How to have a good day.
When asked what people want in their life the answer is usually “to be happy.” At school we are taught that hard work leads to success, and success leads to happiness. But it turns out that we might have the formula backwards. According to research cited in Sonja Lyubomirsky’s book The How of Happiness, showing up to work with a positive attitude led to a 31% increase in productivity, 37% more sales, and a 40% higher likelihood of subjects being promoted the following year.
So, happiness → better work → a promotion and a new car. So far, so good. However, this presents us with a bit of a paradox. We often think that changing our circumstances (with a promotion, for example) is the quickest way to hack happiness. Not so fast. In fact, only 10% of happiness is actually accounted for by changes in our external circumstances (such as getting the promotion we talked about or a new car). A whopping 40% of our happiness comes from our own mindset. Here are a couple of science backed things that people agree on:
Writing down three good things you are grateful for or delighted by every day can boost your happiness in just 2 weeks.
Letting go of regrets has been shown to promote emotional health in older age.
Social media leans on the same emotional loops used by casinos on gamblers in order to create addictive tendencies in users.
Taking lessons from above, we borrowed the following practice from Neil Pasricha. Instead of starting the day with a scroll, grab a pen and piece of paper and try this two minute morning practice to tune up your mindset. Complete the following sentences, being as specific as you can.
I will let go of…
I am grateful for …
I will focus on…
Try this for a couple of weeks and we’re pretty sure you’ll see some positive shifts in your mental state and show up as a better self to work. The real takeaway here is that you may well end up getting that promotion you were after but it’s the practices, not the promotion, that will have the lasting impact on your overall happiness.