“Since Aristotle, happiness has been usefully thought of as consisting of at least two aspects: hedonia (pleasure) and eudaimonia (a life well lived) . In contemporary psychology these aspects are usually referred to as pleasure and meaning, and positive psychologists have recently proposed to add a third distinct component of engagement related to feelings of commitment and participation in life (Seligman et al. 2005 )."

My last few articles "Don't Worry, Be Happy " and "Happy, Happy, Happy " have focused on happiness, specifically relating to the #FutureOfWork , the present #WorkEnvironment and #Leadership . Contrary to how most of us acknowledge, yet gloss over, the importance of happiness at work, I think unhappiness at work is a fundamental cause of many of the disruptions and challenges leaders are currently facing.

In trying to understand the ‘why’ behind what we all know, I.e. 

• when we’re happy we work better
• When we’re unhappy, not so much

I thought I’d do some research to see if there were ways that we could address this to create a better, more human-friendly #FutureOfWork . And wouldn’t you know it… there’s a published study for that from which my lead-in quote was taken.

It’s a long, rambling study without much of a real conclusion, but it sparked some clarity for me. I decided to share this here in the hopes that my thoughts provide some clarity for you too and perhaps you also have some insights to share?

As with many of our current understandings, we can still learn much from the early thought leaders like Aristotle.

In a nutshell, happiness isn’t just a result of us determining to have a positive attitude and embrace the challenges. It’s a bit more complex than that.  

When I talk about ‘happiness at work’, I don’t mean an exuberant, euphoric state, or being ‘on top of the world’ all day, every day. It’s more about being satisfied, fulfilled and feeling that life and work are worthwhile and meaningful.  

When we’re really stressed, burned-out, emotionally, mentally and physically exhausted, it’s difficult to psych ourselves up to have a different, more optimistic mindset. You’ve probably noticed, either yourself, or with your team members, that it’s not really an effective strategy to simply say, “Think positively,” or “Look at this problem that’s really getting you down and see the opportunity instead.” 

So, what will it take for us, and our teams, to be happy at work?

Well, let’s look at what the study says about happiness:

• *Hedonia i.e. pleasure (but not just reckless pleasure just for the sake of pleasure)
• Eudiamonia i.e. a life well-lived
• Feeling of commitment and participation in life
• “…Eliminating negative “pain and displeasure” to free an individual to pursue engagement and meaning.”

*The resultant elimination of pain and displeasure results in pleasure.

Isn’t that interesting? It seems that as we strive to create a better work environment, we need to do the following:

• Identify the reasons team members are not happy at work
• Assess if there is anything that can be done to remove these ‘pain points’ either from the perspective of either the organization or the team member.
• Focus on aligning ‘purpose’ I.e. team member’s personal purpose with the organization’s purpose. A better ‘fit’ results in less frustration and greater happiness for everyone.
• See team members as partners who should, and are able to assist with the above. After all, it’s affecting their lives as well as the organization.

Obviously, each one of these tasks is an ongoing, sometimes complex exercise.  

It will take all the leadership skills and strategies that are being discussed by leaders like Danny Langloss , Monte Pedersen , Tony Gambill , Steve Wood , David McClean , David E. Marlow , Ludmila Praslova and many others in my network alone. Topics such as empathy, trust, relationship building, inclusion and mentoring.

The responsibility shouldn’t all be on the leader’s shoulders though. 

We have to help our team members to understand they also have a responsibility to figure out their Ikigai and whether that aligns with the organizational purpose and vision. If it doesn’t then we can look at repositioning them to something more suitable. 

We have to encourage them to see beyond the mundane routines and the various daily stresses to ‘how might we improve this…?’ What they propose and are prepared to help create has far more likelihood of succeeding than a ‘top-down’ decree.

If we’re to have teams of good collaborators, engaged, creative and innovative people excited about their jobs, we need to help them see themselves that way. And the only way that they will see themselves that way is if they’re happy. The challenge for leaders is that it’s somewhat of a chicken-and-egg situation. The solution requires the remedy to be in place and vice versa. 

However, I’m confident that we can achieve that state if we work together, steadily towards that goal with mutual respect, trust and 

What do you think? 

#HappyAtWork #Autonomy #Neurodiversity #Inclusion #Empathy #Mentoring #GreatResignation #Flexibility #DesignThinking #2023 #FutureOfWork #Leadership #HybridWork #RemoteWork #Optevo #CWM #business #technology #innovation