International Week of Happiness at Work

Everybody wants to be happy at work, especially because we spend so much of our time working. If we are happy at work, we are more likely to also be happier in our personal lives.
Needless to say, 2020 has been a challenging year, and many people have seen their workplace change significantly – from wearing PPE and social distancing to remote working.

So, you may be interested to learn that 21st September marks the welcome return of the International Week of Happiness at Work 2020. This annual campaign encourages employees to focus their attention on the happiness of their team members to contribute to a positive work environment and enhance our working lives.

Spreading happiness has never been so important. That’s why we have collated some interesting facts, top tips and useful resources to help you reflect on your own happiness and consider ways you could boost your happiness at work. After all, happy employees are more committed, engaged and willing to support each other, thus creating a unified team.

Facts:
1. Happiness has a multiplying effect. Happiness is contagious and, when encouraged, can spread throughout an entire company.

2. Happy employees support each other. Positive employees are more willing to support fellow workers and to provide positive support and encouragement for group projects.

3. Happiness reduces stress and helps us get a healthier life. If we feel happy in the hours that we spend at work, the uplifted feeling can improve our responses to stress and redirect our focus to the positive aspects of the work-life.

Top Tips:

• Have a tidy workspace (and that goes for home workers too!)
• Practice mindfulness
• Engage with your team (and get creative with phone/video contact if you work remotely)
• Help your colleagues
• Start your day in a positive way
• Smile
• Have patience

Useful Resources:
There are a number of resources you can consult should you wish to explore this topic further:

• The Happiness at Work campaign website is a great place to start, not least because it includes free access this week to the Global Online Happiness at Work Summit 2020.
  www.internationalweekofhappinessatwork.com
• Action for Happiness is another fantastic hub of information, from books, apps, guidebooks and videos – this site has it all!
  www.actionforhappiness.org/resources
• Always on the go? Why not check out these joyful podcasts – perfect for lifting your mood while you are travelling or multi-tasking around the house.
  www.happierhuman.com/happiness-podcasts
  https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/1003-jay-shetty-mindset-habits-for-happiness-thinking/id596047499?i=1000490321355
  https://open.spotify.com/show/1J6Ddy4dcXjFZDmWQs3Pu0
• Real Rewards also has a range of health and wellbeing tips, tests and articles for you to explore at your leisure. Remember if you are logging in for the first time your username is RLO plus your Payroll number (which can be found on your payslip or can be requested from the Employee Support Centre) and your password for the first time you log in is your date of birth in a DDMMYYYY format. www.myrealrewards.co.uk