The Truth About Happiness and Career Success

Researchers from UC Riverside and Chapman University suggests that happiness precedes and often leads to career success. Those who express positive emotions tend to perform better at work, earn more, and set more ambitious goals than their less happy peers. However, the unhappy are not doomed. The research suggests that it pays to cultivate happiness at work and beyond. Do not expect it to appear after hitting a career milestone.

Work hard, become successful, then you will be happy

We have all heard it from our parents, teachers, employers, and television ads. Many think the formula for success is

Graduate from College → Land My Dream Job → Make Six Figures → Then I Will Be Happy

While the recipe is intuitive, it is backwards. Happiness often leads to success, not the other way around.

The researchers hypothesize that happiness may be not only a consequence of success but also a cause. They argued that the presence of frequent positive emotions, such as joy, happiness, and contentment, might precede and even promote career success. They found abundant evidence that indicates that happiness is a critical precursor to success. A summary of the most convincing proof follows.

Do happy people perform well and succeed in the workplace?

Cross-sectional studies show that people who experience frequent positive emotions:

• perform better on work-related tasks
• receive more favourable evaluations from supervisors
• are more satisfied with their jobs

One pivotal study found that sales agents with a more positive outlook sold 37 percent more life insurance policies than less positive co-workers.

Happy people are likely to go above and beyond for their organizations. Unhappy people receive less social support from their colleagues. Happy workers are less likely to burn out, be absent from work, or quit their jobs. Unhappy people tend to earn lower incomes than happy people.

The literature suggests that happy people enjoy better workplace success than their less happy peers. However, cross-sectional studies examine people at a specific time. They cannot determine whether it is happiness that causes success or the other way around.

Which came first—happiness or success?

In longitudinal studies, researchers follow people over the course of weeks, months, or years. The longitudinal literature suggests that people were happy before they become successful.

Longitudinal studies showed that when compared to unhappy individuals; happier people are more likely they will find employment and be satisfied with it. When compared to their peers, happier:

• graduating college students received more follow-up job interviews three months later
• 18-year-olds were more likely to be satisfied with their work, feel more financially secure and be working in prestigious careers eight years later
• workers were less likely to lose their jobs, and if they become unemployed they were more likely to find a new job

Also, employees who report high levels of happiness:

• report higher productivity two months later
• have greater social support 20 months later
• earn better supervisor evaluations five years later

It also appears that earlier happiness pays financial dividends. People who are happy at one-time point often report a higher income in the future. The longitudinal literature suggests that happiness is a forerunner of success, rather than the other way around.

What impact does a positive emotional state have performance on career-related outcomes?

A review of experiments suggests that happiness facilitates success in a variety of career-related tasks and behaviours. The results show people prompted to experience positive emotions:

• are more optimistic they will succeed
• set higher goals for themselves
• view themselves and others more favourably
• persevere at challenging tasks longer

In a series of studies, people put in a good mood were more likely than those in a neutral mood to make concessions. They also found mutually beneficial solutions when negotiating with others. In another experiment, participants induced to feel happy also show greater creativity and productivity than those induced to feel less happy.

When considering happiness and complex mental tasks, the evidence is mixed. Some specific research concludes that happiness hinders logical reasoning. However, other research suggests happiness may help individuals to disregard irrelevant information and make decisions more efficiently.

Keys to happiness

Researchers have explored populations around the world and found that four qualities bring satisfaction and peace are similar no matter where your life. The Big Four keys to happiness are friendliness, cheerfulness, compassion, and gratitude.

When we think of what makes us happy, we usually focus on the “things” in life that we crave such as:

• real consumables
• intangible resources, such as “time,” “inner peace,” or “true love.”

It is easy to create a list of what we want the world to give us rather than thinking about the polar equation – what can we give back to others in our lives?

Being happy is about more than wearing a smile, making friends, caring about others, or writing gratitude lists. It is about choosing. Happiness is a choice to engage in health-promoting behaviours that influence your life as well as the lives of those around you. Happy people live longer, enjoy less stressful experiences, and are somewhat protected against some forms of heart disease. Plus, you will be a lot more fun to be around!

Tying the evidence together

The researchers noted that happiness is not the only quality that determines success. The cross-sectional, longitudinal, and experimental studies each come with their own set of limitations. The researchers considered the combined evidence from hundreds of studies. Their review strongly supports their hypothesis — happiness precedes and often leads to career success.

However, their conclusion has important implications for individuals and organizations.

You may be tempted to begin hiring visibly cheerful people and pressuring your employees to act happy. We do not recommend it. Hiring only happy people might be considered discriminatory.  We can predict if an individual is likely to meet or exceed expectations with 85% reliability based on their Behavioural DNA. High performers in each role share a standard set of traits. You need to consider the individual’s full talent stack — knowledge, skills, accomplishments, behavioural traits and wisdom. We encourage you to use a best-fit staffing process.

Unhappy people can be successful and have outstanding careers. Moreover, requiring happiness at work can backfire, ironically making employees more miserable.

Creating environments that authentically increase workers’ happiness are very productive. Consider giving employees the option to engage in positive activities designed to enhance well-being. These may include performing acts of kindness for co-workers or expressing gratitude to customers. Implementing positive actions in the workplace involves relatively few costs, if any, and could potentially boost revenue and improve company culture. The How of Happiness is an excellent resource for learning more about how to do that.

Experiencing a balance of both positive and negative emotions is healthy. Positive feelings are particularly well-positioned to provide an advantage in the workplace. They should not be overlooked.

The Happiness Advantage

I encourage you to watch the riveting TED Talk Shawn Achor on The Happy Secret to Better Work.  Achor delivered lectures on positive psychology and won over a dozen distinguished teaching awards at Harvard University.  His TED has 4 million views.

Achor states that your brain works significantly better at positive than at negative, neutral or stressed. Business and educational outcome improve when we start at positive rather than waiting for future success:

• 40% more likely to receive a promotion
• nearly ten times more engaged at work
• productivity by 31%
• sales grow 37% cross-industry
• get better grades
• your symptoms are less acute
• live longer and much more

Start Today

Try the “Three Good Things Activity.” Every day jot down three good things that happened in your life that day. Size does not matter. (i.e. Got a free breakfast, the presentation went well, got to spend an hour with the kids, etc.) For each good thing note why it happened and why it made you feel good. Evidence shows that in a few months you will feel happier. Plus you will enjoy the activity and keep doing it.

Moreover, you can have a positive attitude, smile at and befriend others, cut others some slack. Be grateful for all you have rather than complaining about what is missing. You can learn to be optimistic. Focus on what is gone well for you in the past. Savour your current, and past successes and your future mindset will be predisposed to positive expectations about the future!

Notes: Does happiness promote career success? Revisiting the evidence by Lisa C. Walsh, Julia K. Boehm and Sonja Lyubomirsky was the inspiration for this insight. It was the paper published in the Journal of Career Assessment in January 2018.