Ask the CHO
Seriously, ask me anything related to happiness at work. Just call me the Miss Manners or Dear Abby of the workplace :o)
The way it works is you ask a question (either in a comment to this page or in an email) and I answer it in a post on the blog. If you want me to, I’ll anonymize your question so you won’t get caught asking for outside advice. Go ahead and ask, I’d love to help!
You can see all previous questions and answers here.
36 Comments »
RSS feed for comments on this post · TrackBack URI
Ask the CHO: Enjoying work itself Said,
August 7, 2006 @ 3:55 pm
[…] I’m taking questions about happiness at work, and Chris asked me a good one: Why do you never talk about the happiness you can derive from work itself, but always about the ancillary parts, i.e. the relations you have with your colleagues? Surely the job itself should be the greatest contributor to your happiness at work. I am thinking of Csikszentmihalyi’s work on Flow. […]
Stressedmanager Said,
August 15, 2006 @ 3:05 pm
Is it possible to be too happy at work?
daniel Said,
August 24, 2006 @ 5:44 pm
Hi Alexander
I work in a big company, have done for 5 years. Prior to that I worked in SME’s or as a freelancer, or not at all, because I love the freedom. I’ve just been doing this for security while we had yound children.
Knowing that I need more than this has driven me to become and entrepreneur, which I value. Things are moving a long, but I can see that I’m still going to be in this big company culture for a while. I’ve moved depts, tried different things, but frankly it feels like it’s killing me.
I get along with my colleagues; don’t bitch; and so on. I’m grateful for the security that has been provided to us. But I want to move on, and it is taking time. I find it hard to keep it all going.
What do you advise?
thanks
JACH Said,
September 23, 2006 @ 12:15 am
Ok, finally I opened my mouth about what I see that is going around here, and it was a great experience, really!
Just to be able to speak openly with a good sense of direction (thanks to your ideas here) made a great difference of what I tried to say.
Anyway, although the chat was really nice, my boss still told me some things I couldn’t debate at the moment:
- “most of our department problems (development) are because production, because they have this specific mind set. Issues between development and production are as old as engineering”
- “Development and Production are different. Development can be flexible, and you can expect people to think by theirselves, but for Production you need people to do exactly as told”
- “Production guys won’t understand that Development can have more flexibility and so, so we have to hold to avoid them to complain”
I know that we can have better understanding with the production guys, I know that you should allow and encourage people to think by theirselves, and I know that once these two things happen, the third issue will be the easiest of the three.
My problem is that I don’t have real-life examples to support this, and also, I think I need things to start slowly because there will be people scared out of their wits to this change, to lost this illusion of control they have and let people decide by theirselves (of course I can’t tell them directly “you’re fooling yourself, you try to have control, but you have nothing”. I have to be more polite =)
Is this a difficult question, or not at all?
=)
Alexander Said,
September 25, 2006 @ 10:43 am
GREAT Jach, I love that you spoke out.
For real-life examples, I suggest reading Nuts! about Southwest Airlines and of course The Seven-Day Weekend about Semco. Both of these companies give their production staff huge freedoms and get great results from it.
There’s also a video about Southwest called It’s so simple which looks, among other things, at the contol issue.
Here’s another article about listening to employees:
http://positivesharing.com/2005/08/american-airlines-make-money-by-listening-to-employees/
Using these, it should be a piece of cake to convince your managers :o) Or maybe not…
Louloutte Said,
December 26, 2006 @ 5:09 pm
Hello Alexander,
I discovered your website before yesterday (never too late to do well right?:-)) . I more than enjoyed reading your book and I thank you for all the tips and tricks you give to help make people happy and why. My question is: what would you recommend to make co-workers happy in a remote environment? (= virtual teams)… What kind of exercices team members could do in order to be happier working as a virtual team?
Many thanks for your response, any piece of advice would help!
Ciao
Louloutte
Simon Lebex Said,
December 28, 2006 @ 6:35 pm
Dear,
I have read parts of your book for a paper I am writing for a business ethics course I am taking in Nottingham. Would it be possible to provide me the credentials of the book (publisher, year and so) as I intend to refer to it in my paper.
Thanks in advance
Brad Montgomery Said,
January 3, 2007 @ 6:44 am
your blog is absolutely wonderful! I have a blog on humor and the workplace too… but gosh…yours just absolutely rocks!
Congrats… I look forward to being friends.
Brad Montgomery
http://www.bradmontgomery.com
david Said,
January 9, 2007 @ 2:07 pm
Hello Alex,
i work in a big company and with some coworkers are working in Competence Development Project (i don’t know if in english is named the same as in spanish) (leaded by HR) .
We have created a blog where we post messages (humor, positive messages, etc..) from the team to everyone in the company and the comments are open for them to say whatever they want.. about the company or whatever.. (i’ll keep the name of the company and de project confidentially if you don’t mind)..
we are just starting.. and your blog has given me very very good ideas..
I have a technical question i would like to ask you. Is your blog based in any specific SW? is it a Webpage? i would like to design a blog similar to yours where i can show recent comments on a side, etc…
in a month time i’ll be able to tell you more about the project…
Alexander Said,
January 9, 2007 @ 2:18 pm
What a great idea, David.
My blog is based on Wordpress, which is open source and free. You can download it from wordpress.org.
Wordpress requires php5 and mysql to run. I like it because it’s simple, customizable and you can find many great themes to customize the look of it.
Please tell me how your project goes!
shel Said,
January 10, 2007 @ 6:32 pm
Alex,
You’ve recommended several books on your blog. Including your own book, what would you recommend as the essential Happiness at Work library?
Alexander Said,
January 12, 2007 @ 10:30 am
Funny you should ask Shel: I posted a list of my favorite books here.
shel Said,
January 12, 2007 @ 7:32 pm
Ah, I was away from the computer that day - but it’s sort of embarassing, it was one of the few days I didn’t read your site, and you post the stuff I ask about 9 days later… *turns red* :)
Kristin Said,
January 16, 2007 @ 11:27 pm
Dear CHO,
I have been working from home for over two years now for an organization that does great work. I believe that what I’m doing is important…but sometimes I do feel lonely and isolated. Working from home has a lot of perks, but it also has some challenges.
Any advice for those of us who work from home? How can we make work happier for ourselves? Would love to hear your thoughts.
Wayne Said,
January 25, 2007 @ 12:57 am
Hello Alexander,
Many questions here are very interested and thoughtful, but seems not every question here has an answer. I’m particularly interested in the questions asked by daniel (August 24, 2006 @ 5:44 pm) and Louloutte (December 26, 2006 @ 5:09 pm). It is highly appreciate if you can provide your comments.
Office lady Said,
January 30, 2007 @ 4:11 am
Hello Alexander,
I have a question about when we want to quit our jobs. Are there any “codes of practice” or “ethics” of quitting out there?
For example, I have read somewhere that we should not keep quiet about our intentions to leave until the very last minute and then suddenly hand in our resignation letters. Instead, we should be verbally discussing our leaving a few days before we formally hand in the letter?
Are there any other similar things that we must take note of when we are planning our resignation?
Thank you!
Keith S. Said,
February 6, 2007 @ 4:57 pm
Hi Alex,
I love your website and have quoted you and referred many of my co-workers to positivesharing. I’ve been inspired (by your and a few others in your blog roll) to start a ‘grass roots’ employee engagement team (to communicate our version of the Happiness Manifesto and too support projects to enable employees to celebrate, collaborate and create at work), so any advice would be great. I have a question. I’ve presented some of the concepts from your book to my site’s senior manager (the boss of my boss of my boss) about “happiness at work”. He gave me this response:
“I would contend that “happiness at work? is an outcome of a complex mix of factors such as a person’s manager, their work, their pay, their personal life, their health, their age, their personality. In other words, it is complex. By definition it is hard to distinguish cause and effect. Further complicating this is that outward signs of “happiness? don’t necessarily correlate to the truth. It is actually true that employees have quit and worked for someone else to the complete surprise of GOOD leaders. In other words, a dog wagging a tail doesn’t mean the dog is happy!!”
The main problem I have is that I believe this wiggle statement is an excuse not to tackle the problems of improving our lab. What sort of response would you make? What would be the “Happy Employee” answer?
Barbara Said,
February 7, 2007 @ 7:47 pm
Hello,
Happiness to you too and I would love to send you our book..Most of All They Taught Me Happiness by Robert Muller, http://www.amaremedia.com And it will be a Free gift for all the happiness you give us with your work..My google alert brings you up all the time..How do you alert google to alert me about happiness?
Robert and Barbara Muller
Bernard Said,
March 19, 2007 @ 1:59 am
I enjoy the idea of happiness but I wouldn’t want to be a CHO because of what the word means in a certain African language.
Ben Said,
March 21, 2007 @ 10:15 pm
Alex,
We were bought out recently and our new employer is trying to make changes. As part of management, I’m being asked to participate in a few only courses and to read a small handbook called: “Business as Unusual: The Handbook for Managing and Supervising Organizational Change”. Have you heard of this book and if so, do you have any opinions on its advice as far as how it affects Happiness at Work?
Julie Bartkus Said,
April 16, 2007 @ 11:38 pm
Hello Alex,
My name is Julie Bartkus. I produce and host a monthly audio program for
leaders in the child care industry.
Every month my subscribers receive a CD featuring a different topic to help them
manage, motivate and retain great staff. This month’s topic is: Happy Days:
Tips for having more of them at work.
I thought your tips for having fun would help child care leaders around
the world be happier at work.
I was wondering if you would be willing to grant me a 20 - 40 minute telephone
interview on the topic.
I would be more than happy to provide you with a copy of the edited audio
segment for your use and promote your products and services during our
interview. Your services are greatly needed in this industry.
Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you. I can be reached at
1.800.211.5671 or julie@motivateteachers.com.
Enthusiastically,
Julie Bartkus
http://www.MotivateTeachers.com
1.815.675.6949
James Said,
April 24, 2007 @ 3:20 pm
Work and happiness is not compatible, if salary does not motivate your happiness, and work is a major part of your life (you can’t just work for the weekend and leave it at the office).
Sad but true.
Dana Said,
May 2, 2007 @ 10:54 pm
I recently hit a “salary cap” how can anyone be happy about that?! My husband is out of work and my pay is more important that ever. I’ve worked for the same group for almost ten years and this is the way they reward my loyalty and hard work! This does NOT make me happy!
Tanya Hamersfeld Said,
May 24, 2007 @ 12:59 pm
Can we fly you out to Australia to meet our team? We are a happy bunch but we are always interested in new things and your philosophy of happiness at work fits us down to the ground!
Do you give presentations? We could also introduce you to our clients…Melbourne is a beautiful place and our Sydney office is gorgeous too!
Think about it!!
Tanya Hamersfeld
Corporate Training Australia
Office Lady Said,
May 27, 2007 @ 10:44 am
Hello Alex,
I’ve been visiting your site on and off for quite a while now.
I’ve been miserable at work and, although it took me almost a year, I eventually built up the courage, and I’ve finally quit my job!!
I think it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made!
I’m now working out my one-month notification period…then hopefully go on a vacation to Europe with my family…then travel to Beijing to visit my love….
And most of all, I’ve found a new job too! No one knows how it’ll go, but a change is definitely due and I’m looking forward to a fresh start.
Your site has definitely pushed me on.
:) One happy Office Lady in Hong Kong
Ask the CHO: Happy companies and happy cultures Said,
June 5, 2007 @ 11:02 am
[…] Ask the CHO […]
pedro Said,
July 16, 2007 @ 7:08 pm
What advise could you give to France car manufacturer ?
Since last year, the number of suicide in France car manufacturer (Peugeot, Renault) increased so much, that now each new suicide is now commented in the medias.
Some of them have even started a “toll-free” number to support depressive employees. But rumors of relocation, the lack of perspective for older employees seems to have a terrible effect on them.
Elaine Said,
November 12, 2007 @ 6:06 pm
Hi Alex
I found your site by googling the phrase ‘how to be happy at work’. I have been working (solo) from home for the last 10 years. Recently I created a blog on self development and would like to quote your writings in my blog. Is that Okay with you?
I have made a post on your book here
http://success-self-development.blogspot.com/2007/11/how-to-be-happy-at-work_11.html
By the way, you have great links. I have visited some of them and found some very useful writings on personal development topics. I am glad I stumbled on your site.
Elaine
Guilla Said,
December 8, 2007 @ 5:18 am
Dear Alex,
I have been wondering, and perhaps you can help by answering these… although I am not sure if you have commented on these or similar questions.
(I promise to read your book this season!)
1. Do you have to know what kind of job you like doing to be happy at work?
2. Can you be happy at work at a job that does not really match your personality?
3. Does the ideal job exist or is it just the ideal job for you?
4. How can you get there?
Help? :S Thanks in advance for your time, I know you are really busy.
rick Said,
December 14, 2007 @ 10:09 am
Hi, Alex!
I have written two emails to you but failed to receive any responses at all. I’m trying to talk about the foreign rights of your book.
Hoping you reply very soon.
Rick
rick Said,
December 17, 2007 @ 4:28 pm
Hi CHO- great Alex!
Me back again!
Why?
‘Cause you talked with me about your book and sent back mails about your question “how will we do?” or something like that.
But what a pity- you didn’t respond later at all. You never read your email shown in this site.
Hope we dicuss the matter further.
Thank again.
Guilla Said,
December 17, 2007 @ 5:18 pm
Rick I have to agree with you, The Chief Happiness Officer either does not read his email or is just to busy. And as this section of the blog I don’t think the reads either, that or you are very lucky because I have never received any reponse from him.
Hopefully he will reply soon.
Great day!
Guilla
It’s true - I’ve been a bad boy Said,
December 18, 2007 @ 10:21 am
[…] Guilla: Rick I have to agree with you, The Chief Happiness Officer either does not read his email or is just to busy…. […]
“Office Lady” from Hong Kong is back - and still not happy at work Said,
December 18, 2007 @ 3:36 pm
[…] while back I got a comment from Office Lady in Hong Kong who wrote that: I’ve been miserable at work and, although it took me almost a year, I eventually […]
Peter Said,
January 7, 2008 @ 4:33 pm
Hello Alex I would like to take this opportunity to ask your advice.I have been with my current employer for 6 years and I have been very happy except for the last 2 years where I have started to descend into unhappiness.I like my collegues they are genuinely good people and I like the company I work for.My boss has always been one for encouraging self development and wishes me to do well within the company.It has been put to me that a new job in external sales should become available later this year and I am being encouraged to go for it.I honestly dont know if the new job will suit although it sounds more challenging but its either that or stay where I am and die.I earn a decent salary and I feel guilty for not being happy as I work for a great company with what I feel are good prospects.However I believe I am bored and unmotivated.Worse still I feel like I dont contribute anything to the company and I am just starting to get feelings of not wanting to go to work when rising in the morning.This is partly perpetuated by not feeling like I want to do anything and avoiding it by surfing the web.I work solidly 5days a week from 08.30 until at least 17.30 eating my lunch as I go.This is all very selfish and I feel like I am whinging but any advice would be good.
saad jalal Said,
January 24, 2008 @ 10:58 am
..although i can’t find a job..not yet.. your website is very interesting for me..and i will ask you a lot of questions when i can get a good job.