Sources of happiness

I came across two interesting studies about Happiness.

The first is a Harvard study that has been running for over 85 years – the longest study on human life.?Covering over 2000 people altogether across three generations since 1938 – grandparents, parents and children who are now baby boomers, the study is based at Harvard Medical School and at Massachusetts General Hospital.?The study’s current Director, Robert Waldinger, answers that there were two factors that the study’s happiest participants had in common:

1. Take care of their health
2. Have good relationships with other people – “the people who were happiest, who stayed healthiest as they grew old and who lived the longest were the people with the warmest connections with other people”

Meaningful career cannot give the same happiness as Meaningful relationships can.?But, if achieving things that are important to a person is fulfilling as well, that makes a difference in well-being.?But, workaholics were some of the saddest people, filled with regrets when they were in their 80s.??Its never too late to start being happy.?They could not find any evidence to support that money can buy happiness.

To start strengthening connections, one has to improve one’s Social Fitness, akin to Physical fitness.?Think of somebody who you haven’t seen in a while, somebody who you really enjoy but who you don’t stay in touch with as much as you want to, and send them a short text/email.?Doing one such reconnect everyday will reinvigorate their connections with you, but it takes activity.

The second study is a re-analysis of the work conducted by Nobel-prize winner Daniel Kahneman.?In 2010, he had reported that Happiness goes up with income until the relationship starts to flatten at between 60K-90K USD a year.?In his re-analysis along with Mathew Killingsworth, a plateau has been found only among the unhappiest 20% of the people and when they start earning over 100K USD a year.?For all other Americans, more money means more happiness, at least up to 500K USD a year.

Two studies, looking at happiness with different lenses and pointing to different sources to be happy.?As I see it, they are not mutually exclusive, so why not pursue all three…?