Describing an activity or goal that is valuable for its own sake, not because it leads to something else.
From Greek auto- (self) + telos (end or purpose), plus -ic. Developed in philosophy to describe activities done purely for intrinsic satisfaction.
Playing music just for joy, doing puzzles purely for fun, or painting without selling the artwork—these are autotelic activities, and psychologists like Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi found that engaging in them creates a state called 'flow,' where people feel most happy and fulfilled.
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