Do women just want too much?

Interesting tweet came up on my dashboard a few days ago that I wanted to share with:

"RT @Dymocksbooks: RT @onebigorooni: #101comp "Eat, Pray, Love: 1 Woman's Search for Everything": Ppl r SO greedy these days"

Onebigorooni may have run out of characters, but I wonder if he/she really meant "WOMAN r SO greedy these days."

And it could be a valid point.

I haven't read the book, but I've heard that it's an inspiring read. The very personal journey that Gilbert embarks on to heal and grow is, supposedly, very real and relatable. I will have my hands on a copy of it to find out for myself.

Outside of the literary merit of the work, what about the social implications? Do we as women, or maybe as people just simply expect too much?

These days, it's not enough for many to have a roof over their heads and food on the table - we're looking for some sort of "spiritual" or "soulful" satisfaction. We want to feel like we have rewarding careers, loving partners, excitement and security, intimacy - and independence. In a nutshell, we really want it all.

Are we just being too greedy?

An interesting read by Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers, talks about the Paradox of Declining Female Happiness. Over the past 35 years, females as a sex have seen a number of important milestones, from the introduction of birth control to increased female education - a study shows 41 % of women earned a tertiary degree compared to just 33 % of males. We're blazing the way into roles that have always been traditionally held by men - look at the amazing achievements of German chancellor Angela Merkel.

But despite all that, women don't seem to be any happier and Stevenson and Wolfers studies show that women are much less happier than men, compared to 35 years ago when these sorts of opportunities weren't available.

"The increased opportunity to succeed in many dimensions may have led to an increased likelihood of believing that one’s life is not measuring up," Stevenson and Wolfers raise in their discussion. Women are more likely to compare themselves to a broader group - even ones that sit outside of their abilities. We want to succeed as mothers, as lovers, in our careers and among our peers. Perhaps, because women are traditionally more sympathetic to the needs and demands of others - part of our nurturing instincts, we don't want to let anyone down - even if it is just ourselves.

But are we really letting our loved ones down as much as we think we are? In a survey of 3rd - 12th graders and their mothersin the US, while 56% of mothers' believed their children would wish that their mothers could spend more time with them, only 10% of children actually made this wish. The most popular wish was "'I want my mom to be less stressed and tired."

Maybe we have to cut ourselves a break.

What do you think? Are women more or less happy than they were in the past? Do we want and expect too much from life and ourselves? What makes you happy?