'Happy' Rules at Work

From October through December 2016, the first Baas in Contact monitor took place, an initiative by Fintrex, Totta Research, and BR-ND. In January 2017 the results were published: who is Baas in Contact, the most attractive employer in the customer contact sector? Because we believe happy organizations are attractive and successful organizations, we’re sharing a series of blogs on happiness and success. We’re starting with this golden oldie from 2013. Enjoy!

‘Happy’ rules at work

Everyone has moments where you think: what am I doing with my life, exactly?

Why am I here? What role am I supposed to play? Why does work sometimes feel like a sport you never signed up for? And how do we make it all… just a little more fun?

We all ask these questions now and then, but the answers rarely come as a neat one-pager. Still, the search for meaning and happiness is pretty much built into the human operating system. Yes, that includes work.

My personal (slightly embarrassing) cliché

When I was younger, I thought I’d find meaning by chasing:

• material wealth,
• a jet-set lifestyle,
• a successful career,
• and everything that came with it.

So I worked hard, earned a business degree, and cleverly manoeuvred my way up the corporate ladder.

The result?

A bigger bank account. A bigger house. A bigger car. A bigger family. And, eh… a bigger wife.

In hindsight, it’s no surprise that all that “bigger, more, faster” didn’t automatically lead to a happier life. It felt shallow. And worse: somewhere along the way I even lost the love for the love-of-my-life.

Happiness is many things to many people. For some it’s simple hedonism. For others it’s spirituality, connection, or love.

But one thing I do believe: the search for happiness is a powerful engine behind almost everything we do.

Midlife, but with books

Yes, my life is a cliché.

As I rolled into my midlife phase, I got seriously interested in psychology, sociology, and philosophy. Questions like “why do we do the crazy things we do?” and “what is the true meaning of love and attraction?” kept me busy.

I dove into the science of human drives, motivation, and emotion.

And it changed me. I became less driven by “bigger” and “more”, and started appreciating the value of real mental connection with like-minded people.

Around the turn of the century I stepped off the corporate ladder and started shaping a branding consultancy in the decade that followed. Along the way I also learned:

• creativity flows better in beautiful surroundings,
• people only really bloom when they’re physically and mentally in good shape,
• money is a terrible main motive for good decisions.

In other words: money as the main motive tends to lead to the wrong decisions. We’ve all seen that movie.

The ‘happy’ rules (surprisingly basic)

My personal journey toward a more inspired, meaningful life gave me a set of simple ‘happy’ habits. At BR-ND we try to live by them every day.

I genuinely believe they’re pretty universal. Every person, team, and organization benefits from pursuing them.

And still, I’m regularly amazed when I start working with a new client and think: how are you even functioning right now?

Summary: the ‘happy’ rules

• Discover your purpose, together. Treat it as a process, not a corporate mission statement someone wrote on a Friday afternoon. Why do you exist? Why does it matter? What do you stand for? What do you want to change together?
• Choose your people on purpose. Teams don’t flourish without emotional connection, interest, and understanding. Focus on talents, not only tasks and competencies. Friendship, empathy, and growth are fuel.
• Make room to play. Dream. Explore. Create. Destroy. Rebuild. Not everything needs a deliverable immediately. Let your inner child take the wheel sometimes.
• Eat together. Really. Taste what you eat. Warm meals are even better. Variety helps. Less factory food, more making and enjoying meals together.
• Get fit together. Make movement a team habit. Daily exercise makes you instantly happier. Doing it together bonds teams even more. Decide, commit, act. (And yes, it’s actually fun.)
• Make your workplace beautiful. Color. Light. Flowers. Smell. Music. Aesthetics are not a luxury. They’re a form of care.

With these ‘happy’ rules in place, it suddenly becomes much easier to pursue operational effectiveness too.

Want to see these behaviors in practice? Make an appointment with me at BR-ND. You’re very welcome.

Amsterdam, 3 August 2013

Alexander Koene

Co-founder, BR-ND