Want to be more creative at work? Be happy!

Yesterday I spoke at a huge media conference in Sweden – my talk was about the link between creativity and happiness at work.

In short, research shows that when you’re happy, you are more creative and have more and better ideas.

You can watch my entire talk here, it’s 15 minutes long:

What do you think? Are you more creative when you enjoy yourself at work?

The two other speakers in the same track were absolutely fascinating. There was Simon Kiyaga, a psychiatrist from Stockholm, who has studied the link between psychological disorders and creativity (and found one) and Anna Haupt, the inventor of the airbag for cyclists.

Heidi Forbes Öste made this beautiful visualization of the whole track:


(Click for full size)

Awesome!

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6 thoughts on “Want to be more creative at work? Be happy!”

  1. OMGGG I am listening to your conference and when you talk about stress and not being happy at work I think you might also add that not only do yo not focus and have a very narrow view, but you also only see the not so positive things about your job. That is what happened to me in my last job, I thought I was going to be incredibly happy because I had flex time and could focus on my daughter at the same time and even if I did have great new ideas for fundraising they were always turned down by my boss, because she said that was her job, not mine :'(

  2. I’m the marketing assistant for Robert Scheinfeld, a NY Times bestselling author who just wrote a new book on how to be happy. It’s called “The Ultimate Key To Happiness.” It offers a v-e-r-y different approach to defining what happiness really is, and a very different step-by-step path to experience it all the time, no matter what’s going on around you. The Internet has gotten so complex. So many options. Can anyone here share ideas for how to get the word out there about this important new book? I’d love to hear your ideas. I’m sure there are tons of ideas I’ve never thought of before.

  3. Being happy with your jobs allows a person to make greater things and create better thoughts that helps the organization, regardless if she/ he is compensated in doing so.

  4. Being happy at work:
    – Increases personal confidence. Higher confidence means less self-censorship and thus more diverse expression of ideas. An open and honest atmosphere allows more problems to be identified (nobody shoots the messenger) and thus spurs more creativity by default.
    – Reduces stress in the workplace. Stress disables clear thinking in many people, especially “creative types”.
    – Is the opposite of experiencing irritation / anger. These two might clarify thinking, but it sure as hell won’t be thinking that aligns with company goals.
    – Reduces stress at home: better family relationships, better sleep facilitates better preparedness for the next workday.

  5. Alexander do have a look at ‘Tommy Transit’s Bus Tales’ – How to change the world from 9 to 5. Tom Tompkins and Michele Hall.
    I was given this as a gift. It’s a charmingly written book by a retired bus driver in Vancouver, Canada. How he brought joy and happiness to so many people by just acknowledging them as they stepped on or off his bus. And how he developed a wonderful sense of fulfillment in a job that is usually considered mundane.

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