Happiness Made Easy: Core Insights on Well‑Being, Purpose & Time

Johan Eriksson, who leads analysts at Google, hosted Professor Micael Dahlen, the world's first professor of well-being, welfare, and happiness, for a virtual "Talks at Google" event. Dahlen, author of "Happiness Made Easy," shared insights into achieving happiness and well-being.

Starting the Day with Happiness

Dahlen began by sharing a personal anecdote about finding happiness in simple daily acts. He mentioned a challenge with his students to get out of bed in a new way each day, which he finds starts the day with a smile. His method that morning was to cartwheel out of bed, a feat he described as difficult but ultimately successful and happiness-inducing.

Three Pillars of Happiness

Dahlen outlined three crucial elements for cultivating happiness:

1. What You Do: People often overestimate the impact of what they have. Material possessions or achievements lead to habituation and don't provide lasting happiness. Instead, happiness is significantly influenced by what we do with our time, resources, and circumstances. His research suggests that daily actions can impact happiness by over 50%.
2. The People in Your Life: The individuals we interact with, both directly and indirectly, play a substantial role in our well-being. Dahlen's research indicates that about 30% of how we feel in an average week comes from the people around us.
3. Time: How we allocate our time daily, weekly, and across our lifespan is fundamental to our well-being. Life is essentially the time we have, and how we utilize it determines our overall happiness and fulfillment.

Pitfalls to Avoid for Happiness

Dahlen also identified three common behaviors that hinder happiness:

1. Comparing: Constantly comparing ourselves to others (what they have, what they do, how happy they seem) or even to our past selves (e.g., not being as fast in a run as before) is detrimental. This comparison prevents us from being mindful and enjoying the present and future.
2. Procrastinating: Delaying actions that genuinely contribute to happiness is a significant barrier. Dahlen, also a professor of economics, often asks people if they prioritize money or happiness. While most acknowledge happiness as the ultimate goal, many defer it, believing they need to achieve financial stability or complete other "must-dos" first. This leads to an endless cycle where happiness is always postponed for a new "have to."
3. Exaggerating: This applies to both positive and negative aspects of life.
   • Negative Exaggeration: Inflating worries and concerns about potential failures, economic downturns, or personal imperfections creates unnecessary stress. Dahlen advises against assuming the worst, reminding that many perceived "end-of-the-world" scenarios have passed, and life continues.
   • Positive Exaggeration: Viewing happiness as a massive, lifelong project that must be managed perfectly can lead to performance anxiety and a feeling of inadequacy. This "happy stress" can make individuals feel less happy because they aren't achieving an idealized, exaggerated state of joy.

Differentiating Happiness from Well-being

Dahlen clarified the distinction between happiness and well-being:

• Well-being is a broader concept that encompasses happiness, but also includes:
  • Meaningfulness: This provides direction and purpose, even when life is challenging. It's what motivates us to get out of bed and engage with the world, offering a bigger picture to contribute to.
  • Richness: This refers to a life filled with diverse experiences, including those that are difficult, scary, or challenging. These experiences, while not always pleasant in the moment, can be incredibly rewarding in retrospect, fostering growth and new perspectives.
• Happiness is more about the "now," providing energy, joy, and community to pursue long-term meaningful goals and enriching, albeit sometimes scary, experiences.

He also described well-being in a temporal sense: * Well-being is about making life as good as possible for ourselves and others, both now and in the future. * Meaningfulness is about having direction and purpose. * Richness is about having lived life to the fullest. * Happiness is largely about the present, providing the necessary emotional fuel to navigate life's journey.

Optimizing Society for Well-being

Eriksson posed the question of what society should optimize for, given the capabilities of AI. Dahlen firmly stated that it should not be GDP. He emphasized that GDP was always intended as a means to an end, not the end itself. The ultimate goal of society should be to make life as good as possible for everyone, recognizing that this is a collective endeavor. Well-being, he argued, is a key indicator of this success.

Beyond Individual Efforts: Organizational and Governmental Roles

Dahlen discussed how organizations and governments can foster happiness and well-being:

• Re-evaluating Organizational Purpose: Organizations were created to achieve tasks more efficiently than individuals could alone. If the fundamental human desire is to make life as good as possible, then organizations should align with this goal.
• Rethinking Work-Life Balance: The concept of "work-life balance" often implies a conflict between work and life. Dahlen suggested reframing it as "life balance," where work is an integral part of a fulfilling life, contributing to overall well-being rather than being separate from it. This shift in perspective can lead to new ideas for what organizations should target, monitor, and reward.
• Societal Goals: Governments and societies should similarly focus on creating the best possible life for all citizens, leading to new questions about how to measure and achieve this.

A Curriculum for Happiness and Well-being

When asked about creating a curriculum for children and young people, Dahlen shared the framework used at his institution, the Stockholm School of Economics, where all incoming students begin with a course on well-being, welfare, and happiness. The curriculum is summarized by the Swedish word "TACK" (thank you), an acronym for:

• T - Togetherness: Fostering awareness of how deeply we are impacted by and impact the people and contexts around us. It's about understanding how to cultivate positive togetherness and avoid negative influences.
• A - Agency: Training individual and communal agency, recognizing that we have the power to make life better daily, both personally and societally.
• C - Coherence: Understanding that life and society consist of many parts (e.g., work, family) that can conflict but ideally should work in synergy. This includes recognizing the different components of well-being (happiness, meaningfulness, richness) and fostering their coherence.
• K - Kinetics: Emphasizing the importance of momentum and direction. Being in a good place is valuable, but moving in a positive direction, even from a challenging starting point, significantly impacts well-being and reduces stress. This applies to individual lives and broader economic cycles.

Unlimited Courage and Honesty

Dahlen reflected on what he would do with unlimited courage, suggesting that viewing life not as a risk management program reduces the need for courage. He emphasized the importance of being more honest about personal struggles and weaknesses. He believes that sharing vulnerabilities, rather than hiding them due to fear of judgment, fosters togetherness and reduces feelings of loneliness. He coined the mantra: "Sharing makes for daring."

He also encouraged reaching out to others, citing examples like making eye contact with strangers or initiating conversations. He shared a classroom exercise where students sent a message to someone asking to do something together, with the recipient chosen by a classmate. This "uncomfortably exciting" activity led to unexpected connections and meetings.

The discussion concluded with Eriksson recommending Dahlen's book, "Happiness Made Easy," for those seeking to deepen their understanding of happiness and well-being.