Finding Happiness at Work
Today (March 20th) is the International Day of Happiness.
As near as I can tell, we get just one life, and ideally, we want to maximize our time on Earth and flex our smiles as much as we can. We all strive to be happy and fulfilled in our lives, and—let’s face it—for a large percentage of our lives, we are at work. But what does it really mean to be happy at work? What does “good” look like?
While happiness may seem like a purely internal quality—related to someone’s personality, attitude, and outlook—it is heavily influenced by practical conditions in the workplace.
For starters, the energy in the culture and with the people has to feel right. Are people warm and welcoming or transactional and distant? We also need to balance the need for connecting with other people with the need to keep our heads down and get our work done. We need to be effective and efficient enough to leave our workday and get on with other parts of our lives—such as our family, our health, our hobbies, and our rest.
When I reflect upon the leaders we coach who seem to be happiest in their roles, the following conditions are present:
Trust has been established and fostered, daily, in their work environment.
Colleagues find moments to come together and celebrate wins, big and small.
Clear, co-created rules of engagement exist around how to make decisions, how to identify and update stakeholders, and how to deal with conflict productively.
People’s time is respected; meetings are structured around clear outcomes and facilitated with skill and discipline.
Agreements are clear: There’s a shared understanding of who is doing what, and by when.
Individuals have healthy boundaries and self-care practices in place that enable them to bring their “best self” to work. These include:
Dedicated time for exercise
Sufficient sleep and nutrition
Time for fun outside of work—whether to travel, watch a good film, enjoy a special meal, or read for pleasure
A quiet, meditative practice, no matter how small (even 5 minutes per day on a meditation app)
A positive mindset, with gratitude and grounded optimism—so that glass stays half full!
There is a commitment within the larger organization to maintain a culture and working conditions that foster mental health and wellbeing.
The positive effects of happiness are contagious. A leader’s wellbeing and effective, sustainable work practices can have a ripple effect on all the other people within that leader’s orbit—bringing benefits to their team, their peers, and the organization as a whole.
So what can you do to create a workplace culture and conditions that foster happiness? And how can you identify and address any blockers—at the individual, team, or system level—that get in the way?
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LAeRRICO & Partners can help you and your organization establish a workplace culture and conditions that foster happiness. Contact us today and let’s talk about how we can best support you.
