I consider my way of play to be half and half.
Half of the time I'm helping them get their Wants, and trying to avoid their Fears.
The other half I'm doing what I want to do, and just letting their Wants and Fears exist while I have a bit of fun with their lives.
Even when I'm focusing on their Wants, I'm still trying to do what I want as a sort of side quest. The best is when I get their Wants when I'm doing something I want, because it feels like the gameplay just clicks together that way for me.
However, none of this means I care about their happiness. Because I don't. I can do one to two Wants and they're Plat for a very long time. So in all honestly, I could focus less on their Wants and more on mine, but I still respect the Wants because I feel like my Sims deserve that. They're not actually people, but they are people to me with their own stories and personalities, so I'll let them take the lead a bit. I'm a merciful god.
