Are You Happy at Work?

How has your first month of 2024 been? Has it been challenging or filled with happiness, particularly at work?

As part of our final stretch last year, we unveiled the results of our humble survey on Filipino leaders’ year-end observation on the 2023 HR trends. Part of the outcome was in-depth responses to what leaders in HR should zero in on this year.

In this month’s newsletter, we hop on the trend and offer you more to digest.

What should HR leaders focus on in 2024 from our research respondents’ perspective, and why do we think one of them should be your employees’ happiness at work? 

We tell all below. 

What They Said

Disclaimer: The responses shared reflect the views and opinions of the respondents and not necessarily those of the whole organization.

Below, we’ve synthesized the thoughts of Alvanson So, CHRP, Mari Alcantara, Nikkie Dela Cruz, and Roegan Taron on what HR should focus on this year. Big thanks again to these 4 for their invaluable contributions to our humble survey!

Observations From My Culture Coaching Sessions 

As you read through the responses, it’s easy to pinpoint that a theme surrounds what our respondents feel HR should prioritize in 2024. It’s still the classic pain point of maintaining employee well-being while navigating change by continually improving employee experience. 

Similarly, just in the first few weeks of the year, I had the chance to engage with business leaders from different industries during our culture coaching sessions. Here’s what I learned so far:

• Many are trying to find ways to improve their employee engagement and experience this year. 
• A great deal of leaders are hyper-focused on achieving an oxymoron — remaining steady while continually adapting. This means finding that state of equilibrium while cautiously remaining cognizant that today’s business landscape requires constant changing and reinventing. 

Notably, in those conversations with business leaders, particularly HR ones, they shared that their employees’ mental well-being is a priority. 

While “mental health” might sound like a broken record or a washed-up trend, our people’s holistic well-being simply never goes out of style – it is, in fact, a staple priority. After all, mental well-being is also a facet of business leaders' constant goal and focus: employee well-being. Indeed, everything hinges on employee well-being.

But what does happiness have to do with these?

Let’s Talk ‘Happy’

Happiness is such a fleeting emotion, an elusive state. To that, one might add: If that’s the case, is the happiness of our people something that really needs to be pursued and looked out for? 

Simply, yes. Here are some reasons why we think so. 

The Bottom Line

Does this contribute to our employees’ well-being? 

Does this make our employees happy? 

While these 2 may differ from the usual first questions asked (unfortunately) when assessing business decisions, they are factors instrumental to any company's bottom line. 

Why? Our people get the gears going—those who collectively achieve business goals, focus, and priorities for the company. While automation will boom even more in 2024, no business can run without people. 

Several studies have also shown time and time again that poor employee well-being negatively affects productivity. In return, low productivity hurts business outcomes/the bottom line. 

Way back in 2009, a study called “Happiness and Productivity” was helmed by University of Warwick professors Andrew J. Oswald, Eugenio Proto, and Daniel Sgroi. In the said research, these economists found that happiness makes people more engaged at work. Hence, greater productivity levels.  

Not convinced yet? A report by Gallup titled “The Powerful Relationship Between Employee Engagement and Team Performance” concluded that businesses that have engaged employees are 21% more profitable as opposed to those that do not. 

These numbers only go to show that when you put your people first, you’re one step or more ahead in achieving your business goals.

Workplace Loneliness

The very first book I read this year is “The Good Life and How to Live It” by directors of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, Dr. Robert Waldinger and Dr. Marc Schulz. They presented invaluable lessons from the world’s longest and ongoing 80-year study on happiness. As a leader, the ones about the workplace struck me the most without surprise. 

“A problem that is endemic in the modern workplace: a lack of meaningful interaction. In other words, workdays full of loneliness.” (Waldinger & Schulz, 2023, p. 234)  

Our Great Place To Work® research found that camaraderie is the number one driver of trust in Philippine workplaces. Without meaningful interactions, how then can we build trust? 

And so the challenge continues. Leaders must find ways to rebuild and sustain camaraderie among their employees, especially given the new ways of working. 

It is said that we spend over a third of our life working. That’s a whopping 90,000 hours in hard numbers based on the average person’s lifespan. When a lack of meaningful interactions at work abounds, it also translates to people spending most of their waking hours feeling lonely.

That is not healthy at all.

The world’s longest study on happiness also shows that having a genuine community or good relationships can lengthen one’s life. Loneliness is cunningly dangerous—research states it surprisingly increases our risk of death as much as smoking and obesity. 

“Positive relationships at work lead to lower stress levels, healthier workers and fewer days when we come home upset. They also, simply, make us happier.” (Waldinger & Schulz, 2023, p. 237)

In the same book, having a work-best friend was even given a premium. Research states that those with one are more engaged than those without. They say the data proves especially true for women who are twice as likely to have higher productivity levels when they can call someone their bestie at work. 

What benefits fall under your non-negotiable list when looking for a new job? Bi-annual dental prophylaxis? Inclusion of 2-3 dependents under the medical benefits? Well, those are obviously necessary. 

But what’s often overlooked is the quality of relationships one can gain from working there. While that’s almost impossible to know during the recruitment process, it should definitely be part of your list to consider. 

Loneliness Hits Closer to Home

Leaders should look out for their people’s happiness at work because loneliness is an epidemic we are all prone to become victims of.

In fact, in a 2022 report collaborated by Meta and Gallup called The Global State of Social Connections, 24% of the global population was concluded to be “very lonely” to “fairly lonely.” 

Here’s the more interesting bit: a whopping 57% of Filipinos also shared the same sentiment. Among the 142 countries surveyed, the Philippines stood out as one of the countries with the highest level of self-reported loneliness. This doesn’t come as a surprise, as the country’s score is 24% higher than the global average. 

Need I say more? Check out this map from the same study for more eye-widening statistics:

Another eyebrow-raising stat from this study is that in terms of how connected Filipinos feel, results show that 80% report being fairly to very connected. And yet, astonishingly, 57% suffer from loneliness. Contradicting but also very telling.

This shows us that this state of loneliness can creep in regardless of whether you possess social connections. It’s not impossible that the same context applies in our workplaces—whether on a work-from-home set-up or in the office 5 days a week, you can get lonely. 

Given the boom of remote set-up during and after the pandemic, it’s highly likely, though, that how we work now is affecting how connected we feel. The lost opportunity to make more meaningful interactions at work is a modern workplace endemic, and this can expectedly result in loneliness.

While all of this information is saddening, they are unfortunately not surprising. Even during my recent visit to the bookstore, I was welcomed by rows of books delving into how to deal with loneliness. 

In reality, though, we don’t really need to visit a bookshop and see those spread of self-help publications on the topic to realize that loneliness is very much real and more prevalent than ever before. Our interactions with colleagues, friends, and families, and if we’re sincere, even as we look inward, can be tell-tale signs that “lonely” is a common state today.

The Right Questions to Ask

The one who has the power to change that state of loneliness, so-so work life, and surface-level connections in and outside of work is, unfortunately, and fortunately, no one but…you. 

Directly lifted from the book I’ve been mentioning in this newsletter, “The Good Life and How to Live It,” here are some specific guide questions to consider for better chances of high-quality employee happiness at work.

Those Experiencing Technological Work Advances/Remote Work:

• How are these technological changes in the workplace affecting our social fitness? 
• If automation means we are interacting with more machines and less with people, is there a way to cultivate new social environments at work? 
• If more of us are going to be working remotely, how can we replace the in-person contact we used to get at work? 

Source/Direct quotations from: (Waldinger & Schulz, 2023, p. 247)

Those Desiring Meaningful Workplace Relationships: 

• Who are the people I most enjoy and value at work, and what is it about them that is valuable? Am I appreciating them?
• Who is different from me in some way (who thinks differently, comes from a different background, and/or has a different expertise), what can I learn from that person?
• If I’m having conflict with another worker, what can I do to alleviate it?
• What kinds of connections am I missing at work that I might want more of? Could I imagine a way to make these connections more likely, or richer?
• Do I really know my workmates? Is there someone I’d like to know better? How can I reach out to them?

Source/Direct-quotations from: (Waldinger & Schulz, 2023, Pg. 248) 

Sometimes, it’s sadly not even a matter of asking the wrong questions but plainly not being aware of the possible negative impacts of where we are in life—yes, that includes work. It’s easy to fall prey to the hustle and bustle of life. So much so that we miss out on the positive effects of pausing to reflect if we’re actually happy with the present. 

Perhaps the most important question to start with and go from is this: Am I happy? 

Work is Life: Arriving as My Whole Self

The two authors couldn’t be more real when they said, “Our life doesn’t wait at the door when we walk into work.” (Waldinger & Schulz, 2023, p. 249) 

My hope is that we stop giving a premium to the term “work-life balance.” There is no balance to strike as they are one piece, after all. 

Imagine! What a joy it would be for all of us to boldly arrive at work as our whole selves. A recent event where I experienced this was during the onset of the year. 

2024, unfortunately, started on a sad note for me and my team. 

One of our colleagues decided to move on from Great Place To Work. There is no doubt that we are happy and supportive of her decision. But having worked intimately as a team, we can’t help but feel deeply saddened by this change. You rarely witness a team huddle where many tears are shed because the news of someone leaving deeply saddens members.  

As a leader, I always believe that a person’s well-being is of utmost importance. There can never be a reason at work that is good or sound enough for anyone to compromise their well-being. And at times, this doesn’t necessarily mean our mental health. It can be in pursuit of deeper passions that will allow one to be happier. 

The latest circumstances reminded me of how each one of us has seasons in our lives. I am blessed to have met and worked with my colleagues for a particular season of theirs. 

Because of what transpired recently, it was like a kindly (but hard-to-swallow) nudge that the people I work with may not be around me for as long as I want. We move on with many valid possible reasons, and the camaraderie we share will one day necessarily end—at least in the workplace. 

I pray then that as a leader, I am cognizant of the shared—and limited—moments and seasons with my workmates. And I hope that while under my leadership, I can help enrich people’s lives, making them happier—“For, after all, work, too, is life.”