by Ed Diener
Increasing Psychological Wealth
For decades, self-help books and gurus have been aimed at helping people increase their happiness, with varying degrees of success. Some readers swear by the clever happiness method advocated in the latest title, while others see little of value between the covers. Only recently have researchers begun to test these ideas to see which ones might actually work. In these studies on happiness remedies, people who want to be happier are randomly assigned to various self-help programs, and their happiness levels are compared to those of a control group. Interestingly, some of the most effective methods are those that involve reaching out to other people in positive ways. For example, subjects might be asked to do five kind acts for others, or to review why they should be grateful to others and how to use active responding to improve relationships and happiness. Or participants might be trained in how to use a type of meditation practice called lovingkindness, in which people focus on how much they love someone, and on doing kind things for them. It is too early to know which interventions produce long-lasting increases in happiness, although each one has produced some initial positive results. What is noteworthy is that many of the interventions being tried involve some form of heightened caring about other people. Practicing positive communication, appreciation, and kindness are likely to boost your happiness, improve your relationships, and add to your portfolio of psychological wealth.
Your Social Relationships Score
If relationships are generally beneficial to happiness, and happiness is beneficial to relationships, it makes sense to take stock of your relationships. How would you rate their quality? Do you have many close intimates that you can be authentic with, share secrets with, and trust that they will not judge you harshly, reject you, or betray your trust? How well do you get along with your family members? How about the folks at the office?
The following survey will help you identify your social strengths, as well as those areas where you might want to improve. In some cases, doing better might require improved interactions with others so that your remarks are more positive. In other cases, a change of social scenery might be indicated, and unreliable acquaintances can be exchanged for more trustworthy companions. Answer yes or no to each of the statements depending on whether or not you feel like they describe you:
1 I give lots of compliments and positive remarks to others.
2 I have someone to whom I can tell my most intimate thoughts and feelings.
3 I rarely or never feel lonely.
4 1 am careful about making negative remarks to others.
5 I get along well with my co-workers.
6 I can relax and be myself when I am with friends.
7 1 mostly trust my family and friends.
8 There are people I very much love and care about.
9 There are people I could call in the middle of the night if I have an emergency.
10 I have fun when I am with other people.
After reviewing your relationships, consider how much you care about those you love. We should aim for a score of 10, and certainly nothing less than an 8 will do. A psychologically unhealthy person is likely to score a goose egg on this survey.
Imagine that you die and because of some administrative errors in heaven you are sent to hell instead. There, at the fiery gates, you are greeted by Satan who - of course - smiles and offers you a deal. He explains that you have a choice to make that will affect how you spend the rest of eternity. If you choose the three people you love the most to take your place and live with him in hell, you can buy your way out, and be assured of a spot upstairs in heaven. What would you do? Many of us - in fact, most of us - would not take the deal. We would be willing to make the enormous personal sacrifice for the people we hold most dear. Most of us care so much about our loved ones that we would be willing to suffer rather than let them suffer. People matter to most of us an enormous amount. In refusing to turn over our loved ones to Satan, we would of course have earned the right to heaven - because caring for those we love is for most of us at the core of being a good and happy person. People have been called social animals, but the happiest among us are loving and caring angels.
Conclusions
Social relationships and happiness are a two-way street. They serve to reinforce each other. Happy people have better relationships, and good relationships make us happier. Most of us are predisposed to be at least moderately happy because we are social creatures, and being a happy person attracts us to others and them to us. Like food and air, we seem to need social relationships to thrive. When we thrive and are happy, we tend to build stronger social bonds. Cultivating positive relationships is essential to overall psychological wealth. Although people differ in their need for social relationships, and in the types of social relationships they most enjoy, we all need to receive and give social support. We all need to be loved and to love others.
Regardless of whether we choose to get married or have children, we all need close, supportive friends. Lonely people are not only less happy, but their physical health suffers as well. Several of the most severe mental illnesses involve difficulties in relationships. If we don't have good social relationships, we may create them. Little children often have imaginary friends. Such relationships might be the answer to the problems with the Demonians you encountered at the beginning of the chapter. What happened to you in that devilish experiment? After two years of deafening silence and alcoholism, you realized that there were only two options available to you: end the experiment with suicide, or make do with pseudofriends. You allow yourself to go a bit insane, and thereafter have plenty of hallucinated companions. Your new best friend, Poozy, lives in your shoes, Guenevere lives in the attic insulation, and Sham-Pooh lives nearby in the one-acre wood. The four of you have a great time together. You are raving mad, but this is a small price to pay to have friends again.
5
Happiness at Work:
It Pays To Be Happy
We have all ordered food at the drive-through window of a fast food restaurant. We are familiar with the script: "May I take your order? Would you like fries with that? Please pull forward and pay." The drive-through concept was successful in streamlining normal conversation to the point that only the bare minimum is needed for completing the transaction. There is no exchange of names and personal backgrounds, no asking about health, family, or the weather, and no other pleasantries. Drive-through clerks get right down to business. The sparse conversation follows a predictable course, regardless of which fast food restaurant you prefer. In fact, this conversational script is so ingrained that it can sometimes be a jolt when an employee deviates from the pattern.
Julie, a worker at a suburban Taco Bell near Seattle, went off script so many times that she frequently had customers getting out of their cars and marching into the store to speak with the manager. The customers, however, were not there to complain; quite the opposite. They were so taken with Julie's friendly personality and authentic approach that they wanted to make sure she was recognized for a job well done. Julie would ask customers how their day had gone. She was friendly and upbeat, and would sometimes relate good things that had happened to her, such as the day she became engaged or the time she received a raise. Julie seemed to be glad to be at work! All of a sudden customers were interacting with a pleasant person, not a robot or surly teenager.
How is it that some people end up loving their jobs like Julie? It doesn't seem to matter whether a person works at Credit Suisse or the Gap; we have all met employees who seem to love what they do from 9 to 5. Likewise, we have all met folks who dread clocking in. There are unfortunate souls who seem to hate their boss, their uniform, their commute, their paycheck, and us, their customers. Is liking and disliking work merely a matter of a joyful or bleak disposition, or is it a matter of finding a job that is a good personal fit?
Where does work fit into the happiness equation? It is obvious that individuals who are satisfied with their work will - by definition - be
enjoying a greater chunk of their lives than people who can't stand their jobs. But there is also the question of whether happiness at work is either beneficial to effectiveness there, or harmful to productivity. Might there be a tendency for happy individuals to overlook what is wrong at the office, and to content themselves with work conditions and labor practices they ought to be fighting to improve? Might happy workers goof off more? Happiness may be good for health and friendships, but is it really something we should bring to work with us as well?
Work as a Calling
You probably know a happy worker - an upbeat person who looks forward to coming to work, is enthusiastic about the job, shows up dependably, performs well, gets along with the staff, covers other people's shifts when necessary, and is working on some side project aimed at improving the workplace, its products, or its services. We do as well. In fact, one professor jumps immediately to mind as a perfect illustration of the many benefits of happiness for workers. This man worked as a psychologist at a prestigious university over the course of his entire career. He did all the usual work of a professor, including conducting research, teaching classes, advising students, serving on committees, taking sabbaticals, and publishing papers. How happy was our colleague with his job? When he retired, he continued to come into the office every day!
The old professor was not merely a case of the driven man who couldn't decide what to do with himself in the golden years of his retirement. He truly loved his work, told anyone who asked that it stimulated him, and - most important of all - believed it was meaningful. Although he did not work at quite the breakneck pace that he had earlier in his career, our colleague still volunteered to teach courses, kept abreast of the cutting-edge research in his field, conducted studies of his own, and wrote articles. Now, as he moves beyond age eighty, this gentleman is a bundle of energy and inspires all who know him. He is physically fit and, weather permitting, rides his bike to the university. Better yet, his mind remains impressive. Perhaps his love for his work and continuing mental stimulation have kept him healthy and happy.
It is interesting to consider what makes the professor so pleased with his occupation, while your accountant is so disgruntled. Amy Wrzesniewski, a researcher at Yale University, suggests that the difference between satisfied and unsatisfied employees is how they view their work. Some employees, people who have a "job orientation," think of their job primarily in terms of its tangible benefits. That is, they clock in each morning so that they can get a paycheck. Joboriented workers don't particularly anticipate the tasks they do each day, wouldn't necessarily recommend their work to a friend, and look forward to the end of each shift. They see their job simply in instrumental terms as a way to get money.
A second way of thinking about work is "career orientation." These employees like some aspects of their jobs but not others, may or may not recommend it, and certainly look forward to vacation time. Careeroriented people see their work as a stepping stone to something better, as a way of gaining respect, status, and more money. Typically, they are motivated by promotions, making connections, pay raises, increased supervisory responsibility, a bigger office, a closer parking space, and increases in social status. For instance, we know a university professor who received a better parking space when he won a Nobel Prize. For a career-oriented person, winning the Nobel Prize, as well as getting a better parking space, would be the goals behind doing outstanding research, and enjoyment of doing research would be secondary.
And then there is a third group of people, those who have a "calling orientation." People with a calling orientation usually love their jobs. They feel like their work is important, and makes a contribution to the world. They are excited and challenged by their daily work, and you might hear them say, "I would do this work even if I were not paid for it!" Calling-oriented people are not workaholics; they are passionate workers who believe in what they do. They often enjoy vacations, but they also enjoy returning to work. People like the energetic old professor. In table 5.1, we summarize the characteristics of the three types of workers.
The good news is that anyone can have a calling orientation. Callings are not reserved for CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, college professors, or government ministers. Callings can be found in any profession. For example, roughly one-third of hospital administrators fall into each group, and the same is true among hospital janitors. Below, we describe a janitor who has a calling.
Imagine being a janitor in the chronic care wing of a large hospital. This is a section of the hospital where long-term care is given to patients who are in a chronically debilitated state. Janitors sweep the floors, dust, and empty the wastebaskets. But imagine a janitor who goes beyond the requirements of the formal job description and takes it upon herself to rearrange the photographs in patient rooms so that patients have something new to look at from time to time. Perhaps the janitor believes that a little change would bring new cheer to the ward and, perhaps, stimulate the patients in some way. No one has told her to make the changes, and her performance evaluation would not have suffered a bit had she not done so. But still, she wants to contribute to the health of the patients. The janitor is careful to keep things as clean as possible, recognizing the dangers of hospital-borne germs.
If we interview the janitor, we find that she believes her work helps the overburdened nurses, and that she aids patients to get better by making their stay more pleasant. The janitor sees a sense of worth and purpose in her work. Because of her help, the nurses have more time to spend on medical care. Rather than thinking of her job as routine and of low status, the janitor thinks of her job as so important that she always wants to do her best. This mindset helps the hospital, but is also the key to why she loves her job.
According to Wrzesniewski, about one-third of the people in any given occupation are calling oriented. Thus, whether you are a kindergarten teacher, county sheriff, municipal bus driver, financial analyst, or local librarian, you can develop an attitude toward your work that is energetic and positive.
As revealed above, calling-oriented workers differ from the workers in the other two categories in an important way: they engage in what is described as "job crafting," which occurs when people become the architects of their jobs, doing additional tasks, helping other coworkers, and taking initiative in doing tasks in more efficient ways. Take the example of hair stylists. At the most basic level, their work is about washing, cutting, dying, curling, and styling hair. But chances are you have patronized a stylist for whom social contact with clients is also a major aspect of the work. For many men and women in this profession, the opportunity to chat with people is an important element of customer service, even though it has no bearing on the quality of the haircut.
Job crafters are folks who take initiative to make small changes around the office to bring their work in line with their larger vision of what they value in life. We have seen instances of valets who create color-coded organizational systems for car keys to make things simpler for their co-workers, trash collectors who see the job as their opportunity to keep neighborhoods neat and clean, social workers who advocate for their clients in a confusing government system, flight attendants who are friendly and helpful far beyond the list of activities required of them, and police officers who stop to chat with citizens on the street. Each of these is an example of a small act that can make work seem not only more meaningful, but enjoyable as well.
Although having meaningful work is an attractive prospect, many people are wary of investing too heavily in their jobs. After all, isn't too much focus on the office a bit unbalanced? Isn't there a danger of becoming a workaholic and missing out on other enjoyable parts of life? Well, it is true that successful people in general, and callingoriented workers in particular, often work hard and spend long hours on the job. But it may be reassuring to learn that the people who are happiest at work are also the happiest at home! The happiest people tend to show little difference in their moods whether they are working on a challenging report, ma
king a sale, playing kickball on Saturday, or riding bikes with the kids. Because most of us have to work anyway, it seems clear that a positive approach to your job is a smart choice. Not only will it benefit your employer, it will benefit you as well.
Happy Workers Are Good Workers
Take a moment and think of the factors that lead to success on the job. Your list probably includes intelligence, a good education, hard work, social skills, social connections, trustworthiness, reliability, and ability. Certainly, people who have these qualities are likely to be promoted, make more money, and be wonderful workers. Every employer dreams of filling positions with exactly these types of employees. What business wouldn't want energetic, honest, intelligent, hardworking go-getters who have the skills to do the job? But what most CEOs, supervisors, and personnel managers don't consider is whether the person is happy, positive, and optimistic. Worker happiness is a factor that also makes better employees, but is something that is often overlooked by many employers.
One benefit of happiness at work is that happy workers earn more money. In one study, we were interested in analyzing the effects of happiness on success. But we did not want to simply discover that success at work creates happiness; we wanted to explore the influence of happiness on success. So we obtained a measure of happiness taken long before the work began. We obtained cheerfulness data on students entering college in 1976, and then checked on their incomes in the 1990s, when the subjects were nearing middle age. What we found was a clear and surprisingly strong result. Whereas the least cheerful people were earning about $50,000 a year, the most cheerful folks were earning about $65,000 a year - a 30 percent higher salary! Even when we took into account possible complicating factors, such as occupation and parental income, our findings showed that cheerful 18-year-old students were earning higher salaries as they approached age forty. Why might this be the case? It could be that happy workers tend to perform better, and therefore receive more promotions and pay raises, leading to higher incomes over time.
