#339: If your team is engaged, does it mean they are happy?
“Everything went so smoothly, it was the happiest time of my life”
We strive for happy and engaged employees. There are a lot of companies that define engagement, but what is happiness? How can we predict that our team will be happier if we do something?
There is a tremendous amount of research showing us how to motivate employees. A few key points are that we provide a challenging and meaningful workplace, recognize their achievements, and pay them well with benefits that matter. If we do all these, we have ‘motivated’ employees. But they may still be miserable.
How can we help them to become happier? If you set happiness as a cultural value in your organization, how do you achieve this? Through motivation? Or is there something else that needs to be accomplished?
Let’s look at a few definitions of happiness:
In Psychology
Happiness, in psychology, is a state of emotional well-being that a person experiences either in a narrow sense, when good things happen in a specific moment, or more broadly, as a positive evaluation of one's life and accomplishments overall—that is, subjective well-being.
In Science
Scientists have found that the three things that make people most happy are PLEASURE (doing things you enjoy), ENGAGEMENT (feeling interested in your activities and connected to others), and MEANING (feeling like what you do matters).
In Philosophy
Some philosophers believe happiness can be understood as the moral goal of life or as an aspect of chance; indeed, in most European languages, happiness is synonymous with luck. Thus, philosophers usually explicate happiness as either a state of mind or a life that goes well for the person leading it.
What is happiness, according to Nietzsche?
“Happiness is the feeling that power increases — that resistance is being overcome.”
I’m confused by reading these definitions. They are still too vague. Nietzsche is a little more direct but relates happiness to power, and I don’t believe you need to be powerful to be happy.
Practical look at happiness
Think about a time you were happy at the office. What conditions were in place that created your happiness? Did you complete a project that had no headaches, was within budget, and was completed on time?
What about a personal event where you recall being happy? Maybe it was the day you took the family out of town for a vacation. No traffic or construction cones slowed you down. You arrived at your AirBnB, and it was even nicer than the pictures, and the weather was perfect for all your plans.
What do these two events have in common? It’s hard to see when it is absent, but friction is missing. Nothing slowed you down. You didn’t have any fights with your team about the plans, and your kids were angels in the car. Everything went smoothly, and you were happy for that moment in time.
Leaders, if you are trying to make your team happy, is it as simple as removing friction in their day-to-day activities? I’m not talking about making them more efficient. We want to focus on taking roadblocks out of their way. Do you have a 99-page procedure they must know by heart and follow religiously? When they want to take time off, are there hurdles they need to jump, dozens of forms that need to be signed?
As a leader, you want to remove roadblocks, not because of efficiency, but to relieve frustration. Frustration and happiness are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Where does your team spend most of their day? Ask them, and then remove the friction.
Happiness = the absence of conflict, commotion, struggles
Friction creates heat, and friction erodes even the most rigid substrates. You may have a resilient team that has proven it can work in the most challenging environment. However, sooner or later, friction will weaken their resolve. It’s your duty to locate and isolate these areas and remove or at least reduce them to a more manageable state.
Where will you start? It’s hard work today and will lead to a better tomorrow! Connect with us at the Kole Performance Group, and when will help you and your team be happier!