In the context of International Happiness at Work Week, we studied the work of Professor Dr. Arthur Brooks from Harvard University. Brooks takes happiness very seriously. Happiness is considered a ‘soft skill’ that you need to become a better leader and to lead a happier life.
The Harvard professor believes that happiness is cultivated by setting priorities and that being happy is essential to being an effective leader.
What is happiness?
Most people talk about feelings when trying to define happiness. They refer to, for example, how they felt on their wedding day, when going out with friends, or the joy they experience sitting around the Christmas tree with family.
Brooks sees these pleasant feelings as evidence of happiness, like the smell of turkey in the oven at Christmas; but these feelings do not explain what happiness really is.
Happiness is a combination of three elements: enjoying your life (taking pleasure in what you do), fulfillment (rewards you gain from your achievements), and meaning (having a purpose in life).
You need all three to explain the feeling of being happy. If one of these elements is missing, you can try to determine what you need to work on.
Habits make you happier
The habits of the happiest people include:
- Your life philosophy (e.g., your faith)
- Your family life
- Your friendships (your “real” friends, not “fake” friends)
- Your work
Almost everyone places too much emphasis on their work and too little on family life, friendships, and life philosophy. This is often the problem with so-called ‘strivers’ and very successful people. Strivers tend to focus all their energy on just one thing: work. And often in a highly addictive way. Brooks calls it a ‘success addiction,’ not a work addiction.
Brooks recommends building a balanced, diversified happiness portfolio instead of concentrating solely on work; simply by adding more love to your happiness portfolio.
Start with being happy in life
Mother Nature doesn’t care whether you’re happy. She gives you two tasks: survive and have children. For most people, that is not enough. They want to be happy. And if you want to be happy, you have to take responsibility for it yourself.
Generation Z has a very entrepreneurial view of work. They want to run their own successful startup. But in reality, we are all already the CEOs of our own enterprise: our life. View your life as a startup, and the currency of happiness is the love in your life. Doors will open, and all worldly problems that come your way can be managed.
Work should be an integrated part of our lives, so we should strive to be happy at work. Brooks does, however, warn against the mistake of losing ourselves in what we want rather than actively working on it. You might wish for a better marriage but do nothing about it. You might want to earn more money but don’t take steps toward it. To avoid this, you need to maintain good ‘happiness hygiene’ (see below) and go against many of your natural instincts.
Happiness as a skill
The way we spend our time, what we focus on, and how we take care of ourselves is what Brooks calls ‘happiness hygiene.’ The professor also recommends following the so-called happiness algorithm:
- Make learning about happiness a hobby.
- Add happiness habits to your life (for example, practice gratitude more often instead of being grumpy).
- Teach others how to be happy (this is the secret ingredient!).
So, if a business leader wants to become a happier person, they can do so most effectively by becoming a ‘happiness teacher.’
Becoming a happiness teacher? Start with:
- Sharing ideas that people can understand (“This makes me happy, what do you think?”)
- Using your life as an example for others (attract people and help them adopt your good habits)
- Keeping the iron law of happiness in mind: “Happiness is love” (how you share, recognize, open yourself to love, and become braver).
Work is a great place to practice your skills as a happiness teacher. By spreading more love, both you and your employees return home happier.
Some practical tips to become a happiness leader
According to Brooks, we live in a climate of fear and conflict. We must counteract that with our personal behavior to become happier.
Some of his tips:
- Start each morning by acknowledging that someone did something well (they feel better, you feel better, and happiness begins to spread).
- Understand that you can be both happy and successful by writing things down in journals, lists, or during therapy sessions.
- Most people are led by their emotions (the limbic system in our brains, developed over 40 million years of evolution). Try to move those emotions to the prefrontal cortex by analyzing, processing, and managing them.
- Meditation is a good exercise to help process emotions and prevent them from taking over.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, September 13, 2022, in a live Q&A with Harvard Professor Dr. Arthur Brooks and WSJ Reporter Lindsay Ellis, discussing the soft skills needed to become a better leader and lead a happier life.
