We don’t have to look far to find happiness, but we do have to practice looking.
The habit of happiness calls for focus and attention on developing a positive attitude. When we have a pattern of focusing on negativity, it can be tough to see the joy in our lives right now.
Positive change comes from building positive habits. But, developing those habits doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. Even a few minutes a day spent meditating can shift your mindset from overwhelmed to calm.

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These simple shifts have a compounding effect, leading to a happier and more fulfilling life. As your team starts seeing your shifts, your example can help them find success and happiness at work, too.
BU: How can we bias ourselves toward happiness and not discontent?
SA: Scientifically, happiness is a choice about where we devote our mental resources. We can bias ourselves toward happiness by shifting our habits in daily patterns [to] allocate those resources more effectively, [so] the human brain [can work] at its optimal level.
I’m continually surprised at how the smallest interventions can have the biggest effect. Simply saying three things you’re grateful for around the dinner table with your family will not only transform your family, but generations to come.
Try these 2 other exercises to help bias yourself toward happiness:
- Praise one teammate every day for a job well done. This could take the form of a short email or a “great job on that project” [acknowledgment] as you pass them in the office.
- Try taking a 2-minute break to meditate every day. Breathe deeply to cultivate a sense of calm, then get back to that project you were working on. By going from multitasking to single-tasking, you train your brain to feel less threatened and overwhelmed.
BU: Are we trying to achieve too much, and is that making us unhappy?
SA: There are [many] reasons why we see increased rates of depression, eating disorders, and discontent.
I don’t think that ambition is the problem, but along with our desire to achieve comes missteps. Often, we sacrifice sleep, social connection, and periods of rejuvenation [to] increase our success. But, this [hurts] not only our well-being, but our ability to achieve, too.
BU: How can we find happiness, or even just stay motivated, when we’re dealing with a major stressor in our personal life?
SA: Embedded within every stress is meaning. The best way to cope with stress is not to panic and flee from it, but to remember why there’s meaning involved.
An inbox full of spam causes no stress because there’s no meaning behind it. But when your inbox is full of leads, you need to get back to building your business or there’s both stress and meaning in your life.
We need to reconnect to the [purpose] in our lives so that stress does not appear to be a threat to our happiness.
BU: It is so hard to create new habits. How do you recommend making happiness an everyday habit?
SA: I don’t think you can make happiness a habit, but I [believe] you can create happiness by building habits that are the foundational blocks of happiness, such as practicing gratitude [daily], connecting with your social support network, doing random acts of kindness consciously, and meditating.
[At work], the best way to create change is to model it. Your team will never strive for success unless they see you trying for that.
Happiness can also be connected to motivation. If your team is disengaged from your culture or company mission, it will be difficult for them to find success and happiness.
Start by reminding people that happiness leads to success, not the other way around. Encourage your teammates to find meaning in their work, even when they haven’t yet achieved their big milestones.