Huh, Who’s Happy? 8 Tidbits
Posted by Dr. Judy at 3:00 am
© 2010 Dr. Judy Krings
What does your happiness meter read? Check out these shocking happiness tips. New research in psychology and economics suggests the answer lies in what you already have, especially friends and family.
8 Tips to get a happiness fix ~ know this:
- Money buys you little happiness. After basics needs are met, as long as you don’t keep comparing yourself to others and wishing you had more, money is not a great predictor of happiness. Ironically, poorer people can, and often do, lead significantly happier lives than the rich. They share themselves with friends and family and not obsess about material stuff.
- Sharing time and activities with those you love and admire everyday adds more happiness that a new luxury car! The thrill of a new car is quite fleeting. Not that you wouldn’t love to take that Ferrari for a spin!
- Winning the lottery isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. It will not make you instantly happy. It takes 2 years for happiness to gel. Conversely, an increase in your paycheck brings you instant joy! Wouldn’t you love to test out this research?
- Losing your job makes you unhappy, but less so when others have, too. The impact on losing your job is less when others are in the same boat. Losing your job is one of life’s most miserable experiences, surprisingly even more than getting a divorce.
- Fat friends make you happier than thin ones. While overweight folks report less happiness than thin ones, new evidence suggests we care about other people’s weight as much as we do our own. Overweight people report higher levels of happiness when other people of the same age and gender are as heavy or heavier than they are. The same goes for individuals who live in the same household: our own weight doesn’t bother us as much, that is, when our partner is also putting on weight.
- Divorce can make you happy. According to the psychologist Ed Diener, the worst moment for men is the year preceding the divorce. By contrast, the worst moment for women is two years before the divorce, with their happiness on the verge of bouncing back the year preceding the split. This pattern probably reflects the fact that the majority of divorces are initiated by the wife. After a divorce, it takes approximately two years for men and three years for women for the effect of the break-up on happiness to become positive and stay positive. In other words, it seems that divorcing couples often become significantly happier with their lives by breaking up, but it takes a long time!
- Best yet! Happiness is contagious. People surrounded by many happy friends, family members and neighbors who are central to their social network become significantly happier in the future. More specifically, they say we will become 25% happier with our life if a friend who lives within a mile of us becomes significantly happier with his or her life. Similar effects are seen in co-resident spouses (8% happier); siblings who live within a mile of each other (14%); and next-door neighbors (34%). The magnitude of happiness spread seems to depend more on frequent social contact (due to physical proximity) than on deep social connections. The secret to being happy is simply to devote more of our time and attention to these happiness-rich, fulfilling endeavors.
- There are many benefits to being happy: Greater health, increased longevity, greater income potential, more satisfying relationships, and feelings of authenticity and meaning.
“You’ve got to sing like you don’t need the money,
Love like you’ll never get hurt,
You’ve got to dance like no-body’s watchin’,
It’s gotta come from the heart
If you want it to work.”
~ Old blues/folk song by Susanna Clark, songwriter & painter
