Keys to Happier Living

Everybody wants more happiness in their lives but sometimes it can feel hard to achieve. And happiness is different for different people – what makes one person happy can be another person’s misery.

Caring about others is fundamental to our happiness. Helping other people is not only good for them; it’s good for us too. It makes us happier and can help to improve our health. Giving also creates stronger connections between people and helps to build a happier society for everyone. It’s not all about money - we can also give our time, ideas and energy. So if you want to feel good, do good.

Happiness is not a topic that comes up enough at work. Many companies and leaders have the sense that it’s not professional to talk about “happiness”. We need to change that! Multiple studies have proved that our well-being and positive emotions have a huge impact on us at work. We are more creative, engaged, productive, motivated, open to new things as well as more likely to stay with our companies longer- the list goes on! If we practice enough, we can train our brains to see the positives before the negatives. By becoming more mindful of our own happiness, we can take action to increase those feelings of positivity.

Scientists have found that although our genes and circumstances matter, a huge proportion of the variations in happiness between us come from our choices and activities. So although we may not be able to change our inherited characteristics or the circumstances in which we find ourselves, we still have the power to change how happy we are – by the way we approach our lives.

Action for Happiness has developed the Keys to Happier Living based on a review of the latest scientific research relating to happiness. Everyone’s path to happiness is different, but the research suggests these Ten Keys consistently tend to have a positive impact on people’s overall happiness and well-being.

One thing many of us can agree on is that we’re all striving to live a happier lifestyle. And often, we’re constantly searching to find ways to achieve this in our daily lives.

Along with the happier living keys, all helpful, the book suggests ways to use them, for example creating a local group, or sharing them with a work team. What’s missing for me is cues for a deeper, more systemic exploration of ways to handle bigger issues in one’s own life and the wider world.

Although exercise is one of the keys, contact with nature as a source of relaxation or insights is not mentioned. And the Resource section is highly academic, at odds with the basic tenor of the book itself.

We all want to be happy. But we sometimes think of happiness as a thing that happens to us — something we have no control over. It's easy to link the idea of happiness with the situation we're in. We might tell ourselves, "If only things were different, then I'd be happy."

But that's not really how happiness works. Research shows that just a small portion of happiness (only about 10%) depends on a person's situation. So where does most of our happiness come from? Part of happiness depends on personality. Some people have a naturally happy nature. We all know people who are cheerful and optimistic most of the time. Their upbeat personalities make it easier for them to be happy.

So what does that mean for people who are born with a personality that's on the grumpy side? They might see the faults in people and situations instead of the good. Their mood might be glum more often than it's cheerful. But if they'd like to be happier (and who wouldn't?), it is possible to get there.