This article appears as part of Casey Weade's Weekend Reading for Retirees series. Every Friday, Casey highlights four hand-picked articles on trending retirement topics and delivers them straight to your email inbox. Get on the list here.

Finding happiness in the journey: Studies show that we as humans find more satisfaction in improvement versus accomplishment, especially when it comes to work that is meaningful. In fact, if happiness is placed in the attainment of a major milestone or goal, some might even experience what is known as a “post-achievement hangover”, where they feel depression or disappointment upon reaching their dream due to a dip in dopamine.

Pinpointing purposeful goals: When it comes to setting goals that will truly produce fulfillment in your life, this article recommends analyzing them and asking yourself the following questions:

📌 Are you enjoying the journey? Determine whether or not you’re reaping any rewards from your progress right now instead of solely focusing on the end result.

📌 Do you like pie? As the article states, the first prize in a pie eating contest is often more pie, so you better like it. This reiterates the importance of questioning whether or not you’re really in the pursuit of this goal for the long haul.

📌 Can you take one step at a time? It’s better to take daily, bite-size pieces of a monstrous goal versus infrequent big ones. Celebrating your small victories along the way will allow you to stay motivated as you work toward the finish line.

Appreciate the process: It might feel like you have limited time for big accomplishments in retirement, but recognizing that happiness is found in the process of progress might change the way you view your future.