediction error shrinks and dopamine response declines. Moreover, our memory and attention systems emphasize novelty; the brain is wired to notice changes and novelty more than steady, predictable states. This makes the initial pleasure intense but often short-lived.
Research also shows individual differences in how people adapt. Personality traits like neuroticism and extraversion influence baseline happiness and adaptation speed. People high in neuroticism may return to lower baseline levels more quickly after highs because they experience more negative rumination. Extraverts often derive more lasting enjoyment from social experiences. Context matters too: adaptation to material gains tends to be faster than adaptation to improvements in social relationships or health, which often produce more durable happiness.
Experimental and longitudinal studies back this up. One classic approach is following people before and after a major life event, such as marriage, childbirth, promotion, or injury. While there is short-term fluctuation in reported life satisfaction, many individuals converge back toward their original set point within months or a few years. However, it's important to clarify that adaptation is not absolute. Significant long-term changes in habits, relationships, and values can shift baseline well-being over time — but these shifts usually require sustained effort and changes in how attention and goals are structured.
So when you think about a big purchase or a raise lifting your mood permanently, the science cautions against that expectation. The hedonic treadmill makes immediate boosts likely but durable increases in life satisfaction less probable unless you combine external improvements with internal changes — such as cultivating gratitude, fostering meaningful relationships, or aligning spending with your deeper values. Understanding these mechanisms is the first step toward using them intentionally rather than being swept along automatically.
Why Big Purchases and Raises Fail to Deliver Lasting Satisfaction
We intuitively expect that better things will make us happier forever. That expectation drives saving, striving for promotions, and indulging in new purchases after long work hours. But several interlocking reasons explain why those boosts fade faster than we anticipate.
First, the novelty factor: new experiences and objects produce immediate pleasure because they are surprising and engage attention. Once an item or improvement becomes familiar, it stops producing the same level of stimulation. If you buy a nicer phone, the initial thrill is partly about exploring its features and enjoying an upgrade from the previous model. Over time, your focus shifts from the phone itself to other tasks, problems, or newer devices, and the phone simply becomes a tool rather than a source of elevated mood.
Second, reference-point shifts matter. Humans evaluate outcomes relative to a reference — what we and others have or expect. When your salary increases, your reference point recalibrates: you begin to compare yourself to peers with similar or higher incomes, or you raise your expectations for lifestyle upgrades. This process, known as upward social comparison, can neutralize the positive impact of the raise. The satisfaction you expected from the raise is eaten away by changing standards and desires.
Third, hedonic adaptation is accelerated by consumer culture and marketing. When products are framed as solutions to long-term dissatisfaction, buyers often believe that future happiness depends on the next purchase. Advertising and social signals amplify desires; seeing others model a better life makes your own gains feel less significant. This social amplification creates a loop where improvements are quickly normalized across your reference group.
Fourth, emotional budgeting and opportunity costs reduce lasting benefit. Money and possessions can be spent on experiences, social connection, or material status. Buying material goods often yields lower long-term returns in happiness than investing in experiences or relationships because experiences are integrated into identity and memory in ways that provide ongoing positive reinterpretation. On the other hand, a raise spent on recurring costs or unsatisfying consumption patterns may not change daily experiences substantially. The opportunity cost means that focusing spending on short-lived pleasures crowds out investments in enduring joys.
Fifth, expectations and anticipatory emotions shape outcomes. If you build your hopes around a raise fixing many of your problems, you risk disappointment when complex issues — time stress, family dynamics, or health — remain. A raise may ease financial strain, but it rarely resolves underlying psychological needs such as purpose, autonomy, or belonging. When unmet, those needs quickly reassert themselves and lower the perceived value of material gains.
Lastly, adaptive behavior can backfire. People often respond to raises or purchases by increasing spending or commitments (e.g., larger mortgage, more expensive hobbies). These lifestyle escalations create new baseline demands and obligations that reduce free time or increase stress, undermining potential happiness increases. Essentially, the treadmill accelerates: small gains prompt greater consumption, which raises the baseline that must be exceeded for future happiness boosts.
In short, the psychological and social mechanics of novelty reduction, shifting reference points, social comparison, opportunity cost, expectation misalignment, and lifestyle escalation together explain why raises and purchases often disappoint over the long run. The good news is that these mechanisms are not destiny — with intentional strategies you can redirect how you adapt and preserve more of the satisfaction gained from positive changes.
Practical Strategies to Slow the Treadmill and Build Lasting Satisfaction
Understanding the hedonic treadmill is empowering because it points to concrete interventions. If adaptation is a process, then we can design behaviors and environments that interrupt or slow that process. Here are evidence-informed strategies I’ve found useful personally and that researchers recommend for sustaining well-being.
1) Prioritize experiences over possessions. Research repeatedly finds that spending on experiences (travel, concerts, classes, shared meals) tends to create more lasting happiness than material goods. Experiences become part of your identity and social narrative; they are easier to savor and less prone to direct comparison. When you get a raise, consider allocating a meaningful portion toward experiences that align with your values and relationships rather than toward status items that will quickly normalize.
2) Practice gratitude deliberately. Gratitude interventions — writing short gratitude letters, keeping a gratitude journal, or reflecting on specific positive events — change attention patterns. Instead of automatically adapting by taking improvements for granted, gratitude keeps positive changes salient. I try a weekly note where I describe two or three things the raise or purchase enabled that felt genuinely meaningful; this habit prolongs the positive emotional impact.
3) Use "hedonic replenishment" through variation and novelty. If you love a new hobby or item, rotate how you use it, pair it with different social contexts, or limit exposure at times to keep novelty alive. For example, a high-quality pair of headphones can be used for different listening rituals — focused music sessions, podcasts during walks, or audio-based learning — which keeps the experience varied and more rewarding.
4) Build commitments that increase autonomy and meaning. Use financial gains to buy time rather than things. Outsource chores, reduce commuting stress, or invest in flexible work options. Time is a particularly underrated currency for well-being. A raise that frees up several unpaid hours per week can produce far greater satisfaction than the same amount spent on goods.
5) Invest in social connections. Spending money on activities that foster closeness (dinners with friends, shared classes, group travel) yields durable benefits because relationships provide ongoing sources of meaning and support. When I’ve treated a friend to a shared experience after a raise, the memory and strengthened bond kept the positive feeling alive for much longer than buying an expensive gadget did.
6) Set progressive, non-material goals. Align a portion of your increased resources with personal growth — courses, mentoring, fitness coaching, or creative projects. Progress toward goals tends to produce sustained satisfaction because it changes self-concept and cultivates competence. Unlike one-off buying, goal-oriented investments compound over time.
7) Use commitment devices to prevent lifestyle inflation. If you fear spending will neutralize the value of your raise, create a plan that fixes proportions: save a percentage, allocate a portion to experiences, and assign another to essentials. Automating intentions reduces impulsive spending and stops escalation that increases your baseline needs.
8) Reframe expectations and manage comparisons. Be mindful of who you compare yourself to and choose comparison targets that inspire rather than erode your satisfaction. Social media often fuels upward comparisons; curating your feed and focusing on personal progress reduces unnecessary dissatisfaction. Cognitive reframing — reminding yourself of the specific ways a change matters to you rather than how it appears to others — also stabilizes gains.
9) Practice savoring rituals. Savoring is a set of skills — intensifying, prolonging, and reflecting on positive experiences. Simple practices like pausing to fully experience a meal you bought to celebrate a raise, sharing memories about a trip with friends, or journaling about the emotions tied to a meaningful purchase can extend the emotional payoff.
10) Combine internal skills with external changes. External improvements (income, possessions) have more staying power when paired with internal habits: gratitude, mindfulness, goal setting, and social investment. I’ve noticed that combining a new financial cushion with weekly volunteering or a learning project made the raise feel like an enabler of sustained purpose rather than a temporary pleasure.
Implementing these strategies takes intention. If you want a quick plan: when you receive extra money, follow the 50/30/20 rule adjusted for well-being — for example, 20% to savings/obligations, 30% to experiences and social activities, and 50% to immediate needs and small pleasures. Then embed two habits: a weekly gratitude reflection and one goal-oriented commitment tied to the extra income. Over months, you’ll likely notice more enduring satisfaction than with unstructured spending.
When planning how to use a raise, treat it as a tool to buy time, deepen relationships, or invest in mastery. These uses tend to outlast purchases in producing genuine happiness.
Examples and Real-Life Case Studies
To make these ideas concrete, let me share several illustrative examples and mini case studies that highlight how adaptation plays out and how different choices change outcomes.
Case 1 — The Promotion That Bought New Stress: Maria received a significant promotion with a 20% pay increase. She immediately upgraded to a luxury apartment and bought a high-end car. At first, she enjoyed the comforts, but within six months she felt more stressed. The new apartment required longer commutes and higher upkeep, while the car increased insurance and maintenance obligations. Her social comparisons escalated as she moved into a higher-status neighborhood. Maria’s satisfaction returned to baseline and, in some respects, declined because lifestyle inflation added obligations. In contrast, when Maria later redirected part of her income to a professional coach and reduced commute time by negotiating hybrid work, her satisfaction improved and stabilized because the changes increased autonomy and reduced time pressure.
Case 2 — Choosing Experiences: Jamal got an unexpected bonus and decided to spend it on a multi-city trip with a close friend rather than on consumer electronics. The trip involved shared memories, challenging experiences, and storytelling opportunities that strengthened their bond. Even after returning home and resuming daily life, Jamal found the trip provided months of positive reflection and strengthened friendships. He later used trip photos and stories to connect with colleagues and family, further extending the positive impact. Jamal’s choice illustrates how experiences and social connection produce integrated, lasting benefits.
Case 3 — Small Habit Changes With Big Effects: A mid-career teacher invested a modest raise into a weekend writing workshop and a weekly meditation class. The teacher didn’t buy flashy items but developed skills and habits that reshaped daily life — she felt more competent, less reactive, and enjoyed a stronger sense of purpose. The combination of personal development and better stress management produced a durable uplift in well-being that persisted after the novelty wore off.
Case 4 — The Mindful Spender Experiment: A couple decided that each time they had extra income, they would split it into thirds: one-third to long-term savings, one-third to experiences, and one-third to a shared “fun fund.” They kept a gratitude log for each experience and enforced a one-month waiting period before major purchases. Over a year they reported less buyer’s remorse, more meaningful outings, and a stronger sense of financial control. This experiment reduced impulsive spending and created rituals to savor positive moments, both of which slowed adaptation.
These examples show a pattern: when extra resources are used to increase time, social bonds, personal growth, or practices that focus attention on positive changes, the happiness returns are more stable. When resources are channeled into higher fixed costs, status-driven consumption, or items that invite rapid comparison, the benefits are short-lived or even counterproductive.
It’s also important to recognize cultural and contextual differences. In regions where basic needs are unmet, income increases can produce significant and lasting improvements in well-being. The hedonic treadmill model is most applicable in affluent contexts where marginal increases often shift lifestyles rather than meeting unmet necessities. Always consider the baseline conditions and the scale of change when applying these lessons.
Summary, Next Steps, and a Simple CTA
To summarize: the hedonic treadmill explains why raises and purchases usually yield temporary boosts in happiness. Biological adaptation, shifting comparisons, novelty decline, and lifestyle escalation all play roles. However, awareness and deliberate action can change the trajectory. Prioritize experiences, invest in relationships and growth, use gratitude and savoring, and design financial habits that prevent lifestyle inflation. These strategies slow adaptation and translate momentary pleasures into more sustained well-being.
If you want one practical next step today, try this short experiment: when you next receive extra money, divide it into three buckets — savings, a shared experience, and a personal learning investment — and keep a short journal entry each week about how your choices affect your mood. That small change alone often shifts how you perceive gains and reduces the power of the treadmill.
Call to action: If you’d like evidence-based resources on mental well-being and practical guides for applying these strategies, check reputable psychology resources such as https://www.apa.org and broader popular science writing at https://www.psychologytoday.com. Explore articles and tools there for research-backed tips and guided exercises. If you prefer a step-by-step checklist to apply these ideas right away, commit to the three-bucket experiment above for 90 days and track your satisfaction weekly — you may notice a lasting shift.
I’d love to hear what worked for you: did investing in experiences or time ever produce more enduring happiness than a purchase? Share your experience in the comments or try the 90-day experiment and come back to report your results.
Frequently Asked Questions ❓
If you have any further questions or want a tailored plan for using a raise or windfall to increase long-term well-being, leave a comment or try the 90-day experiment outlined above. Small changes in choice and attention can make a surprisingly big difference.