Leandro from Brazil wrote in with a classic and crucial question: Do you need a college degree to be successful? Leandro is 21 and currently studies computer engineering and does NOT like it. His parents think he absolutely needs the degree – he doesn’t :o)

My take: No. You don’t need a college degree to be happy and successful.

I myself have a university degree (a masters in computer science) – but I chose my studies 100% based on my interests at the time. I was a major geek and my studies let me do some pretty cool stuff.

And while I would not have gotten my first “real” job without my degree, I would of course have gotten another job – even without the degree. And anyway, my first job sucked :o)

I believe success comes from doing something that:

1. You’re good at
2. You like doing
3. Someone is willing to pay you for

You need all three. Does this such an area currently exist for you? Be realistic!

If such an area does not currently exist, you can make one for yourself – and one way to do this is to study.

But considering how many possibilities are out there, I refuse to believe that this can only be achieved by suffering through 4-5 years of boring, unpleasant studying, just so you can wave a piece of paper around after you graduate.

Also, ask yourself this: If you truly do not enjoy your studies – how much can you possibly enjoy working in the same field later?

For a long time we’ve been telling people that “Sure, studying is not much fun, but you just have to get through 4-5 years of it and then everything is gravy.” First of all, this rarely turns out to be true, and secondly, this tends to make higher education an exercise in conformity – not learning. Those who complete their studies are not necessarily the best and the brightest, but those most willing to knuckle under and do as they’re told.

If I were in Leandro’s shoes, I would either:

1. Find a way to make my studies fun. Study with some fun people, go for some fun classes, work on my strategies and the way I spend time.
2. If that’s not possible, I’d witch to some kind of studies I really liked and found interesting or to a different school, where they didn’t make things as boring.
3. Or alternatively get a job or start my own company and do something really cool

What’s your take on this? Did you enjoy studying? How did you choose your studies? Are you happy and successful with or without a degree?

I just got an email from Brett Farmiloe, the founder of Pursue the Passion, who are up to something tremendously cool.

This Summer, Brett and two recent college grads are doing a “14,000 mile, 3 month journey around the US to interview 200 people about the passion that propels them in their profession”.

I really look forward to seeing what comes out of this! You can see their travel schedule, read the blog and if you know anyone who’s passionate about work (or if you yourself are) you should definitely tell Brett about it.

I value passion very highly at work myself. Here’s how it works for me:

1. I could never work on something I’m not passionate about. If a task or a project leaves me cold, no amount of money, coercion or feeling of duty can make me work on it.
2. What’s more, I don’t work well with people who are not passionate. If a person is not enthusiastic and passionate about a project, I find it hard to trust them, because I don’t know what makes them tick.
3. In my experience, passionate people get more work done. Waaaaaay more. It’s not even close.
4. Passionate people are much more fun to work with. Compared to people who treat work as “just a job”, passionate people are a blast!

What about you? Are you passionate about your work? Are the people you work with? Does passion matter to you? Write a comment, I’d really like to know :o)

A simple, sincere “Thank you” can go a long way at work. As this story beautifully illustrates, Thank you‘s are part of the “oil”, the social lubricant, that makes for good relationships in the workplace.

Oil, salt, and vinegar
By Pilar Cambra
Chief columnist for Expansión newspaper.

Try this one day – any day, any normal, run-of-the-mill day: add up the time you spend complaining, grumbling, moaning – tacitly or explicitly – and the time you spend thanking and praising. Is there more vinegar than oil?…

It happened some time ago, but the incident – as tiny as a grain of mustard- has remained in my memory…

One day I was in a hurry (and late) for work, and parked my car lopsided in the company car park… “It doesn’t matter,??? I said to myself, “the bloke who uses the space next to me normally comes in on his motorbike!… So there’s plenty of room for him to park…???. And off I went, thinking no more of it…

But it turns out that the colleague who parks next to me sometimes comes by motorbike, but others he comes by car. And on that particular day he had to choose his car: quite a large vehicle which, obviously, came nowhere near fitting into the small space I’d left for his motorbike…

After a while, by which time I was engrossed in more pressing matters, I got a call from the car park attendant: “Mrs. Cambra?: Would you mind parking your car properly?… The user of the place next to you says he just can’t get his into the space you’ve left…???.

I’ll confess: the sharp vinegar of bad temper surged up inside me… “I’m on my way!??? I told the attendant. And so I went down to the car park, huffing and puffing, of course, cursing the hassle, the interruption, and the bloody idea of my colleague to bring his bloody car instead of his bloody motorbike…

Anyway: I moved my car into the exact space which it should take up and went back up to the office breathing fire, like St.George’s dragon… A few minutes later, I got another call: “Pilar? it’s your car park neighbour… I’m just calling to apologise for having to bother you and, of course, to thank you for moving your car so quickly… Thank you!???…

I was so taken aback that I could barely speak… In the end, in the midst of a black sea of shame for my awful behaviour, my terrible thoughts and nasty complaining, I replied: “No, thank YOU – you’re a good person, there aren’t many left these days! I’m sorry and I promise you’ll never have any problems parking your car again???.

Do you know what?: thanking someone seems to have fallen out of common use, become old-fashioned, out of step with our straight-talking and somewhat brusque times… In fact, it almost sounds naff… “Thank you???, we say; and right away, we shudder at the prospect of hearing the slimy voice, 1950’s radio presenter style, coming back at you with “no, madam…thank yoooouuuuu???… How jaw-clenchingly awful!…

In the work environment the idea of “not owing anyone anything??? is held up and honoured: the more independent we are, the more manly (or womanly) we feel… Thanking people for favours, small or large; for support, minimal or huge; for services, inconsequential or decisive; is a bit humiliating: as if turning to others when we need them weakens us, undermines our reputation as a super-exec-who-goes-it-alone…

The oil of gratitude, gratitude which makes the cogs turn without squeaking, sliding smoothly and politely, falls far below the sharp vinegar of our complaining, protests, reproaches…

As if vinegar makes us stronger, less vulnerable, more invincible… And I’m not saying that complaining, if it is fair and necessary, is not a fundamental part of keeping justice in the workplace… But, just like in a salad dressing, a few drops may be enough. Mainly so we don’t drown out the salt, of our cordial lives, of working with a smile on our faces.

Thank you to Jaizki Arteagabeitia Perea for finding this article in Spanish, for telling me about it and for arranging to have it translated into English. And of course thanks to Pilar for giving her permission to reproduce it here!

The article was translated by the nice people at contentspanish.com. Thanks!!

Related:

• Four fantastic phrases at work (includes “thank you!”)
• How to complain constructively
• Pilar Cambra’s blog
• The original version of the article in Spanish : Aceite, vinagre y sal.
• More articles by Pilar Cambra (also in Spanish).

Today I gave a keynote presentation at the web.start conference here in Zagreb, Croatia on happiness in startups.

My 3 main points in the presentation were:

1. Happiness at work will make or break your startup. Creating a great company where people like love working is the #1 success factor.
2. It’s easy. All it takes to make people happy at work is results and relationships. Give them a chance to do work they can be proud of, together with people they like, and they will be happy.
3. Do something. We can all be a part of creating happiness where we are.

So how do you do it? My 8 tips for creating a happy startup are:
1: Skip the boring crap
Why are you slaving over bills and invoices if you really, really hate doing that? Do what you like to do – outsource everything else, preferably to someone who likes it. Yes, there are in fact people out there who enjoy bookkeeping.

2: Screw the business plan
You may be forced to make one to satisfy investors or your bank – but then promptly forget all about it. The world changes too fast for a business plan to be a relevant tool, and trying to run your company according to the plan is an exercise in futility.

3: Dump customers that make you unhappy
As a small company, it’s tempting to hold on to every customer. Don’t. If a customer repeatedly causes trouble and is abrasive, fire their ass. Here’s an example of why that’s such a good idea.

4: Relax & take breaks
Breaks, vacations and pauses are essential to your happiness at work. Not so much for the chance to recuperate, but mostly for the perspective they give you. You need to get away once in a while to see the whole and remind yourself of what you’re doing, rather than being stuck in short-term problem-solving mode.

5: Hire happy people
And the codicil: Hire no assholes. Naturally happy people are a boon to a startup, because they are more energetic, motivated, passionate and creative.

6: Make all decisions based on this: What will make me, my people and my customers happy?
Forget any of these, and you’re probably going in the wrong direction.

7: Celebrate your victories
Every chance you get! That is what give you the energy to get your next victory – and to overcome your next defeat.

8: ask yourself why?
Why are you starting this company? If your reasons are not about making yourself and/or others happy – try again. Why do anything if it won’t make you happy?

Not only do happy companies make more money, but when you’re creating a business, why create one, that won’t make you happy?

And never forget: Happy companies make more money:

I had to share this wonderful cartoon:

By Polyp

There’s also a cool animated version:

Does anyone honestly think that making more money, consuming more stuff, driving a bigger car or bagging that fancy title will make them happier?

It seems that many people consistently focus their time and energy on getting things that won’t make them happy – to the cost of the simple but important factors: Friends, family, meaning and fun.

Ask yourself this: How much of your time is spent doing things that make you or other people happy? And how much racing the other rats in the maze?

Here are some way to get out of the rat race:

• How to lose your fear of being fired
• How to find a job you’ll love
• The top-10 advantages of low-rent living

I think Lily Tomlin said it best:

“The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you’re still a rat.”

Woo-hoo: It seems like this is the year the world outside of Denmark opens its eyes to the importance of happiness at work.

I’m certainly in much demand – just check out my list of international gigs so far:

• May 18: I’m at the Web.start conference in Zagreb, Croatia, where I’ll speak about happiness at work in internet startups.
• June 1: I’m giving a presentation on happiness at work in Stockholm, arranged by 4good, who will be representing me in Sweden. It’s free to participate in the presentation, so if you’re in Stockholm, read all about it here.
• June 28: I’m speaking at the Worldblu gathering for 2007’s most democratic workplaces in Sundance, Utah.
• September 27: I’m doing a key-note presentation and a workshop at a conference about learning in Bucharest, Romania.
• October 10: I’m speaking at a conference in London arranged by the Work Empowerment Foundation.

If you’re coming to any of these events, please look me up – I always love to meet new people.

This is of course in addition to all my speaking gigs here in Denmark, where happiness at work really seems to be an accepted success factor in most businesses.

But busy as I currently am, there’s still room for more international gigs. Hint, hint!