The worst way to achieve some goals is by directly pursuing them. In the present study, the pursuit of happiness, or subjective well-being, is examined as a possible ironic process. This is done using the logic of a randomized controlled trial in a factorial design, N = 413. As a subset of this possibility, in separate experiment, the assessment of happiness is examined as a potential source of decreased happiness, N = 175. Results show that the pursuit of happiness is not self-defeating when effort is isolated as a variable. It is further found that the assessment of happiness is not self-defeating compared to control assessments. Both experiments were conducted in in-vivo settings and used email and online surveys. Implications and further ways of advancing the field with regard to effort and subjective well-being are discussed.