Happy workplaces bring huge benefits, not just for
people but for organisations too.
People who are happy at work tend to enjoy life more and have
better health, stronger relationships and a greater sense of
purpose. They also have a huge positive impact on the organisations
they work for - evidence shows that happier staff are more
productive, creative and committed. [1]
Yet the tragic fact is that huge numbers of people are
desperately unhappy at work. For example, in Britain more than half
of employees say they are unhappy and 36% are seriously considering
leaving their jobs. [2] The implications for business are huge. In
the UK it is estimated that work-related anxiety and stress cost
the economy £26 billion each year. [3]
Making your workplace a happier one
Each of us can influence the levels of happiness in our
workplace through our own behaviour and attitude. But leaders and
managers of course have the greatest impact on the overall
culture of an organisation. At Action for Happiness we want to help
our members take
action and begin a process of positive change in their
organisations. The starting point is to get happiness onto the
agenda.
Can we help you get happiness on the agenda in your
organisation?
Could you bring together a significant number of people in your
organisation for a discussion about why a happier workplace can
make such a difference? If so then we may be able to help,
thanks to our small but growing network of leading thinkers on
happiness at work.
If you're interested then please email happierworkplaces@actionforhappiness.org and
tell us:
- Your company
- Why this is relevant and how we can help
- Who you would bring together for us to speak to
If we feel there's a real potential for us to have an impact in
your organisation, we'll aim to provide a relevant expert to speak
and help start a process of change. See conditions below for
details.
ConditionsAction for Happiness is offering to provide a relevant expert speaker to talk on the subject of happiness at work with groups of employees from the same organisation.
In choosing the organisations to support we will look for:
- Commitment on the part of the employee to play an active role in trying to raise happiness up the agenda in their organisation
- The chance to engage with a significant number of people in the organisation, ideally including senior leaders and key influencers
- Evidence of this interaction being relevant and needed in the organisation and a potential willingness to take on board new ideas
Participating organisations will be asked for a donation (of their choice) to support the Action for Happiness campaign.
Action for Happiness reserves the right to choose to work with as many or as few organisions as it feels appropriate based on the responses received and the available resources. Given that the majority of our members are UK-based at this stage we anticipate working with organisations that have a UK presence initially.
Below is a selection of resources, books and links relating to happiness at work.
Guides to download
- Happy Manifesto. Ideas you can put into practice to make your workplace great
- Happy at Work. 25 things you need to know and do to be happy at work
Books
General information
Free toolkits to use
[1 Lyubomirsky, S., King, L. (2005), The Benefits of Frequent Positive Affect: Does Happiness Lead to Success, Psychological Bulletin, Vol. 131, No. 6, 803- 85
[2] Mercer (2011), Over half ofUKemployees unhappy at work, What's Working survey, http://uk.mercer.com/press-releases/1420025
[3] Mind (2011), Taking care of business: employers guide to mentally healthy workplaces, ISBN 978-1-906759-22-3