"In the workplace, happiness is not found in a bigger paycheck, more flexibility or the perfect boss; it starts with the individual employee."

When you consider a workplace wellness program, I tend to think of the prevalence of health risks, absenteeism, stress levels, culture, promoting physical activity/healthy eating, quality sleep, etc. But happiness at work? According to the book “The How of Happiness” (http://thehowofhappiness.com/) by Sonja Lyubomirsky, happiness is a crucial factor in the productivity of employees.

In observing genuinely happy people, you will find that they do not just sit around being pleased. They take it upon themselves to make things happen. Happy employees pursue new insights, seek new achievements and have control over their thoughts and feelings. Research shows that our intentions and efforts have a powerful effect on how happy we are.  As Jim Smith, the executive happiness coach puts it “Happiness is a decision, not an event” (http://www.theexecutivehappinesscoach.com/).

Whether it’s your personal life or workplace life, most people look for happiness in all the wrong places. In the workplace, happiness is not found in a bigger paycheck, more flexibility or the perfect boss; it starts with the individual employee.

Being happy can make a big impact on our lives and we can have a much higher quality of life overall. Is it really any surprise that happy employees have better performance? Conversely, employees who are unhappy not only suffer mentally, but are prone to stress, depression and various diseases including heart disease and cancer.

Keep in mind that happiness or unhappiness in the workplace is contagious. One happy employee can increase the morale of an entire workforce. One manager can spread a positive, happy atmosphere throughout the whole company. However, unhappiness is much more contagious than happiness and can spread throughout a workplace rather quickly.

Here are some important reasons that happiness is the #1 productivity and bottom-line booster.

Happy people…

• Work better with others. This translates into better teamwork, better employee relations, satisfied customers, and improved bottom line.
• Are more creative. If people are in a good mood on a given day, they’re more likely to have creative ideas that day.
• Fix problems instead of complaining about them.
• Get sick less often. If you are happy at work, you tend to be healthy.
• Learn faster.
• Worry less about mistakes – and consequently make fewer mistakes.

Happiness at work does not come from vision statements, core values, committees or policies in the employee handbook. It comes from things you and I do, here and now. It’s not something we can do tomorrow or next week or next fiscal quarter. Happiness is a decision to make now.

For ideas and strategies on promoting/encouraging happiness in your workplace, contact me – Sarah Szul at sarah.szul@kapnick.com or 517-266-6453.