A Chief Executive once said to me ‘I don’t believe in happiness at work’ and I thought ‘that’s a shame because happiness truly can be a superpower’.
On average, people spend 3,515 days at work which is about ⅓ of your life. Imagine if those days are miserable. That creates a lot of stress and unhappiness which impacts everything in your life such as relationships with friends and family. We’ve probably all had those jobs where we have to drag ourselves into work and a day feels like a lifetime in itself.
Now, imagine creating a workplace where people are happy. Just writing about it, I can feel my vibration lift to an energy that allows success and achievement. So, what if true happiness at work is the key to long term success?
The fact is, there are two types of happiness and the first one, hedonic happiness is the type that is very short lived.It’s the kind you get from a party. Like a caffeine or sugar boost, it picks you up and throws you back down fairly quickly. It’s the dopamine hit you get from a new email or a LinkedIn notification. It’s pretty meaningless and about instant gratification. We all feel it because it’s built into modern workplace tools with a constant influx of information.
Eudaemonic happiness is the type we need to strive for in all parts of life and has very high value in the workplace. It’s the kind of happiness that lasts. It’s about satisfaction and fulfilment. It’s the happiness we feel when we are connected to our purpose. It’s the type that sustains and keeps us going.
I’m sure we have all heard the saying ‘find a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life’. What I say to my teams is ‘I appreciate that work will never be your top choice of how to spend your time when compared with family or a sunny beer garden, but how can I make it the second best place to be?’.
I want to be happy at work and enjoy my time and I want everyone else to have that too. My best workplaces have felt like home and I have been equally happy spending my time there.
The evidence is clear that happy people achieve more. They are positive, optimistic and believe in themselves and each other. Gallup’s 2024 report found that happier employees are up to 17% more productive.
Happy employees are more likely to be engaged in their work, feel a sense of purpose and are motivated to go the extra mile. They have better ideas, offer a better service and have high levels of resilience.
What should leaders aim for in boosting happiness at work?
- Connect people to purpose – when people understand their role in delivering the vision and are clear about the difference they are making, they will be more satisfied and motivated.
- Inspire growth – learning is key to motivation and boosts resilience. Consider how you can provide opportunities for learning and inspiration for your teams.
- Create a sense of belonging – that feeling of home that I described comes from a deep sense of inclusion and belonging. Cultivate that and you will be on the path to happiness at work.
The fact of the matter is that the CEO who didn’t believe in happiness, wasn’t happy himself. It limited performance in the organisation and led to a high turnover of colleagues. If he had embraced happiness, I think he would have been more comfortable with his own vulnerability and created an environment where colleagues could try new things, laugh in the face of failure and really appreciate success.
Imagine how your workplace could thrive if happiness became a priority. Give it a try and let us know how you get on.
Image: This_is_Engineering from Pixabay
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