Thoughts on Why Happiness Is
Important
Happiness
is the most important experience we want for those we love, including
ourselves. We always want to be happy and have those around us be happy in
whatever endeavor we take on. We need happiness in our lives for many more
reasons than just feeling good occasionally.
This answers why happiness is important because it helps us
be better people for ourselves, the ones we love, and our community. Now that I have answered the age-old question of why
happiness is important, it’s time for you to take action today to do
activities that make you generally happy, whether it’s painting, writing,
drawing, kickboxing, jogging, listening to podcasts, spending quality time
with your family or all of the above!
1. Happy people are more successful
We all have the idea that “success makes us happy” but it’s
backward. Instead, being happy makes us more successful in all of
life’s endeavors. Happy people have a higher
probability of acing job interviews thus acquiring better positions. Happy
people are more positively evaluated by our superiors and show higher
productivity and performance. The same reigns true for being better managers of
others.
Furthermore, happiness makes us more productive employees
while improving our aptitude for problem-solving. In an experiment performed by
economists at the University of Warwick, researchers found that those
primed for happiness were 12% more productive. While on the job, happy
employees are less likely to show work burnout and disruptive behavior.
2. Happy people maintain better relationships
Another critical aspect of life is fostering old and new
relationships ranging from friendships to romantic involvement. Relationships
have been proven to be the most important factor for the continuation of the
human species.
Happy
people have better social support, more friends and are generally more
satisfied with group activities and friendships. The happiest college students
tend to have the highest-quality relationships, are less jealous, and have
stronger bonds with family members.
Happy people have better social
support, more friends and are generally more satisfied with group activities
and friendships.
This
is especially true for marriage. There is a strong link between happiness and
satisfaction in marriage. Those with more happiness tend to be more content
with their partner. Like maintaining great relationships with our friends and
family members, happiness fuels a good marriage, and the rewards can be
amazing! This point is also related to idea #7 that happy people are more
generous in that we are more willing to compromise and go the extra mile for
our friends, family, and life partner.
Furthermore, it has been proven that happy people tend to be
less violent. When you hear about a killer’s
life, those that knew the individual rarely say they seemed so happy. Most
happy people strive to make love, not war. That means when a
disagreement ensues during a relationship, let’s be honest, it happens to us
all, violence rarely ensues with happy people. They find a compromise or
solution together which further strengthens the relationship.
3. Happy people have less stress
Part of the reason happy people live longer and are
healthier is because of a lower stress level. There is a direct correlation
between stress and illness and vice-versa. When we get stressed, our cortical
hormone levels increase which is typically accompanied by muscle weakness,
higher blood pressure, and mood swings. On the other hand, positive and happy
feelings alter our chemical makeup that lowers these levels. Happiness
is the exact opposite of stress, so it is difficult to have both
simultaneously.
I work for a major cosmetics company in a relatively
stressful field that is heavily dependent on timelines to make major launches.
I will be the first to tell you that the stress at times is difficult to manage
but I am generally a happy person and can find creative outlets that
make me happy and relieve stress. One is through engaging in kickboxing classes
several times per week. It is an activity I love to do and makes me happy plus
provides a great workout, all of which lowers or eliminates my stress!
4. Happy people live longer lives
Logic
dictates that if happiness has a positive impact on my health then it will also
extend my life. One study was performed that found a correlation between the
life expectancy of a group of Catholic nuns and their initial emotions when
they first started at the convent.
The
happiest nuns lived 7-10 years longer than the unhappiest. This is one of many
studies performed that confirm happiness is one important component of living
longer lives. Couple that with regular exercise, eating healthy, lower stress,
finding creative outlets, and fostering healthy relationships and we can live long
and healthy lives as happy people!
5. Happy people are more creative
In
addition to being more productive in life, happy people are more creative.
Positive thinking and being open to new experiences and ideas are related. This
is because as our general mood becomes more positive, we can devise and
envision creative solutions to a variety of problems.
This counters the “tortured artist” idea which postulates
that the artistic community, which has higher rates of depression and other
mental illnesses, is generally unhappy which fuels creativity. There is little
evidence of a connection between the two more evidence of happiness improving
creativity.
In addition to being more productive
in life, happy people are more creative.
When
I am generally happier, I often access the creative side of my brain outside of
work. I tend to lie in bed watching television less and draw, read, and write
much more. Yes, I love those rainy Sundays in the fall, snuggling under the
covers and watching a scary horror film, there’s a place for those days too,
but I try to fill my time with more creative outlets. These creative activities
tend to fuel my happiness even more so it’s a win-win situation.
6. Happy people are healthier
Happy people have proven to maintain better physical health,
have less hospital and emergency room visits, and fewer unpleasant physical
symptoms. Also, we tend to use less
medication resulting in fewer work absences which relates to point number one
of being more successful. Better health typically relates to less overall
physical pain.
Similarly, happy people have better mental health than
others and have fewer symptoms related to mental diseases like schizophrenia,
hypochondriasis, anxiety, social phobia, and depression. Many of these mental health issues are tied to
substance abuse problems so, you guessed it, happy people are less likely to
have a history of drug abuse.
Additionally, happy people are much more resilient than
unhappy individuals. Resilience is our ability to bounce back and recover from
challenging situations. The goal of happiness is to make the most of
good times and effectively cope with the bad times, which we all experience. The
result of this is living the best life possible, regardless of the situation.
To truly be happy, we must learn to jump back up on the horse after falling off
and returning stronger than ever. This means eliminating the negative feelings
that are burdening us during or after a tough situation.
Furthermore,
evidence exists that negative emotions and general unhappiness can be harmful
to our health. While there is limited research on the subject, it is difficult
to determine if happiness has a positive effect on our immune systems. The
studies that exist have found that those with the most positive emotions had a
lower probability of getting sick. This could also be due to other factors or
motivating ourselves to exercise, eat healthily, and maintaining positive
relationships.
7.
Happy people are more generous
Happy people are typically more prosaically which means they
have a higher inclination to help others. There is a strong link
between feeling happy and doing good for the community or the world. This
means higher participation in volunteering than unhappy friends, joining
community service, religious, health-related, and political groups, and giving
back to charity.
