Experiencing happiness at work isn’t a matter of stumbling upon the profession that is ‘perfect’ for us and then riding that wave of joy into retirement.
Rather, like wellbeing, happiness is made up of a bunch of different components that can be experienced in many different jobs and workplaces.
So what are the key factors that we can apply to different jobs to have a better chance at finding happiness at work?
Workplaces can be the drivers of positive mental health outcomes.
We live in a world where a huge number of people suffer from mental ill health and access to help is poor. As employers, why not go a step further from just ‘not making things worse’ to actually making things better?
Creating social-connectedness at work is one opportunity for leaders to impact their people positively. Loneliness experienced at home can seep into the workplace and leaders have the power to not only prevent work-based loneliness, but combat loneliness overall.
Workplaces can be the engines that drive a socially connected world.
How can leaders create an environment that fosters social connection?
Circuit breakers are a simple solution to a potentially deadly and costly problem. When a circuit trips, we simply open the fuse box, flick a switch, and providing there is no deeper fault going on, we reset the system.
Now, imagine if we could do this with our brains. How much potential damage to our mental and physical health could we prevent if we had an automated switch that simply cut off the power to our unhelpful thought patterns before they escalated to breaking point?
Developing strategies to increase opportunities for social connection is a major research concern that is impacting public health policy globally at multiple levels; from the design of community living spaces to employment regulations, public health campaigns and how we harness technology.
What can individuals do to ensure they are getting the social connection they need for mental and physical wellbeing?
Firstly, establish how much social connection you need.
Canada - that bastion of forward thinking - is currently working on developing public health guidelines for social connection to improve population mental health, and control mental and physical health risks. Bit like your five a day, but in chit-chats rather than fruit and veg.
Does that mean Friday night pizza parties are back on the work perks list, or should even form part of your Psychosocial Risk Management plan?. (TLDR: no. For more nuance, read on).
Mental Health Awareness Week 2022 has just come to an end. The theme this year was ‘Reconnect - with the people and places that lift you up, hei pikinga waiora.’
The positive mental health benefits of connection are clear.
Research has found that:
Happier people tend to have strong social relationships
Social networks promote a sense of belonging and wellbeing
People with a higher number of close connections (three or more) were found to have a lower incidence of mental health conditions.
You can explore some of the research on this via the MHAW website here
But how can this help people who struggle to stay social?
I’m not usually big on birthdays, but I turned 40 last week and it felt like a bit of a milestone.
I’m not depressed per se about almost being middle-aged (I intend to live until I’m 98, so I have a few years to go on that one), but I have spent some time reflecting on how it feels to be on the other side of four decades.
Without further ado, here are my thoughts on life.
