What the eyes see is better than what the soul desires

Question

In Ecclesiastes 6:9 (NASB)

What the eyes see is better than what the soul desires. This too is futility and striving after wind.

What's the meaning of the part I marked in bold?

Answer 1

I agree with Nihil's answer and supplement a bit here. A similar concept is expressed in the English proverb: A Bird in the Hand is Worth Two in the Bush.

New Living Translation is quite nice:

Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless—like chasing the wind.

Pulpit focus on time instead of space:

"The sight of the eyes" means the enjoyment of the present, that which lies before one, in contrast to the restless craving for what is distant, uncertain, and out of reach. The lesson taught is to make the best of existing circumstances, to enjoy the present, to control the roaming of fancy, and to narrow the vast field of appetency.

Answer 2

I don’t know that the NASB captures and conveys the message that well.

What it’s saying is, it’s better what you can see (touch and feel if you like) than the churning of appetites and desires for things you cannot see (cannot touch and feel) cannot achieve.

Basically it’s saying don’t fantasize about things, it’s better to work with what you have and can accomplish. It’s better than fantasizing