Happy Christmas: A psychological perspective

I've written on the topic of happiness before. And the current issue of The Economist actually leads on the topic.

So I thought I'd distil some of their words of wisdom - but add to them my own particular Christmas spin.

Capitalism is adept at turning luxuries into necessities - bringing to the masses what the elites have always enjoyed. But the flip side of this is that people come to take for granted things they could have coveted from afar. Frills they never thought they could have become essentials that they cannot do without. People are stuck on a treadmill: as they achieve a better standard of living, they become inured to its pleasures.

In other words, if you buy stuff, you get used to it quidkly. So even though a new little luxury might give you a burst of joy initially, you'll get used to it.

To add to the problem:

Many good things in life are 'positional'. You can enjoy them only if others don't. Sometimes, a quick car, fine suit or attractive house is not enough. One must have the fastest car, finest suit or priciest house.

In other words, we tend only to enjoy stuff because we feel it makes us better off than the people around us. Status tends to be more important to people than we let ourselves believe.

So what do the economists suggest you do?

The economic arbiters of taste recommend 'experiences' over commodities, pasttimes over knick-knacks, doing over having.

So if you really want to be happy this Christmas, focus on doing 'stuff' rather than buying 'stuff'. Spend it on travelling to see people you enjoy spending time with. Spend it on eating out, ice skating, going to the movies, playing Cluedo or kicking a football around in the garden, sharing a coffee and gossip or having drinks with friends and loved ones.

But whatever you do, have a great festive season!

Smile, be happy, be glad

Psychologists and economists are increasingly moving into a new field of research: trying to figure out what can make us happy.

For decades, governments have been focusing on the topic of how to make us richer, on the assumption that wealth improves the quality of life. But what's interesting is that as people in the developed world have got richer over the last 40 years or so, the quality of life and happiness that people feel has actually diminished.

I don't want to get into a lengthy debate about the reasons why. But there is good evidence that optimism is not something that you are merely born with. Whether you are a glass half-full or glass half-empty kind of person can actually be dictated by emotional training.

So here's a practical tip. If you are feeling fed up with your work, try to focus on what it is that you have enjoyed about it in the past. Maybe it's a particular interaction with a collegue or a customer, or learning a new skill or overcoming a difficulty. Force yourself to recall a moment when you felt you were happy at work.

Even if you can only do it once a day, the preliminary research shows that such questions can significantly improve your relationship with your work.

Try it and let me know how you get on.

The secret of happiness

As a business psychologist, most of my work is to do with organisations and helping managers and individuals achieve business and career success. But sometimes I do wonder whether my clients are doing enough to chase their personal happiness as well as their professional success.

So I was interested to read in the latest issue of The Psychologist a piece about Vanuatu, the 'happiest place on Earth', as determined by research conducted by the New Economics Federation.

Peter Forster, a psychology lecturer at Webster University in Leiden, The Netherlands, explained the finding by saying:

Vanuatu is a very poor country in some ways of measuring that. Very few people have access to any of the governmental safety nets we take for granted when people have problems. In their place they have strong social support systems within their villages and extended families. When they are fit and healthy they work for their community. When they go through hard times they are supported by others.

He goes on to say:

Studies under the mantle of positive psychology indicate that it is our positive, supportive relationships that contribute most to our happiness.

So bear that in mind as you claw your way up the career ladder, set up your business or seek other forms of professional success.