How to be happy in the workplace: International Day of Happiness 20 March 2017

With International Day of Happiness in mind, HR Manager, Ellie Garnett (who always has a cheery word at the ready, and is the life and soul of HR180) takes a look at what you need to do to maintain a happy outlook on life, with a slant towards the workplace of course!

By Ellie Garnett

You can take part in the International Day of Happiness……

This got me thinking:

The irony of how sad it is that we need a day to remember to be happy!!

I like this. It is lovely that the world can come together to be happy. I would also suggest that it takes regular effort to maintain happiness: you won’t suddenly wake up happy.

How to feel happy

One tip is to remember to feel grateful for all the things that already make you happy. Make a point of doing this every night before bed –  just think of 3 things that happened through the day, or that you are grateful for in general and say thank you for ………

It is also suggested that too much attention on feeling good all the time undermines the ability to feel good at all.

Happiness in the workplace?

What happens in the work place when employees are unhappy? Well apparently, we are not happy with out current roles and there’s a staggering 47% of employees wanting to change careers!

The latest research suggests there are 10 key elements to a happier you!

1. Giving – giving makes us happier and healthier, so go ahead and make your colleagues a brew, you too will feel the benefit.
2. Relating – connect with people, stop sending the emails…..pick up the phone, better still wonder down the corridor and have that chat.
3. Exercise – (who knew, haha!) have a break from your laptop, go for a quick walk at lunch.
4. Awareness – take control of what we put our attention to, this can apply to all parts of our lives.
5. Trying out – keep learning new things, do the training course ask about the project that is happening at work, see what you can be involved in.
6. Direction – focus on what you must achieve at work, get your last appraisal out see what your objectives were and how far you are from achieving these.
7. Resilience – so the conversation with the client/customer didn’t go well…..learn from it brush yourself off learn from it, you really can choose your attitude.
8. Emotions – look for the good, remember all the things you are grateful for, yes even at work!
9. Acceptance – no one is perfect, be kind to yourself and others. Just like you maybe your colleague’s morning didn’t get off to the best start either.
10. Meaning – you are part of something at work, employees are the biggest assets of all companies.

Whatever you are doing on 20^th March, be happy!