Before we even begin, you need to watch Shawn Achor’s Ted Talk on happiness. Seriously. Do it now. Great! Now we can start.

Think for a moment about what success means to you. Is it money? The ability to travel? Work-life balance (which is really just life if you think about it)? Time freedom? A little cabin in the woods? A home in our lovely town? Just to be happy? 

Success is defined by you. I would posit that almost all of us include happiness somewhere in our definition of success. We often think that happiness is a byproduct of success. However, we get so caught up in the metrics of success that we can forget about why we started doing what we are doing in the first place!

I don’t know about you, but I started my career to positively impact people. I didn’t anticipate all the things that went into me just being able to do what I love to do. There are aspects of my career that I don’t like (I’m looking at you Social Media Marketing!) The aspects I do love far outweigh the things I don’t. What I am getting to is that I find joy in what I do. I get a genuine sense of fulfillment when I get to work with people and teams. 

Think about what you are doing for your current career. Does it fulfill you? Or, like most people (roughly 70% of US workers are disengaged in the workplace Gallup polls show), do you feel a sense of dread when you have to go into the office or workplace? 

What makes a difference for you? 

If you are gauging your happiness on your level of success, you are doing it backwards! Reaching our goals is awesome, and it gives us a temporary feeling of euphoria, but the feeling fades, and we have to start the process over again each time we succeed! If we focus on being happy, success will be a byproduct. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have goals, but that’s for another post.

Here are a few tips for building some happiness in your daily life. 

1. Write down the three things that you are grateful for every day. This programs your mind over time to look for the positive things in life. 
2. Give back to those around you. Find a cause you care about and start supporting the people that are making a difference in that specific area.
3. TAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF! This is non-negotiable. You need to recharge your batteries to be the best that you can be for your business and clients. Make sure to schedule YOU time!

No matter your profession, you deserve happiness to be a part of it. If you find yourself dreading going to work, take the time to figure out why and then do something to move in a positive direction for yourself. As always, if you are stuck or need a hand figuring things out, reach out to someone who can help you out.  

Here’s to your happiness and success! 

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Geoff McLachlan is a Speaker, Trainer, and Coach. He is also the founder of Professionals at Play - an organization that helps businesses become places where people love to work.