Work

When George Lucas originally wrote the script to the billion-dollar Star Wars franchise, the most iconic line in movie history—“May the Force be with you”—was not in it. Instead, the earliest versions read, “May the Force of others be with you.” Why start a book on the science of potential with an arcane piece of movie history? ... Because I believe that hidden in this tiny line lies both the problem undergirding our broken pursuit of potential as a society and the secret to exponentially increasing our success, well-being, and happiness. Our society has become overly focused on the “power of one alone” versus “the power of one made stronger by others.” Of course, Hollywood glorifies individual superstars; where else are the streets literally paved with their names? But when we adopt this script in our companies and schools, focusing only on individual achievement and eliminating “others” from the equation, our true power remains hidden. But what is hidden can be revealed. Three years ago, as I was researching the hidden connections that underlie success and human potential, I had a breakthrough. I became a father. When my son, Leo, came into the world, he was quite literally helpless. He couldn’t even roll over by himself. But, as he got older, he became more capable. And with each new skill he picked up, like any good positive psychology researcher would, I found myself praising him, saying, “Leo, you did that all by yourself! I’m proud of you.” And after a while, Leo began parroting it back to me in a soft but proud voice: “All by myself.” That’s when I realized: First as children, then as adults in the workplace, we are conditioned to disproportionately value things we accomplish on our own. As a father, if I stopped my praise and guidance there, my son might come to view independent achievement as the ultimate test of our mettle. But in reality, it is not. There is a whole other level. … The people who rise to the top are not those who try to do everything all by themselves, but, rather, those who can ask others for help and rally others to grow. Parents who support a balanced, connected approach to pursuing success for their children are rewarded for their persistence, while parents who urge individual achievement at the cost of connection find themselves unprepared for their child’s burnout or loneliness. We spend the first 22 years of our lives being judged and praised for our individual attributes and what we can achieve alone, when, for the rest of our lives, our success is almost entirely interconnected with that of others. Over the past decade, I have worked with nearly half of the Fortune 100 companies and traveled to more than 50 countries to learn how people everywhere approach the concepts of success, happiness, and human potential. One thing I’ve found to be true almost everywhere is that the vast majority of companies, schools, and organizations measure and reward “high performance” in terms of individual metrics such as sales numbers, résumé accolades, and test scores. The problem with this approach is that it is predicated on a belief we thought science had fully confirmed: that we live in a world of “survival of the fittest.” It teaches us that success is a zero-sum game; that those with the best grades, or the most impressive résumé, or the highest point score, will be the ONLY ones to prosper. The formula is simple: Be better and smarter and more creative than everyone else, and you will be successful. But this formula is inaccurate. Thanks to groundbreaking new research you will read about in this book, we now know that achieving our highest potential is not about survival of the fittest; it is survival of the best fit. In other words, success is not just about how creative or smart or driven you are, but how well you are able to connect with, contribute to, and benefit from the ecosystem of people around you. It isn’t just how highly rated your college or workplace is, but how well you fit in there. It isn’t just how many points you score, but how well you complement the skills of the team. We often think if we can just work harder, faster, and smarter, then we’ll achieve our highest potential. But scientifically in the modern world, the biggest impediment to our success and realizing our potential is not lack of productivity, hard work, or intelligence; it is the way in which we pursue it. The pursuit of potential must not be a lonely road. The conclusion of a decade of research is clear: It’s not faster alone; it’s better together. … By creating hypercompetitive environments in which only individual achievements are celebrated, companies and schools are leaving enormous amounts of talent, productivity, and creativity on the table. Overemphasizing the individual and removing others from the equation places a “soft cap” on our potential, an artificial limit on what we can achieve. But the good news is that I call this a soft cap for a reason: Because it can be lifted. Because when we work to help others achieve success, we not only raise the performance of the group, we exponentially increase our own potential. This is what I describe later in this book as a Virtuous Cycle—a positive feedback loop whereby making others better leads to more resources, energy, and experiences that make you better, fueling the cycle again. Thus, making others better takes your success to the next level. SMALL POTENTIAL is the limited success you can achieve alone. BIG POTENTIAL is the success you can achieve only in a Virtuous Cycle with others. … We can no longer be content competing for the scraps of Small Potential; we must seek new frontiers of human potential and invite others to follow. A challenging world demands that we put “the force of others” back into our formula.

Most of us were taught early on in our childhoods about the Golden Rule. For anyone who’s forgotten, here’s a quick refresher; the Golden Rule is a guiding principle that suggests you treat people the way you wish to be treated. Dating back to the 1600s, the concept can be explained from the perspectives of psychology, philosophy, business, economics and found in nearly every religion and ethical tradition. But, what if that lesson could be taken one step further? What if instead, we treated others as they wish to be treated? Instead of the Golden Rule, we could call it the Golden-Golden Rule, or Golden Rule 2.0. The goal would be to ensure empathy is at the core of organizational policies and embedded into every interaction. We all believe that lending someone a helping hand is a good thing, but, what if we knew why someone needed our help in the first place? When we use the Golden-Golden Rule, we’re more likely to get to the root of the issue. We meet people where they’re at, emotionally, mentally, physically. Take the example of speaking with a child. We physically get down to their height so we can connect with them on their level. Simply put, when we apply the Golden-Golden Rule, we behave with more empathy. Now here’s a challenge: Can we embrace this practice in the workplace? For some CEOs, it just seems too warm and fuzzy. But, for others (like the most influential companies in the world) investing in warm and fuzzy is driven by cold, hard facts. When Google researchers and data scientists were asked to define what makes a team effective, they launched Project Aristotle, spending two years interviewing Googlers (their employees) and examining more than 250 attributes of 180 active Google teams. Do you think they found that doubling up on Rhodes Scholars and combining them with the fastest developers on the planet would be the key to the most effective teams? I’m sure the talent helped. But, the answer is surprisingly, an emphatic, “Nope!” Essentially, the data team discovered psychological safety was the most important trait of a high-performing team, and what Google researchers refer to as the “underpinning” of all the other dynamics that make up a successful group. Two key attributes of psychological safety specific to Googlers include, “conversational turn-taking” and “high emotional sensitivity.” According to Google’s data, individuals on teams with higher psychological safety are less likely to leave, they’re more likely to harness the power of diverse ideas from their teammates, they bring in more revenue and they’re rated as effective twice as often by executives. The moral of this case study? The Golden-Golden Rule wins at work. If you want to apply this in your workplace, it will require effort, intention and practice. But, it won’t be as hard as you may think. Google already outlined one strategy—provide psychological safety and the ability to take risks, make mistakes and move on. Here are a few more practical applications to apply the Golden-Golden Rule at work. 1. Ask more questions. In our office, we have a giant gratitude wall (really—our application to Guinness World Records for Biggest Gratitude Wall in the World was just approved)! We’ve seen how one simple question can tell us so much about each other. We’ve learned who loves playing guitar and when someone is feeling homesick. There are plenty of notes about bacon and Starbucks but more importantly these posts give us a sense of what is going on with each other. Knowing more about people, and what motivates them, allows us to better understand what they need to thrive. 2. No job is too small. Tony Hsieh, founder and CEO of Zappos, now an Amazon company, has famously redesigned the customer-service experience with what appears to be principles reflected in the Golden-Golden Rule. Every person who joins Zappos must spend part of their first weeks answering customer-service calls. No one is exempt, including Tony himself. He and the chief execs get on the phones annually, mostly during peak times to put themselves into the shoes of the customer and to help them to understand the plight of their frontline workers. 3. Be mindful of work styles. The workforce is rapidly evolving and change can be stressful. Get to know your employees’ communication styles so you can connect with them in the place they are most comfortable. Some people work better when you meet in person while others prefer email or online collaboration tools. Remote workers continue to grow, making web-conferencing tools even more essential. Whenever possible, be flexible. Often, it’s good old-fashioned common sense that prevails. For proof, just look to Google’s big announcement about the findings from Project Aristotle. The headline reads, “After years of intensive analysis, Google found the key to good teamwork is being nice.”

With Labor Day behind us, we’re officially closing the lid on summer and getting down to business. It’s time for back to school and back to work; summer vacay is over even though you felt like you were just getting started. Take heart, because there’s a way to make getting through that workday a little easier. Creating a playlist to boost your mood before, during and after work can energize you and make you more optimistic. At the very least, it can make the moment more tolerable and who knows, maybe you can even get your co-workers humming along. Here are 15 great songs to get you through your day; feel free to add your own (and sing along)! “Beautiful Day” by U2. Need help making yourself believe that it’s going to be a great day? Check in with Bono. He makes a rather convincing argument that it is, indeed, a beautiful day. And once you start singing along, you’ll start believing it, too. “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile” by Sia. You’ve got the right bag, the right shoes…but did you remember to put on your smile? You will once you listen to this song! “Best Day of My Life” by American Authors. What better line to live by than, “All the possibilities…No limits, just epiphanies….” That’s right, you’re unstoppable! “Firework” by Katy Perry. Continuing on with the theme of being unbeatable comes this rousing hit. Somebody, grab a match because you are a firework. Come on and show ‘em what you’re worth. “Pocketful of Sunshine” by Natasha Bedingfield. What can brighten up a day more than a pocketful of sunshine? Nothing, not even a double mochafrappawhatever! “Brighter Than the Sun” by Colbie Caillat. Light and bouncy and encouraging, this feel-good song has a California beach vibe that will light up even the grayest of days. “The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades” by Timbuk3. Keeping with the sunshine theme, you’re going to need some shades. This vintage ‘80s song still feels great. Everybody sing now: “Things are going good, and they’re only getting better…” “Shake It Off” by Taylor Swift. Sooner or later, it’s bound to happen; you have a less than stellar day at work, or maybe a co-worker makes a hurtful comment that gets back to you. Ouch. Haters gotta hate, T-Swift reminds, so shake it off! “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor. No, you may not be getting into the ring like Rocky Balboa, but some days are still a beating. That’s OK when you have the heart of a lion and the eye of the tiger. Grrrr! “9 to 5” by Dolly Parton. Working for The Man bringing you down? Let Dolly lift you up! This anthem never goes out of style and practically comes with a money back guarantee to make you smile. “The Distance” by Cake. Some days seem like a marathon, so that’s when you need a little Cake. Sure, this song is technically about a race car driver trying to win a race, but it makes a great metaphor for work. “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus. Life is a journey and so is your workday. Just keep that in mind and let Miley cheer you on through your own personal climb. “Workin’ for the Weekend” by Loverboy. The great thing about the week is that every day gets us closer to the weekend. No one reminds us of that better than Loverboy in this classic jam. “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor. “At first I was afraid, I was petrified.” Does that remind you of your job interview? Or this morning’s presentation? No worries–trust Gloria (and sing along) when she says, “I will survive.” “On Top of the World” by Imagine Dragons. Nothing can keep you down when you start believing you’re ontop of the world. Crank this one up and give your heart a little afternoon joyride.

We spend a great deal of our lives working—and these days, even when we’re not at work, we’re likely thinking about it, texting about it or bringing it home with us. According to sociologist, author and blogger Karl Thompson, we spend about 25 to 30 years of our lives working. It makes sense, then, that there’s an increased emphasis on finding a job that’s rewarding and personally fulfilling versus one that “just pays the bills.” Our awareness of the benefits and need to find personal happiness has influenced how we feel about the jobs we want and the work we do. Today, workers would rather have a job that contributes to their personal well-being instead of just improving the bottom line. According to Gallup’s State of the American Workplace 2017 report, 53 percent of employees say that having a position that allows greater work-life balance and better personal well-being is “very important” to them. Wanting that balance and achieving it are two very different things, and this year the annual World Happiness Report, published by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, added new research on well-being at work to the conversation on global happiness. Chapter authors Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Ph.D., associate professor of economics and strategy at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School, and George Ward, a Ph.D. student at the Institute for Work and Employment Research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management, took a deep dive into the topic of work to find out how it affects our well-being—and what we should do differently. “People…spend the majority of their lives working, so it is important to understand the role that employment [plays] in shaping happiness,” Jan says. “Our research reveals that happiness differs considerably across employment status, job type and industry sectors.” While the report makes it clear that having a job is extremely important for happiness, it also finds that many of us aren’t happy with the jobs we have. Although a common complaint is about money, the researchers found that money isn’t necessarily the driving factor of what makes us happy or unhappy at work. Where joy goes to work It’s no secret (or surprise) that workers in some professions are happier than others. The researchers found that around the globe, people in blue-collar jobs were less happy than those in white-collar jobs. This wasn’t true in just a big-picture sense—it was reflected in the daily evaluations of how workers felt about their lives. “White-collar workers generally report experiencing more positive emotional states such as smiling, laughing, enjoyment, and fewer negative ones like feelings of worry, stress, sadness and anger,” Jan says. This was true even when they adjusted for factors such as differences in income and education or age and marital status. The study authors found this was true regardless of what type of blue-collar work was being done. At the top of the well-being scale, they found, were managers and executives, followed closely by professional workers. While clerical workers, service job employees and manufacturing and repair workers hover in the middle of the scale, those levels fall for construction and mining workers, and the lowest levels of happiness are found among farming, fishing and forestry workers. This, Jan says, illustrates “the raw differences in the happiness of job types.” Read more: 5 Ways to Spark Joy at Work When happiness clocks out It’s not just professions that affect your overall job satisfaction, though; certain regions report larger populations of happy workers. Austria claims the top spot, with 95 percent of respondents saying they are satisfied with their jobs, and Norway and Iceland rank only slightly below that. Scandinavian countries have consistently ranked high as the world’s happiest countries, and they fare well for the happiest workplaces, too. There’s even a word, arbejdsglæde, that means “work happiness.” Other countries don’t have such a word, but Alexander Kjerulf, CEO of Denmark’s Woohoo inc., says that learning from what’s worked for Scandinavian employees could help the rest of the world. “We have focused on creating happy workplaces for the last 30 or 40 years,” he explains. “Scandinavian countries have some of the lowest average weekly working hours, which allows for a work-life balance. And Scandinavian bosses include employees in their decisions, actively seek input and rarely give orders.” All of those components are also identified in the World Happiness Report as being crucial to happiness. As Gallup reported, feeling like you have a balance between your personal and professional life is a strong predictor of happiness at work; other things such as autonomy, the ability to learn on the job and variety of duties are also significant influencers of how we feel at the end of the day. The need for work-life balance In the report, Jan says it becomes clear that work-life balance is a primary driver of worker happiness. “This turns out to be true across the board, in terms of people’s life and job satisfaction, general happiness and moment-to-moment emotional experiences.” People who work too much, or whose jobs leave them too exhausted to enjoy life in their off hours, report having a much lower level of happiness, both at home and on the job. The same is true of people who feel they bring their work home with them, either physically or emotionally. And, Alexander adds, the price they pay goes beyond unhappiness. “Work-life imbalance makes people quite unhappy because you end up feeling like both work and life are demanding more of your time, and you have to let one of them down. Ultimately, you’ll end up failing both of them,” he says. “Research shows that those working a 55-hour week face a 33 percent increased risk of stroke than those working a 35- to 40-hour week. And to make matters worse, all those extra hours don’t even mean you get more work done. So overwork is killing employees while not improving business results.” Read more: 9 Tips to Be Happier Working From Home Who’s the Boss? Whom you work for also has a dramatic effect on how happy you’re going to be at work. Having autonomy and job variety are both important, but the World Happiness Report found that bosses play a substantial role in determining an employee’s well-being. A study led by Benjamin Artz, Ph.D., associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, found that a boss’s competence was the “single strongest predictor of a worker’s job satisfaction.” Benjamin's findings showed that, particularly among American workers, having a technically competent boss was considered more important for job satisfaction than earnings, even when their salaries were high. The older the worker, the more important the competence of their higher-ups was to employees. Your job satisfaction is profoundly molded by your boss’s competence, and your own team’s job satisfaction levels depend on your competence,” the study concluded. “The boss casts a very long shadow.” Alexander says that those who are stuck in toxic environments or have a bad boss can do something about it, but that may involve finding a new place to work. “The most important thing is to realize that being unhappy at work is not normal,” he says. “Many people just accept it. But the truth is that there are amazing workplaces out there and many people who love their jobs.” And finding such a job may be more important than many people realize. “We know that people who are happy at work have better health, are happier in life and enjoy greater career success and lifetime incomes,” Alexander says. “So having a job you like is not a luxury, it’s a necessity.” Satisfaction on the job ➡ The self-employed report higher levels of life satisfaction but more negative emotions (like stress and worry) than those who are employed full time for someone else. ➡ Unemployed people report having lower subjective well-being overall, yet also experience fewer negative emotions and more daily positive emotions than those who are employed. ➡ People who are happier with their lives appear to find employment more easily than those who are unhappy, while unhappy people appear to be more likely to lose their jobs. Top 5 predictors of on-the-job happiness ✔ Work-life balance ✔ Job variety/opportunity to learn new things ✔ Personal autonomy ✔ Job security ✔ Social capital/work environment Read more: 5 Habits to Make You Happier on the Job Paula Felps is the science editor for Live Happy.