“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.”
– Soren Kierkegaard

I gave a speech at Boston University and during the Q&A someone mentioned the Danish philosopher Kierkegaard and called him Denmark’s Chief Unhappiness Officer. I loved that :o)

The quote above is probably his most famous and offers a real insight: It’s important to reflect on your past but you can’t live looking backwards.

This week’s tip for more happiness is to simply take a moment to reflect on the things you have done recently to create some happiness at work for yourself or others and to look forward as well

If you’re reading this, I can only assume that you agree with me that being happy at work is a worthwhile goal and something we should all focus on.

There are two steps to this. Take a few quiet minutes to yourself today, where you can reflect on these questions. Write your answers down, that makes it stick more.

1: Think back
So what have you done to promote happiness in your workplace? What worked and why did it work? What didn’t work and what could you have done instead?

And if you haven’t really done anything specific at work to create some happiness, ask yourself why not? What’s holding you back? If you continue to do nothing, what will that lead to?

2: Look forward
What can you do from now on? What have you learned works? What have you learned doesn’t work that you should stay away from?

What can you gain from creating more happiness at work for yourself and others? What can you lose if you don’t?