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With the start of the 2023 calendar year, everyone is busy making new years resolutions, formulating plans and setting goals.  The question on everyone’s mind is, “what do I have to do to be successful this year?”  People set actionable goals for themselves.  Get a raise in salary.  Boost sales.  Land a promotion.  Launch a business.  Earn a certification.  Change jobs.   Add new products or territories to a business.   Whatever the goal, the thought is that achieving that goal will result in success and that will make you happy. 

After all, from a very early age, we are taught that that success leads to happiness.  From grade school on, we are told that success is the key to achieving what one desires and the path to happiness.  It seems logical that being successful would make a person happy.  But others argue that it’s the other way around:  happiness leads to success.  So which is it?  Does success lead to happiness or happiness to success? Or is it a virtuous cycle where success leads to happiness which leads to more success which leads to more happiness…. and so forth?  It’s important to know if the goal is to be successful and that will make you happy or the goal is to be happy and that will lead to being successful. 

Research on Success and Happiness

You might be surprised at what studies show. The age-old assumption is that success — school, work or relationship success – leads to happiness.  So most people work hard or burn the midnight oil studying hoping to achieve success.  They do that with the idea that success would ultimately make them happy.  But a review of 225 studies in the Psychological Bulletin found that happiness doesn’t necessarily follow success. In fact, the reverse is true. Happiness actually leads to success. The study found that happy people seek out and undertake new goals that not only reinforce their happiness and other positive emotions, but also results in success.

Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky at the University of California, Riverside and her colleagues reviewed three types of studies. 

1. Those that compare different groups of people. 
2. Those that follow individuals over time. 
3. Those that examine outcomes in controlled settings.

They asked questions like:

• Are happy people more successful than unhappy people?
• Does happiness precede success?
• Does positive affect lead to success-oriented behaviors?”

What all three types of studies found is that happiness leads to greater successes in life.   For example, one study by Burger & Caldwell in 2000 found that college seniors who reported higher well-being received more follow-up job interviews three months later.   Another study by Diener & Nickerson in 2002 found that people who were more cheerful at the start of college had higher incomes later on as compared to their college peers.  And a research conducted by Brent Roberts and Caspi at the University of Illinois in 2003 found that those who were happy at age 18 were more likely to work satisfying jobs and be financially secure by age 26.

It was not entirely clear why happiness results in success but there are a number of reasons why it might be so.

1. Happy people talk to others. In one experiment men in a positive mood were more likely to make self-disclosures, which are important in social relations.
2. Happy people are interested in leisure activities. People in a good mood want to throw a party, go on vacation or go out for a meal.  They enjoy those social interactions and leisure activities more. Those kinds of social connections contribute to success.
3. Happy people resolve conflicts more effectively. People in a good mood are more likely to try and collaborate rather than avoid conflict and compete when they are put in a positive mood.
4. Happy people are more likely to want to help others. When in a good mood, people are more likely to display what psychologists call ‘prosocial behavior’ – helping others and being generous with both time and money.  Those kinds of behaviors contribute to promotions, inclusion in projects, business deals, etc.
5. Happy people feel healthier.  Evidence shows that people in a good mood experience less pain and perceive themselves to be more healthy.  Healthy people have the energy and drive to tackle problems and do more which leads to success.
6. Happy people are more creative. People in a positive mood are more likely to think with originality and flexibility – perhaps through encouraging playfulness.  Creativity is highly correlated with success.
7. Happy people attribute success to their own skills. Good moods improve people’s self-efficacy (our confidence in our own abilities).  And confidence definitely contributes to success.
8. Happy people frequently experience positive moods prompting them to be more likely to work actively toward new goals and build new resources, which results in success.  Indeed, when people feel happy, they tend to feel confident, optimistic, and energetic and others find them likable and sociable, which in turn results in their success. 

It does seem that happy people tend to be more successful.  Studies found that happy people were more likely than their less happy peers to have fulfilling marriages and relationships, high incomes, superior work performance, community involvement, robust health and even a long life.

Of course, they also found that happy people weren’t always successful and sometimes felt sad. A healthy sense of well-being includes feeling painful emotions in response to difficult and painful life circumstances.  The studies confirmed that even happy people experienced negative emotions related to challenging or painful life experiences from time to time.   And happiness wasn’t the only factor that contributed to success.  Researchers found a few other factors that also contributed to success such as intelligence, fitness, social support and expertise.  

What Does It Mean to be “Happy”?

Some believe there are far more vital things to worry about; others see happiness as essentially something every human ultimately wishes for in life.  Some define happiness as how good a person feels in the moment. But actually, it’s more than just a passing mood. Trying to lead a happy life is not always about denying negative emotions or pretending to feel joyful all the time.  Everyone experiences adversity, and it’s natural to feel frustrated, sad, angry, and other negative emotions.

Psychologists define happiness as a deep sense of flourishing, not a mere pleasurable feeling or fleeting emotion, but an optimal state of being.  So if the goal is to first be happy and that leads to success, it’s important to understand what “happy” looks like and how happy, fulfilled people behave.  Consider some of the prevalent qualities of happy, fulfilled people.

• Happy people love people.
• Happy people have an attitude of gratitude and are content with what they have.
• Happy people live with an open hand of generosity.
• Happy people live for a higher purpose than themselves.
• Happy people enjoy the good things in life, which aren’t necessarily expensive.
• Happy people work to stay strong not just mentally but spiritually, socially, and physically.
• Happy people stop to smell the roses along the path.
• Happy people forgive when others have unintentionally — or even intentionally — wronged them knowing this grace has also been extended to them over the course of their lives.
• Happy people don’t borrow trouble from tomorrow.
• Happy people have deep, connected conversations with real people.
• Happy people enjoy modest things such as fresh food prepared simply, art, books and nature.
• Happy people keep fit to be able to enjoy life.

The question to ask then is:  Is that me?  Do I fit the description of a happy, fulfilled person?  If not, the goal is to start behaving like happy, fulfilled people.  In doing so, you are likely to eventually become a happy, fulfilled person, and that is likely to contribute to your success.  Give it a try.  You’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Quote of the Week

“If you try to find success in fame or in things, you will fail.  If you find happiness in the process you will be a success. ” Zig Ziglar

© 2023, Keren Peters-Atkinson. All rights reserved.