A new survey of 1,000 workers in the United Kingdom conducted by the job search website Jobsite showed that for 70 percent of respondents, friends at work is the most crucial element to a happy working life. This compares to 55 percent who said money was most important.
I was a guest on Huffington Post Live yesterday as part of a very interesting panel to talk about this. You can see the segment here.
What do you value most at work – good relationships or money?
Nice video.
I agree that the workplace culture, including friends at work, has a lot more to do with a happy work life than money. Unfortunately a lot of people leave a happy environment for more money and regret it later. Study after study has shown that once basic needs are met – shelter, clothing, sustenance – then money has little to do with happiness.
Thanks for sharing.
Dan @ ZenPresence.com
According to a recent servey, 65% of americans would choose better boss over a raise, so I think this answers the question. Here are the stats: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/10/prweb10013402.htm
I so enjoyed participating in the segment on HuffPost yesterday with you Alex.
There is much to be learned from your Danish culture on the subject of being happy at work.
Would you mind sharing with me the word you use to describe that feeling at work? The word you mentioned that we don’t have here in the US?
I need it for a column I am writing!
Cheers to you and your great work,
JT
I don’t expect my co-workers to necessarily be my friends. I have friends from other parts of my life and it’s much more comfortable to me having a bright line between my personal and professional life. It allows me to be freer (to engage and volunteer politically, to pursue art, to be authentic in my relationships, to do all the things that I won’t be paid for but enjoy) without compromising my professional non-partisanship (I’m a government worker) or worrying about workplace gossip. As long as my colleagues respect my and we get along, the workplace will be good enough. That said, money (after a certain point that allows me to not worry about finances for basic things) is pretty far down the list. Learning new things and getting a feeling that my work improves people’s lifes is much more important.
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