Don’t worry, be happy

Was ist eigentlich Glück? LORRAINE MALLINDER geht einer Frage nach, die uns alle bewegt. Mit Fotos von LORRAINE HELLWIG

Most of us aspire to a life of happiness. But what is happiness, and how do we achieve it? Is happiness the same for everyone, and is there a particular language to speak about it? We look at the history of happiness and give you the chance to find out whether you’re a happy bunny — or more of a grumpy cat — by taking our fun personality quiz.

“Whoever is happy will make others happy, too”

Anne Frank (1929–45), German Jewish diarist

Happiness is everywhere, it seems. You don’t have to look far to see it. Open a magazine and you’ll find colourful advertisements and articles presenting all kinds of happiness. Turn on the television and there’ll be some show about a person living their best life. And if none of that works, just pull out your phone — there’s sure to be a “smiley” among your text messages. This is the era of the “smiley”, the face with the bright eyes and graduated grins, from the curved line to the toothy rictus. The face is everywhere. We use it to communicate how we feel — even when we don’t feel smiley. (Especially when we don’t feel smiley.) The face is part of our everyday lives, yet expresses a state of… well… what exactly?

What is happiness?

Trying to define happiness is not easy. The Oxford English Dictionary tells us that happiness is “the quality or condition of being happy”. Other definitions use synonyms for happiness, such as “joy”, “contentment”, “well-being”, “bliss” and “euphoria”, which aren’t really helpful. Most of us would probably agree that happiness is a feeling that life is good, that our surroundings are a bit brighter and more beautiful than usual, and that we’re in harmony with family and friends.

The science of happiness

For our ancestors, being happy was not a priority. While the concept of happiness has been around for thousands of years, for much of that time, we humans were simply struggling to survive. Thinking about quality of life was a luxury. Today, though, most of us regard happiness as something we have a right to, and therefore something to be actively pursued.

The increasing interest in the topic is being given extra weight by the realization that material prosperity alone is not making us happier. In 1974, after research carried out by the US economist Richard Easterlin showed that increased wealth did not seem to be making people happier, economists and social scientists got to work trying to find out what — if not material wealth — makes us contented.

The jury is still out on a final answer, but Richard Layard, a professor at the London School of Economics, suggests in his recent book Can We Be Happier?

that our relationships, work satisfaction and mental health are more important for us as individuals than how much we earn. As societies, we are happier if there is social trust, freedom and generosity.

Politicians are picking up the idea that wellbeing at a societal level is worth pursuing. Layard, who helps edit the “World Happiness Report”, has organized courses on mindfulness for British Members of Parliament and, in 2013, was one of a group of experts who advised Angela Merkel on how to create a happier society.

The business of happiness

For individuals in search of a better life, the market for books on happiness is booming. In 2018, three million self-help books were sold in the UK, a 20 per cent rise over 2017, making this the fastest-growing genre in the publishing world. Philosophers, psychologists, economists, celebrities and self-styled gurus are all writing about happiness. In the self-help section of my local bookshop, I find the following titles: 10% Happier, The Happiness Project, The Universe Has Your Back and You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life.

Each book promises a great new life, one in which I will become wiser, calmer, fitter, richer, cooler and, yes, happier. There must be some useful nuggets of advice in these manuals, but which one should I choose? Is there a self-help book in which someone tests self-help books? Yes, there is! It’s called Help Me! How Self-help Has Not Changed My Life.