HPPY 102 - Turbo Happiness

Mood, engagement and meaning on the pathway to success
Kim Biason Chitra
Nicole Christopoulos
Ricardo Gonzalez
Will Harper
Lexi Mele-Algus
Renee Siemak
Prof. Harry Kraemer
HPPY102:

Methodology
Five months ago, we set out to
understand scientific research
on happiness and its
implications for business and
work.
Our goal is to share our
findings and actionable
strategies that can increase
happiness.
This presentation is a summary
of our findings.

What we hope you will believe by the time
this presentation is over
•You have the power to affect your level of happiness
•Happiness is important, not just for its own sake, but for
the cascade of benefits it will have on your life and the
lives of those around you
•There are many potential strategies; this presentation will
have an impact on your life if you make happiness a
goal and pursue it like you do professional success

Agenda
• What is happiness and can I influence it?
• Why does happiness matter?
• What factors influence happiness?
-Genetics
-Mindset
-Circumstances
• Action plans for work

Happiness is the combination of mood,
engagement and meaning
Source: Seligman, “Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness
MeaningEngagementPleasant mood
• What we feel; mood
based
- E.g., pleasure, ecstasy,
warmth, comfort, etc.
• Frequent experience of
focus or flow (being
“in the zone”)
• Often occurs when
strengths meet
comparable challenges
• Belonging to and
serving something that
is bigger than the
self

Can I control my level of happiness?
• Happiness levels are innate and
cannot be changed
• Happiness depends on
circumstances outside your
control
• “I’m just not a very happy
person.”
• “I’m focused on other things
right now, I’ll be happy when…”
• “I’m already pretty happy,
there’s no reason to focus on
happiness.”
Common
misconceptions

Just asking about happiness leads to
change
1 Happiness in the Workplace: Employees Who Focus on Maximizing Happiness Become Happier, Goldsmith et al
2 http://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/article/maximizing_happy/
Each emailed a
question daily:
Question did not
mention
happiness
How happy were
you today?
Did you do your
best to be
happy today?
Level of
happiness
monitored before
and after
No change in
level of
happiness
Modest gains
in happiness
several weeks
later
Greatest gains
in happiness
several weeks
later
Control
Happiness
monitoring
Behavior focused
1 2 3
Study participants
were split into
three groups
Behavior-focused questions can be used to prompt daily reflection
and influence actual behaviors

Interventions focused on increasing
happiness are more powerful than drugs
1 Happiness in the Workplace: Employees Who Focus on Maximizing Happiness Become Happier, Goldsmith et al
2 Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-Being, Seligman
Positive psychotherapy is a
relatively new field focused on
increasing happiness
Severely depressed patients
achieving remission from
depression2
• Traditional psychology focused on
treating negative aspects of
psyche
• Positive psychology is a new field
focused on adding or increasing
happiness
• Positive psychotherapy intervention
focused on happy mindset. E.g.,:
-Gratitude
-Forgiveness
-Recognizing and using strengths
-Optimism and hope
-Savoring
40
60%
50
10
0
30
20
Postive
psychotherapy
55%
Traditional therapy
with medication
8%
7x

Why study happiness at a business
school?
Happiness is the ultimate currency
Happiness yields dramatic ancillary
benefits
1
2

Happiness is the ultimate currency;
driving force behind decisions/desires
The ultimate currency
1
Source: Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment, Ben-Shahar
Earn more
money
Find a partner
Make a positive
impact
I believe it will make me happier
Buy a better
house
Enjoy time with
my family
Want to get
married
Reduce suffering
of others
Goal
Why?
Why?
I will feel good
I want to have a
family

Happiness leads to personal success…
“Happiness leads to
success in nearly every
domain, including work,
health, friendship, sociability,
creativity, and energy”
Ancillary benefits
2
Studies show that
happiness clearly
leads to success…
Source: Lyubomirsky et al (2005). The benefits of frequent positive affect: Does happiness lead to success? Psychological Bulletin
…while success
does not lead to
happiness to the
same degree as you
might assume

…by giving your brain a turbo boost
1 Achor, Shawn. The Happiness Advantage: 7 Principle of Positive Psychology; page 43-44
2 Bryan et al. (1991). Positive mood and math performance, Journal of Learning Disabilities
3 Fredrickson & Branigan (2005). Positive emotions broaden the scope of attention and thought-action repertoires.
4 Masters et al. (1979). Affective states, expressive behavior, and learning in children. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
5 Kopelman et al. (2006). The three faces of Eve: Strategic displays of positive, negative, and neutral emotions in negotiations. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.
Ancillary benefits
2
Happiness leads to physical
changes in your brain…
…with a range of benefits
• Increased levels of dopamine and
serotonin1
• Make and sustain more neural
connections1
• Learning: Better organize and retain
new information1
• Memory: Retrieve information faster
faster1
• Intellectual performance: Happy
test-takers outperformed peers on
standardized tests2
• Creativity: Positively-primed subjects
can think of wider array of thoughts and
ideas vs. negatively-primed3
• Productivity: Happy kids able to build
block structures faster4
• Negotiation: Positive negotiators
realize higher individual and joint gains5

Happiness also leads to organizational
success
Ancillary benefits
2
Happy employees are
more productive…
…and also less
expensive
• Better diagnoses: Doctors
make correct diagnoses 19%
faster, and display 2.5 times less
anchoring1
• Improved sales: Optimistic
salespeople outsell pessimistic
ones by 56%2
• Team performance: Teams
with positive and encouraging
managers outperformed less
positive managers by 31%3
1. Positive addect facilitates integration of information and decreases anchoring in reasoning among physicians, Organizational Behavior and
human Decision Processes
2. Achor, Shawn. The Happiness Advantage: 7 Principle of Positive Psychology; page 15
3. Deci, Why we do what we do (referenced in Happiness Advantage)
4. Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index 2008 “Poll: Unhappy workers take more sick days”
5. Wright et al. (2007). Job Satisfaction and Psychological Well-Being as Nonadditive Predictors of Workplace Turnover. Journal of Management.
• Improved attendance:
Unhappy workers take 15
more sick days per year vs.
happy workers4
• Decreased turnover: 90%
of turnover and 50% of
absenteeism attributed to
employee well-being5

…and better health
Ancillary benefits
2
Stronger immune system:
Fight off the flu more quickly2;
survive breast cancer, renal-
disease, spinal chord injuries at
higher rates1
Less pain: Decreased
musculoskeletal pain4,
and higher pain threshold1
Longevity:
Longer life span3; happiness a
better predictor of longevity than
tobacco use1
1. Lyubomirsky et al. (2005). The Benefits of Frequent Positive Affect. Does Happiness Lead to Success? Psychological Bulletin
2. Cohen et al. (2003). Emotional style and susceptibility to the common cold. Psychosomatic Medicine
3. Snowdon et al. (2001). Positive emotions in early life and longevity: Findings from the nun study. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
4. Røysamb et al. (2003). Happiness and Health: Environmental and Genetic contributions to the relationship between subjective well-being, perceived health, and
somatic illness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
Better sleep:
High sleep quality and quantity1
Lower risk of stroke:
Lower incidence of stroke1
Healthy mind:
Lower reports of schizophrenia,
hypochondriasis, or depression1,
and less likely to suffer from
anxiety or social phobia1
Happiness or positive mood causes or is correlated with:
Healthy heart:
Lowered incidence of
cardiovascular disease1, less
likelihood of dying from coronary
heart disease1, quicker recovery
from cardiac surgery1, and fewer
complications
Reduced allergies: Decreased
allergic symptoms4

What factors influence happiness?
Genetics
Mindset
Circumstances
+
+
= Happiness
Mood
Engagement
Meaning

What balance of present vs. future
benefit?
The rat race Ideal
Nihilism Hedonism
Futurebenefit
LowHigh
Present benefit
Low High
Source: Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment, Ben-Shahar

Can’t pick your genes, but you still can
control a large portion of your happiness
Source: The How of Happiness, S. Lyubomirsky
• Methodology: Compare happiness
levels of identical vs. fraternal twins
as well as twins who were raised
together and twins who were
separated at birth (same genes,
different circumstances)
• Happiness of one fraternal twin is
not predictive of other’s happiness
• Happiness of one identical twin is
highly predictive of other’s
happiness, even when raised
separately
Genes may account for as much as 50% of
happiness level; you can affect the other 50%

How you invest very limited conscious
attention determines quality of experience
126 bits/sec
The human brain can only process ~126 bits of
information per second
Source: Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, M. Csikszentmihalyi
Reality Your experience
Just listening to this presentation uses up 40 bits/sec
Paying attention to the slides is a further drain

Investing attention in the present will
make you happiest
Source: Killingsworth, M. A. & Gilbert, D. T. (In press). A wandering mind is an unhappy mind. Science.
Our minds wander about half
the time…
Focused Pleasant
Happinesslevel
Neutral Negative
…making us less happy, even
when we’re thinking about
something positive
Mind wandering
Neutral
Working
11%
65%
33%
Reading
Commuting
Negative
50%
Pleasant
Sex
Talking45% Average
Relationship
holds across
all activities

Focus also crowds out worrying
100% of
attention
Worry
Fully focusedNormal state
of mind
Present
activity
100% of
attention
Mind
wandering
• Present focus does not mean
never thinking about the
past or future
• Instead, think of learning from
the past or planning for the
future as discrete activities in
which you should invest full
attention
• Want to avoid “spinning” on
worries or ideas at expense of
what you are doing
Source: Killingsworth, M. A. & Gilbert, D. T. (In press). A wandering mind is an unhappy mind. Science.

Three strategies to better invest your
attention
Engage in more flow activities
Make non-flow activities more flow-like
Mindfulness
1
2
3

You’ve felt intense presence of mind
before; it’s called flow
• Often referred to as being “in the
zone”
• When information coming into
consciousness is congruent with
goals, psychic energy flows
effortlessly
• No need to worry or question
one’s adequacy
• Abstraction of time
• “Automatic” actions that require
no thought
• Flow experience leads to life
satisfaction and high
performance

How to find more flow activities
Engage in more flow activities
1
Flow activities are where your
skills meet a comparable
challenge
Some activities are designed
to produce flow
• Rules that require learning of
skills
• Clear goals
• Immediate feedback
• Make control possible
• Facilitate concentration
Examples: playing music, rock
climbing, dancing, chess, sports,
discussion with friends, computer
programming

Shift anxiety or boredom inducing
activities toward flow zone
Make non-flow activities more
flow-like
2
Increase skills
Decreasechallenge
Increasechallenge
• Increase your skills: making an
investment in improving your skills in
an anxiety inducing activity, e.g.,:
-Improve chipping game in golf
-Spend a weekend at Training the Street to
improve modeling abilities
-Take salsa classes
• Decrease the challenge: search for a
way to reduce the challenge of the
activity
-Use a template for financial modeling
-Use bumpers when bowling
• Increase the challenge: seek a way
to more boring activities more
challenging
-Give yourself a strict deadline
-Try to beat your best time/quality
-Compete against a friend/coworker

Take deliberate control of your attention
and mindset
Source: Greater Good Institute; Search Inside Yourself, C. Tan
Mindfulness
3
• “I am angry” becomes “I feel
angry”
• “This is a tragedy” becomes “this
is a challenge/opportunity”
• Worries become concerns that can
be dealt with in the moment,
planned for later or simply
disregarded
Mindfulness is “maintaining a
moment-by-moment
awareness of our thoughts,
feelings, bodily sensations, and
surrounding environment”
Mindfulness gives the practitioner
the ability to shift from
compulsion to choice

Meditation is a way to practice training
your attention
Source: Search Inside Yourself, C. Tan
Mindfulness
3
How to practice sitting
mindfulness meditation*
Meditation is a way to practice in order to become better at
mindfulness just like jogging is a way to get in better shape.
*There are many ways to meditate. While there may be spiritual implications for different styles or details
like how you sit or what you focus on, the effect of better training your attention is shared by many styles
Sit in a comfortable position (does
not have to be on the floor) with
your spine straight (for comfort)
Focus your attention on your
breathing
When your mind wanders, return
your attention to your breathing
without self-judging

And it has a powerful impact on your
health, emotions and relationships
Mindfulness
3
• It physically increases the size of our brains in regions that
deal with learning, memory, emotion regulation, and empathy in a
matter of weeks3
• It improves memory1 and attention skills2
• It reduces stress and increases positive emotion4
• It enables you to heal faster5
• It improves romantic relationships6
• May be as effective as anti-depressants in fighting depression7
1 “Mindfulness meditation improves cognition: evidence of brief mental training.” Zeidan et al
2 “Regular, brief mindfulness meditation practice improves electrophysiological markers of attentional control.” Moore et al
3 “Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density.” , Holzel et al
4 A multi-method examination of the effects of mindfulness on stress attribution, coping, and emotional well-being” , Weinstein et al
5 “Alterations in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness meditation.”, Davidson et al
6 “Mindfulness-based relationship enhancement” Carson, et al
7” "Antidepressant Monotherapy vs Sequential Pharmacotherapy and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, or Placebo, for relapse
Prophylaxis in Recurrent Depression.“ Segal et al

Despite sound mindset, we cannot
escape real tragedy
Causes of
suffering
Indifference of universe
to our needs
Paradox of rising
expectations
• Extreme suffering: “Close
to half of U.S. adults will
experience one severe
traumatic event during
their lifetimes”
-Examples: loss of loved one,
disease, domestic violence,
war, etc
• Daily stresses: insults,
lines, commute, weather
• Hedonic adaptation:
when we achieve
something, we quickly
revert to previous level of
(un)happiness and desire
more
Response • Positive mental model of
the world
• Coping and forgiveness
• Awareness and savoring
• Gratitude

People that express gratitude are likely to
be happier, healthier, and more
• Count your blessings: those that
had the chance to write down five
things they were thankful for
regularly were more satisfied with
their lives1
• Thank others: Write thank you
notes or mental make note of others
kindness2
• Being grateful provides many
benefits, some of which are:
- Allows you live in the now and truly
enjoy positive life experiences
- Helps people cope with stresses and
traumas more effectively
- Gratitude can help build stronger,
higher-quality relationships
- Helps reduce hedonic adaptation and
stop taking things for granted
1 The How of Happiness
2 http://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier

Tragedy can be debilitating
Source: The How of Happiness; Discussion with H. Kraemer
Leveloffunctioning
Survival
Sometimes people can
never recover from the
event. Plagued by guilt,
anger, feelings of “why did
this happen to me?”
Extreme shock
such as the loss of a
job, the death of a
loved one, a
debilitating illness or
injury
Time

Though usually people can recover and
maintain their prior level of functioning
Leveloffunctioning
Survival
Extreme shock
such as the loss of a
job, the death of a
loved one, a
debilitating illness or
injury
Time
Recovery
This type of recovery
fueled by hedonic
adaptation

Best outcome is to thrive in the wake of
tragedy
Leveloffunctioning
Survival
Time
Recovery
Thriving
Realistic about
the possibility
of experiencing
real tragedy
before it
happens; act
accordingly
Happy people
feel loss as
deeply as the
unhappy,
though possible
to reduce
surprise
Although happy
people feel
same loss, they
recover more
quickly
By acknowledging
possibility of
thriving in the
wake of tragedy,
one can seek out
best path and be
better off

If you only do one thing, focus on
relationships
Happiest 10% of people:
• Differentiated from least happy
only by quality of social life1
• Spent the least time alone2
• Have twice as many of friends
as those that are “extremely
dissatisfied”2
Balance the quality and quantity
of friendships3
1 “Very Happy People,” Diener and Seligman. Psychological Happiness
2 The New Science of Happiness,” Claudia Wallis, Time Magazine, Jan. 09, 2005
3 How Many Friends Does One Person Need, Robin Dubar, May 1, 2010
3 http://www.gallup.com/poll/107692/social-time-crucial-daily-emotional-wellbeing.aspx
Relationships
10% 150
15
5
¼ of your time = 12x more
likely to feel happy than
stressed or anxious! 4

Don’t seek out a relationship to make you happy; instead seek
happiness for success in relationships
Successful relationship likely adds to happiness; unsuccessful
relationship drain on happiness
Seek happiness for a successful
romance, not the other way around
1. Marks and Fleming (1999). Influences and consequences of well-being among Australian young people. Social Indicators Research
2. Headey (1989). Does happiness induce a rosy outlook? In R. Veenhoven (Ed.), How harmful is happiness? Consequences of enjoying life or not
3. All found here: Lyubomirsky (2005). The Benefits of Frequent Positive Affect: Does Happiness Lead to Success? Psychological Bulletin.
4. Zimmerman, A., and R. Easterlin. (2006). Happily Ever After? Cohabitation, Marriage, Divorces, and Happiness in Germany. Population and Development Review 32(3): 511-528.
5. British Medical Journal, Wide circle of friends key to mid-life wellbeing for both sexes, August 22, 2012
Relationships
•On average, people in committed relationships are happier than
those who are not
•Happy people more likely to start a relationship + get married1
•Marriage seems to boost happiness in short term (1st–2nd year)2
•Being happy leads to success in relationships beyond the initial
honeymoon period2,3,4

Taking care of your body pays
happiness dividends
1 The How of Happiness
2 http://www.uwhealth.org/news/simple-strategies-to-improve-your-sleep/40770
3 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-ramsey-md/food-mental-health_b_1703007.html
Exercise
Happiness fueled by three key health-related decisions:
Sleep Diet
• Proven to improve
depression as
effectively as Zoloft1
• Those that exercise
are less likely to
relapse than those in
the medication group1
• A University of
Michigan study found
that one extra hour
of sleep a night had
a greater effect on
happiness than an
additional $60K in
annual income2
• Adolescents that
consistently eat junk
food are 79% more
likely to suffer from
depression3
• Women with diets
high in omega-3
fats less likely to
suffer from
depression3
Health

Focus on commute and noise, not
home size
1 Koslowsky and Kluger, 1995
2 Glass and Singer, 1972, and others reviewed in Frederick and Loewenstein, 1999
• Never adjust to the commute: we
never fully adapt to a longer commute,
particularly if it involves driving in heavy
traffic. Even after years of commuting,
those whose commutes are traffic-filled
still arrive at work with higher levels
of stress hormones1
• Adjust quickly to new home: although
a new home might make us happier in
the short run, we quickly adapt to it and
our happiness levels return to baseline1
• Noise reduces happiness: especially
noise that is variable or intermittent,
interferes with concentration and
increases stress2
Environment

Money can make you happier if you
spend it right
Diminishing marginal
returns on happiness to
earning more1
How you spend your money
is key to unlocking happiness
value2
• Buy experiences, not goods:
as goods have minimal to no
incremental effect on your
happiness2
• Buy time by outsourcing time
consuming tasks you do not
enjoy, arranging for more
vacation or a shorter commute 2
• Spend money on others in a
way that brings you into a
relationship with them and has
an impact
High initial gains
enabled by ability to
reduce worries and
increase
opportunity
1 “What are the Economics of Happiness?”, Yale Insights
2 Dunn, E., Norton, M., “Happy Money: The Science of Smarter Spending.” (2013);
Money

Let your work be a source of
happiness
Work
Survey with 4,800 responses. Respondents polled throughout their day. Asked what they were doing, questions about engagement and mood and if they
wished they were doing something else.
18%
Leisure
54%
Work
How often people report
feeling engaged
How often people report
feeling apathetic
52%
16%
LeisureWork
“We have the paradoxical situation: On the job people feel skillful and challenged,
and therefore feel more happy, strong, creative and satisfied. In their free time
people feel there is generally not much to do and their skills are not being used, and
therefore they tend to feel more sad, week, dull, and dissatisfied. Yet they would like to
work less and spend more time in leisure”

Seek out and focus on the right elements
to love your job
…But these are the factors that
lead people to love their jobs
- Challenging work
- Recognition
- Responsibility
- Advancement
- Growth
- Work itself
The
Motivators
If these factors aren’t at least
acceptable, hard to be satisfied
with your job…
- Salary
- Relationship with boss
- Work conditions
- Company policy
- Supervision
- Relationship with peers
The Basics
Source: Hertzberg Two Factor Theory
Will you be:
• Unsatisfied with your job?
• Satisfied but unmotivated?
• Satisfied and motivated?
Work

Leisure time is wasted on passive
hobbies
1 Achor, S. Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology that Fuel Success and Performance at Work
2 Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, M. Csikszentmihalyi
3 Keller et al (2005). A warm heart and a clear head: The contingent effect of mood and weather on cognition. Psychological Science
Passive hobbies do not enable
sustained happiness…
• Passive hobbies performed 4x more
often than active hobbies1
• Studies show people report lower
levels of engagement (and thus
happiness) during leisure time than
while at work2
…whereas active hobbies
foster engagement and
happiness
• Active leisure activities (playing
sports, a musical instrument, or
other hobbies) enhance
concentration, engagement,
and motivation1
• Spending 20 minutes outside on
a nice day boosts happiness,
broadened thinking and improved
working memory3
Hobbies

Employee Actions Plan: Seek happiness;
achieve success
1 http://positiveorgs.bus.umich.edu/cpo-tools/job-crafting-exercise/
2 Barker, Eric. http://theweek.com/article/index/259258/4-insights-that-will-make-you-happier-at-work
1. Make it meaningful: Understand and define the greater meaning and
purpose of your responsibilities
- Complete a job crafting exercise1
- Personally invest yourself in the outcomes of your work to build commitment2
2. Play to your strengths: Discover your strengths and shape your tasks
around those strengths. Independent of content, using your strengths at
work can make you significantly happier.2
3. Focus on relationships: Develop relationships and maintain a social
support system
- Provide appreciation and recognition to your coworkers
- Create a support system within, and outside, of work
4. Seek engagement: Engage in ‘flow’ experiences as much as possible
- Reduce distractions
- Concentrate fully on the tasks you are working on
- Challenge yourself, while utilizing your strengths
5. Set and pursue BIG and small goals: achieving small goals is highly
motivational1

Employer Action Plan: Create a happy
workplace
1. Get the Basics Right: Meet the minimum factors every employee needs to
make work bearable:
- Salary
- Relationship with boss / peers
- Work conditions
- Company policy
- Supervision
2. Leverage Motivation Factors: To make employees happier and more
productive, offer:
- Challenging work
- Recognition
- Responsibility
- Growth
- Work itself
3. Structure Work Right: Ensure employees can find ‘flow’ experiences as
much as possible:
- Avoid multi-tasking
- Streamline work

Job Seeker Action Plan: Find a job that
fits you best
1. Search for jobs that offer “The Motivators”. Once “the Basics” (pay,
etc.) are good enough, little value to increasing further.
- Challenging work
- Recognition
- Responsibility
- Growth
- Work itself
2. Leverage your strengths: To enable flow experiences, and therefore
happiness, productivity and success, seek a job that plays to your strengths
rather than one that will “correct” a weakness
3. Look for opportunities to build relationships: Seek a job that will allow
you to form and maintain strong relationships, whether at work or outside
the office.

Thanks!
Thank you
Harry
Kraemer
CarterCast
Kelly
Goldsmith
MORS
department
CarolCahill
DeanZ
PritiPatel
Hanne
Wieschhoff
Survey
respondents
…andyou!

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