Before something wonderful happens, your brain has already begun anticipating it. Pleasure is not random — it is part of a sophisticated neurological system that guides attention, shapes desire, and pulls us toward what comes next. In this opening essay, we step inside the architecture of pleasure to understand why happiness is less a place we arrive and more a direction the brain is always nudging us toward.

Master your mind with this three-part neuroscience series on overthinking, uncertainty, and resilience — learn how your brain responds to stress and how to build lasting clarity and emotional strength.