Amazon Exclusive Essay: “Happiness at Work,” by Sonja Lyubomirsky
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Recent surveys show that more Americans than ever are
dissatisfied with their jobs. Some are burned out or bored, while
others feel that professional success has eluded them. Stress
over financial well-being--which for many is synonymous with
professional success--is a primary source of discontent. Indeed,
when people are asked if they could have anything in the world
right now, most report wanting "more money. " Professional
unhappiness can cause us to question our judgment,
industriousness, or motivation. The lure then of finding a new
job can prove irresistible--but will a new job really make us
happier?
A seminal study suggests that the answer is no. Researchers
followed high-level managers for five years to track their job
satisfaction before and after a voluntary job change, such as a
promotion or a relocation to a more attractive city. The managers
were mostly male and white, with an average age of 45 and a
$135,000 annual salary. They were doing well. What the
researchers found, however, was that although these managers
experienced a burst of satisfaction immediately after the job
change, their satisfaction plummeted within a year, returning to
their original pre-move level. In other words, they experienced a
sort of hangover effect. By contrast, managers who chose not to
change jobs during the same five-year time period experienced
negligible changes in their satisfaction.
We get used to the cities where we live, to new houses and new
cars, to relationships, and even to sex. This capacity to adapt
to positive changes in our lives is both formidable and
biologically hard-wired. Even the events we are certain will
bring long-term fulfillment--landing a coveted professional
position, or winning an award--tend to disappoint. We feel an
immediate thrill, but that thrill is often followed by satiety,
elevated expectations, and even letdown.
This is true even of monetary rewards. In the beginning, greater
wealth brings us a higher standard of living, and the
extravagances bring extra pleasure. But economists have found
that two-thirds of the benefits of a raise in income are erased
after just one year, in part because our spending and new "needs"
rise alongside it and because we begin to associate with (and
compare ourselves to) people in a higher income bracket.
With so much seemingly working against long-term professional
satisfaction, it’s important to focus on where our chance for
happiness truly resides. When we feel we’ve "had it" with our
jobs, should we look for job satisfaction elsewhere or is there a
different path?
Research suggests that instead of fantasizing about some dream
job that doesn’t exist, we focus on pursuing meaningful goals in
the here and now. Typically, our professional lives are focused
on material goals--more money, wider re--but numerous
studies have shown that those of us who are striving (and not
necessarily achieving) are happier.
When it comes to our careers, if we enjoy the struggle along the
way, we will derive pleasure and satisfaction by simply working
on our goals. By doing so, we will ideally stretch our skills,
discover novel rtunities and challenges, grow, strive, learn,
and become more capable and expert. In this way, simple goal
pursuit will provide us with rtunities for appreciation, for
delight, and for satisfying our innate need to use our potentials
to the fullest. Whether our valued goal is inventing something
special or finishing school, it will give us something to work
for and to look forward to.
Why is goal pursuit so intrinsically rewarding? Because it
imparts structure and meaning to our daily lives, creating
obligations, deadlines, and timetables, as well as rtunities
for mastering new skills and for interacting with others. Because
it helps us attain a sense of purpose, feelings of efficacy over
our progress, and mastery over our time. All of these things make
people happy. And once we accomplish a step along the way (e.g.,
completing an internship or an article), we would do well to
savor that accomplished subgoal before moving on to a new goal.
Instead of focusing too much on the finish line in the first
place, we should focus on--and enjoy as much as
possible--carrying out the multiple baby steps necessary to make
progress. The perfect job may not be the position offering the
highest rewards, but rather the place where the daily work--the
moments between the big promotion or industry triumph--offers the
greatest personal returns.