Reading the recent release of data on UK happiness from the Office for National Statistics, I had mixed emotions. They asked four questions:
1. How satisfied are you with your life nowadays?
2. How happy did you feel yesterday?
3. How anxious did you feel yesterday?
4. To what extent do you feel the things you do in your life are worthwhile?
Overall it seems the UK is generally good. With 71% saying we were happy "yesterday". However, there were 60.1% who reported feeling anxious "yesterday". This reminds me that we human beings are complex, we can feel a mixture of emotions at the same time. However it's when the anxiety becomes too much to cope with or the happiness is only brief, that our overall well-being is affected. Maybe it is a "well-being" measure we need, or should we be quantifying these measures if they are to be useful.
It was certainly not a surprise that "The quality of a person's social life could have an even greater impact than diet and exercise on their health and well-being". As many of my clients will be able to confirm, positive social interaction is one of the key elements required for our brains to function healthily.
It was sad to see that "over 1 in 5 (22%) were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied or were somewhat, mostly or completely dissatisfied with their job". As we are all aware that when people are happy at work it helps make us more productive.
Whether an individual wants to look at a particular area in their personal or work life, or if employers want to offer staff the opportunity to improve their well-being at work, I have found that my clients respond well to the proactive positive approach of solution focused therapy. Here’s to making a significant dent in the Nations well-being levels for the better!
For more information on the Happiness Index, the Guardian has a nice article here
1. How satisfied are you with your life nowadays?
2. How happy did you feel yesterday?
3. How anxious did you feel yesterday?
4. To what extent do you feel the things you do in your life are worthwhile?
Overall it seems the UK is generally good. With 71% saying we were happy "yesterday". However, there were 60.1% who reported feeling anxious "yesterday". This reminds me that we human beings are complex, we can feel a mixture of emotions at the same time. However it's when the anxiety becomes too much to cope with or the happiness is only brief, that our overall well-being is affected. Maybe it is a "well-being" measure we need, or should we be quantifying these measures if they are to be useful.
It was certainly not a surprise that "The quality of a person's social life could have an even greater impact than diet and exercise on their health and well-being". As many of my clients will be able to confirm, positive social interaction is one of the key elements required for our brains to function healthily.
It was sad to see that "over 1 in 5 (22%) were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied or were somewhat, mostly or completely dissatisfied with their job". As we are all aware that when people are happy at work it helps make us more productive.
Whether an individual wants to look at a particular area in their personal or work life, or if employers want to offer staff the opportunity to improve their well-being at work, I have found that my clients respond well to the proactive positive approach of solution focused therapy. Here’s to making a significant dent in the Nations well-being levels for the better!
For more information on the Happiness Index, the Guardian has a nice article here
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