And yet you have to wonder why? The poorest among us have better health, more food and possessions than the great majority of the people of the world. And the average American lives a better life from a physical point of view than 90% of the people who have ever lived—past or present. Obviously, an abundance of the necessities, and even luxuries, of life do not make us happy. So what will?

I think were bored, terminally bored. Humans were never bored until recently; boredom is a modern invention. Our ancestors were constantly on the move facing new and exciting places and situations. Every day was a new adventure of some kind whether it was big or small. Wanting something new, something novel is literally in our blood.
There has been a great deal of research in the last 20 years on genetics and its role in happiness. One of the surprising findings is that we have a gene that makes us crave new things. It has been labeled the “novelty-seeking” gene and  researchers are calling it neophilia (neo=new philia=love; the love of the new). A great deal of research is showing it to be one of the most important determiners of our overall well-being. Here is a quote from a good article.

Fans of this trait are calling it “neophilia” and pointing to genetic evidence of its importance as humans migrated throughout the world. In her survey of the recent research… the journalist Winifred Gallagher argues that neophilia has always been the quintessential human survival skill, whether adapting to climate change on the ancestral African savanna or coping with the latest digital toy from Silicon Valley…. “Although we’re a neophilic species,” Ms. Gallagher says, “as individuals we differ in our reactions to novelty, because a population’s survival is enhanced by some adventurers who explore for new resources and worriers who are attuned to the risks involved.”

The adventurous neophiliacs are more likely to possess a “migration gene,” a DNA mutation that occurred about 50,000 years ago, as humans were dispersing from Africa around the world, according to Robert Moyzis, a biochemist at the University of California, Irvine. The mutations are more prevalent in the most far-flung populations, like Indian tribes in South America descended from the neophiliacs who crossed the Bering Strait.

In other words, due to a genetic mutation, humans as a whole have a tendency to be adventurous wanderers. It’s been an important part of our survival as a species and is still crucial to our development as well-adjusted, happy human beings. Because America is a nation of immigrants, we consistently test as one of the most novelty-seeking places on earth. Think about it; most of our great-great-grandparents took all kinds of risks to come here and start over a brand-new life, in a brand-new place that most often spoke a brand-new language. Now that’s novelty seeking! And they passed those genes down to you and I.

For many of us (but certainly not all) there is a deep inner cry for something new, for something different and risky. We hate the mind-numbing tedious, monotony of our life. Every day is the same week after week, month after month, decade after decade–and then we die.

If you have any lingering doubts about the novelty gene, just go watch some kids at the local park. What are they doing? They are having imaginary adventures and slaying dragons and fighting enemies. Or ask them if they want to go on a scary ride at the amusement park. Most will jump at the chance! They are the living embodiment of the ideas of the novelty gene that’s present in most of us. Ask a child what they want to be when they grow up and their answers will most often be something exciting, adventurous and risky.

But then they grow up and what happens? That spirit is crushed and pounded into the dirt by their parents, schools and society. Every effort at originality or adventure is pounded out of them by decades of brainwashing. Modern society needs working drones, not adventurers! The “American Dream” is made to look so appealing and at the same time non-conformity is not tolerated.

A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for. John A. Shedd

The secret to why we are so unhappy as a nation, we refuse to do what we were built to do. Our genes urge and demand us to be one thing but society forbids it and forces us to be something else.

If you have the novelty seeking gene, becoming aware of your genetic compulsions will let you make some adjustments that make you happier. Out true spirit is so crushed and demoralized we can just barely find it. Awareness of the need for new things and adventure you can begin to make simple adjustments to your life that can satisfy those needs within your current situation.

Spend some time examining your life, particularly when you were a child and adolescent. What made you happy? What did you want to do that you never could do? I don’t mean be an astronaut or a pirate, that’s not realistic. You must have had some attainable dreams. I loved nature and hiking and so now I live in nature and hike a lot. Start with those things and see if you can’t incorporate them into your life. If that isn’t practical or doesn’t work, then start adding other new and adventurous things into your life.