We often hear about Hollywood stars who go into a tailspin when their popularity wanes. I used to be confused by this. “Isn’t one megahit enough to make a person happy?” I wondered. Now I understand that the good feeling of a megahit trains the brain to seek that particular way of feeling good. If you end up feeling bad instead, you don’t see how you created the disappointment. You can blame the ruthlessness of the industry, the fickleness of the public, and the incompetence of management, without recognizing your brain’s habit of seeking serotonin in ways that worked before.
