Happiness is truly found along the way, and with this book in your toolkit, you’ll no longer feel that it’s out of reach in both your professional and personal lives.
Humans frequently perceive happiness as a fleeting emotion that fluctuates in intensity in response to the environment and their personal circumstances. Happiness, though, is a deliberate choice.
You can still choose happiness despite your job’s stress, your relationships’ disputes, the numerous impending deadlines, or your burnout from Zoom fatigue. Here are some tips on how to live a better life as well as what research has to say about becoming happier.
You may cultivate the mindset of happiness.
The so-called quest of happiness can frequently feel like pursuing an ephemeral feeling of contentment in a society that values both production and consumption. You are advised to set high standards for yourself, work hard to reach them, make more money, land a corner office, amass material possessions, and then take pleasure in your accomplishment.
This kind of satisfaction, however, quickly wears off, as businessman and consultant Nick Wolny noted in a previous Fast Company article. This is due to the reality that temporary circumstances cannot produce true, long-lasting happiness. If achieving happiness seems impossible, it may be time to reevaluate what it means to you personally.
Jenn Lim, author and CEO of the consulting company Delivering Happiness, dispels the social misconception surrounding this state of being in an excerpt from her most recent book. Happiness, according to Lim, is a state of mind that focuses on self-actualization rather than the hedonistic approach, which connects it to sensations of comfort or pleasure. She claimed that since everyone may choose how self-actualization looks for them, it is more tenable (and attainable).
By coming up with your own definition of happiness, you eliminate the influence of outside variables on your level of pleasure and well-being. Knowing your purpose—being true to who you are and where your values and priorities are—is what Lim meant by this. When your happiness is secure, challenges cannot sour it. The huge cultural premium of achieving achievement at any costs won’t tempt you into unhappiness either.
THE WORKPLACE AND HAPPINESS SCIENCE
Another widespread misconception regarding happiness is that it ought to be everyone’s default emotional state. However, this goes against how the brain truly functions. Your brain is structured to pursue both pleasure and survival, two primitive desires that will always clash with one another, according to neuroscience research.
It is not about idealising fleeting, never-truly-permanent moments of gratification that the true biological desire of happiness takes place. Instead, it’s about discovering your own inherent motivation to keep you going over the long run. Therefore, happiness becomes considerably less transient if the brain is driven to work toward or attain a result for internal validation (such as self-growth, curiosity, or a personal challenge) as opposed to external success (such as praises, promotions, or money).
How does this connection between motivation and happiness apply to the workplace? That was the focus of a 2020 study published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology. Employees with high levels of intrinsic motivation were found to be happier in their jobs, which resulted in:
- improved communication abilities
- heightened interest
- increased consumer satisfaction
- Enhanced vigour, passion, and enthusiasm
- increased effectiveness and productivity
- increased organisational dedication
Both your professional and personal lives will benefit from developing an attitude of inner satisfaction. When your level of happiness is not dependent on outside factors or drivers, you are free to handle interactions and situations as they arise, keeping a level head and taking pleasure in the work you do.
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WAYS TO BECOME HAPPIER IN LIFE AND WORK
We now know that internal factors have a role in happiness. It’s time to figure out how to genuinely improve both your personal and professional relationships. Here are some quick tips for redefinition and self-creation of happiness.
Get rid of your meaning-centric focus.
Everyone wants to make a difference in the world and wants their contributions to matter. Therefore, the idea of a meaningful existence is not intrinsically problematic. However, Wendy Syfret made the case in this essay for Fast Company that a compulsive search for purpose can lead to misery.
Think about how you feel about goals.
In every area of life, having goals is beneficial. Without them, you would probably feel aimless and lack a goal to strive for. Goals are essential for both professional and personal development, but how you go about achieving them can undermine your happiness.
Increase your emotional and mental resiliency.
Do you ever ponder how those who are naturally optimistic manage to keep a level-headed perspective no matter what their circumstances are? This mindset does not merely deny unpleasant feelings or situations. It’s also not a constant smile. That is referred to as toxic optimism, which can undermine interpersonal dynamics, impede dialogue, and destroy trust.
