Happiness is a full tank. It brings health, peace, balance and joy to yourself and those around you. It also helps to boost career success and improve social connections.
A second approach, hedonism, defines happiness as pleasant experiences and pleasures. But it also includes other things like fulfillment of responsibilities, pursuit of long-term goals, and upholding personal values.
1. It’s a good feeling
Happiness is a good feeling, and it’s one that’s worth striving for. It has been linked to positive health outcomes, better career success and deeper, more fulfilling relationships. Happiness is not a permanent state, though. Even the happiest of people can experience sadness, anger and fear. It’s important to take steps to protect their well-being by seeking happiness when they can and cultivating it when it is available.
Happiness skeptics sometimes focus on relatively weak conceptions of the concept, such as assuming that happiness is nothing more than a balance of pleasant over unpleasant experience (a view which most hedonists and emotional state theorists reject) or that a concern for happiness has only to do with positive states. Such skepticism is misguided, however, because it ignores the evidence that both the emotions and the life satisfaction that psychologists use to describe happiness matter. It also fails to recognize that a person’s satisfaction with his or her life is not the same as a person’s well-being or sense of fulfillment.
2. It’s a healthy feeling
Studies show that happiness is associated with more healthy behaviors and outcomes like physical activity, eating a balanced diet, socializing with friends, good sleep habits, and not smoking (Newman, 2015). It’s hard to draw a direct line between health and happiness but research does suggest that when people are happier they are also more likely to engage in health related activities.
We’ve all seen those jolly, happy, upbeat people that walk into the room and everything just feels a little bit brighter and more positive. Happiness is contagious, and it’s a gift you can share with those around you. Studies suggest that happiness spreads up to three degrees of separation — so if you are happy your parents will be happier, your spouse will be happier, and your best friend’s landlord will be happier too (Joyce & Lucas, 2004).
While the research on happiness is still evolving, it certainly seems that focusing on your own happiness can have big benefits to both your health and well-being. And that’s definitely a good thing!
3. It’s a happy feeling
Having more positive than negative emotions feels great. It’s a good feeling that also has health benefits like lower blood pressure and a stronger immune system. It leads to better relationships, more productive work and a sense of purpose. Happiness can even make you more likely to help others.
Philosophers and psychologists have worked hard to understand happiness. Some of the most interesting theories are those that depart from hedonism, with some identifying happiness with domain satisfactions (such as achievements and virtues) and others with emotional or hedonic state. A fourth family of theory, hybrid theories, tries to find a middle ground, identifying happiness with life satisfaction and pleasure/emotional state while leaving open the possibility that other states like desire fulfillment or objective well-being might matter as well. Regardless of the specifics, most scholars agree that happiness matters. It makes people feel more content and fulfilled, even when they are experiencing the full range of human feelings from anger to boredom.
4. It’s a productive feeling
Several studies have shown that happiness and productivity are linked. Happiness boosts energy and confidence, inspires collaboration and teamwork, and reduces stress. It also creates a sense of accomplishment. When we work hard and achieve a goal, it triggers a neurotransmitter in our brain called dopamine that gives us a hit of happiness. However, it is important to not conflate busy work with fulfillment of purpose, as the former doesn’t typically feed our internal “why.” The latter, on the other hand, does. It is the reason why a sense of purpose can be so important for leaders to cultivate in their teams.