On a walk I was reflecting on my psychology around "self improvement" on attractiveness and expectations of the results of such improvement.

By "self improvement" I mean looks-maxing, grooming, wardrobe, etc. Basically things that require more than average effort and improve your attractiveness to the opposite sex (or the same if you're that way inclined).

It struck me that I seemed to be happiest when I was actively improving my attractiveness without expecting it to yield any results.

It seems that the expectation of results sets one up for disappointment when the result don't come or anxiety about whether / when the results will come. Conversely, having low or even zero expectations removes those feelings. If one can maintain improvement while having low expectations, then one can achieve the self improvement without the negative feelings. Further, if there are results, they will come as a happy surprise rather than an unhappy surprise.

Maybe I'm being inspired a bit by elements of "hedonic adaptation" or Buddhism.

Anyway, interested to see what people think.