Being Happy at Work Matters

People used to believe that you didnt have to be happy at work to succeed. And you didnt need to like the people you work with, or
even share their values. Work is not personal, the thinking went. This is bunk.
My research with dozens of companies and hundreds of people as well as the research conducted by the likes of
neuroscientists Richard Davidson and V.S. Ramachandran and scholars such as Shawn Achor increasingly points to a simple fact:
Happy people are better workers. Those who are engaged with their jobs and colleagues work harder and smarter.
And yet, there is an alarmingly high number of people who arent engaged. According to a sobering 2013 Gallup report, only 30 % of
the U.S. workforce is engaged. This echoes what Ive seen in my work. Not very many people are truly emotionally and intellectually
committed to their organizations. Far too many couldnt care less about whats happening around them. For them, Wednesday is
hump day and theyre just working to get to Friday. And then theres the other end of the bell curve the nearly one out of five
employees is actively disengaged, according to the same Gallup report. These people are sabotaging projects, backstabbing
colleagues, and generally wreaking havoc in their workplaces.
The Gallup report also noted that employee engagement has remained largely constant over the years despite economic ups and
downs. Scary: were not engaged with work and we havent been for a long time.
Disengaged, unhappy people arent any fun to work with, dont add much value, and impact our organizations (and our economy) in
profoundly negative ways. Its even worse when leaders are disengaged because they infect others with their attitude. Their emotions
and mindset impact others moods and performance tremendously. After all, how we feel is linked to what and how we think. In other
words, thought influences emotion, and emotion influences thinking.
Its time to finally blow up the myth that feelings dont matter at work. Science is on our side: there are clear neurological links
between feelings, thoughts, and actions. When we are in the grip of strong negative emotions, its like having blinders on. We focus
mostly sometimes only on the source of the pain. We dont process information as well, think creatively, or make good decisions.
Frustration, anger, and stress cause an important part of us to shut down the thinking, engaged part. Disengagement is a natural
neurological and psychological response to pervasive negative emotions.
But its not just negative emotions we need to watch out for. Extremely strong positive emotions have the same effect. Some studies
shows that too much happiness can make you less creative and prone to engage in riskier behaviors (think about how we act like fools
when we fall in love!). On the work front: Ive seen groups of people worked up into a frenzy at sales conferences and corporate pep
rallies. Little learning or innovation comes out of these meetings. Throw in a lot of alcohol and youve got a whole host of other
problems.
If we can agree that our emotional states at work matter, what do we do to increase engagement and improve performance?
Over the past few years, my team at the Teleos Leadership Institute and I have studied dozens of organizations and interviewed
thousands of people. The early findings about the links between peoples feelings and engagement are fascinating. There are clear
similarities in what people say they want and need, no matter where they are from, whom they work for, or what they do. We often
assume that there are huge differences across industries and around the world but the research challenges that assumption.
To be fully engaged and happy, virtually everyone tells us they want three things:
1.

2.

3.

A meaningful vision of the future: When people talked with our research team about what was working or not in their
organizations, and what helped or hindered them the most, they talked about vision. People want to be able to see the future
and know how they fit in. And, as we know from our work with Richard Boyatzis on intentional change, people learn and
change when they have a personal vision that is linked to an organizational vision. Sadly, far too many leaders dont paint a
very compelling vision of the future, they dont try to link it to peoples personal visions, and they dont communicate well. And
they lose people as a result.
A sense of purpose: People want to feel as if their work matters, and that their contributions help to achieve something really
important. And except for those at the tippy top, shareholder value isnt a meaningful goal that excites and engages them.
They want to know that they and their organizations are doing something big that matters to other people.
Great relationships: We know that people join an organization and leave a boss. A dissonant relationship with ones boss is
downright painful. So too are bad relationships with colleagues. Leaders, managers, and employees have all told us that close,
trusting and supportive relationships are hugely important to their state of mind and their willingness contribute to a team.

Added up, brain science and our organizational research are in fact debunking the old myths: emotions matter a lot at work. Happiness
is important. To be fully engaged, people need vision, meaning, purpose, and resonant relationships.
Its on individuals to find ways to live our values at work and build great relationships. And its on leaders to create an environment
where people can thrive. Its simple and its practical: if you want an engaged workforce, pay attention to how you create a vision, link
peoples work to your companys larger purpose, and reward people who resonate with others.