Everybody wants to be happy. Also at work. We spend a lot of time at work after all. Plus, when we are happy at work, we are likely to also be happier in the rest of our life.
Happiness at Work should be a top priority for all companies. Because this is good for employees: when they are happy at work, they are better parents, friends, and neighbors, and they are more likely to give to charity and do volunteering work. Don’t we all want to have nice neighbors? Yes, we do! But also because science and business have shown that happy employees have a huge advantage over unhappy ones. They are more productive, flexible, resilient, creative, make happier customers and work better with their colleagues. Wouldn’t we all want happy employees? Yes, we do.
So let’s work together to make Happiness at work the rule and not the exception. We do not mean to say that everybody has to be happy all the time. Or that happiness is the single responsibility of organizations. Happiness at Work is a shared responsibility.
In 2018 the last week of September was declared The International Week of Happiness at work. During this week organisations invite everybody to put the topic on the agenda of your organisation and start to make the change to a happier workplace. The International Week of Happiness at work is not owned by anyone, nor are there any rules or do’s and don’ts. It is a Do-It-Yourself movement.
So, what can you do in your organization? Just to give you some inspiration…
- invite an expert to give an inspirational talk over lunch and discuss what you can do;
- organize a discussion about what makes you happy at work with colleagues;
- talk to management about what they can do to make this a happier workplace;
- start an initiative to give more positive feedback;
- play a game to get to know each other better, like Personality Poker or the Choose Happiness at Work game;
- organize drinks with your colleagues;
- lunch together and not at your desk;
- talk about your organizational culture and how you can make changes
- write your team manifesto;
- take up a Happiness at Work challenge during this week!