Both in Britain and the United States scientists have been studying the concept of happiness. It is believed that happiness can now be measured and therefore it is the responsibility of governments to develop policies which improve the happiness of its citizens.
Here in Britain Professor Richard Layard is following in the footsteps of the King of Bhutan and putting happiness on the political agenda. He is planning to have CBT taught in British schools as a way of strengthening emotional intelligence.
It is believed, by a number of psychologists that emotional intelligence is more important than intellectual intelligence in terms of success and happiness. The author will explore concepts of happiness and the ways in which the coaching profession contributes to strengthening happiness.
Studies into happiness
A study by the BBC Press Office (2006) states that although Britons are twice as well off as they were in the 1950s they are no happier. Eight of ten people wanted the key objective of the government to be “to make people happier” The vast majority (81%) of British people wanted happiness to be the main concern for the government and only 13% thought it should be to make people wealthier.
Historical perspective
The idea of happiness being important to human development is not new; the Greek philosopher Epicurus (306 BC) dedicated much of his time to the question of happiness. He argued that “although wealth was unlikely to make anyone miserable, wealth alone would not make people truly happy”. He went on to say that “if we had money without friends, freedom and an analysed life, we will never be truly happy; and if we have them but are missing a fortune, we will never be unhappy” (cited in Consolations of Philosophy by Alain De Botton 2006)
Epicurus divided our needs into three categories of desires; some are natural and necessary, others are natural and unnecessary and some are neither natural nor necessary.
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Natural and Necessary |
Natural but unnecessary |
Neither natural or necessary |
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Friends Freedom Thought - about the main sources of anxiety- death, illness, poverty and superstition |
Grand house Private baths Banquets Servants Fish and meat |
Fame Power |
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Epicurus believed that happiness is dependant on a number of psychological factors and not based on material wealth, save for having the means to provide food, shelter and cloths. He found no correlation between increased wealth and greater happiness.
Many Greek philosophers including Aristotle believed that “a rich man is a person who has enough.” Aristotle 38 – 322 BC.
The idea of appreciating what one has is encouraged within the coaching relationship and coaching tools support individuals to cherish what they have, not what they don’t have. In pursuit of this coaches encourage clients to keep a Gratitude Journal to re wire the brain to appreciate what they have. Jack Canfield and D.D Watkins explain this principle in detail in Honour and Appreciate the Abundance in Your Life (2007)
What Social Scientists say about happiness
Abraham Maslow proposed in his 1943 paper A Theory of Human Motivation, that human happiness resulted from meeting all ones hierarchical needs starting with basic needs and building up to more advanced needs like a pyramid. Starting with basic needs, like food and shelter and moving through to self actualisation. Once the four lower levels are met, time and effort can be devoted to seeking to satisfy growth needs; it is these needs that the coaching professional focus on. Something which Maslow refers to as Self Actualisation included:-
Morality
Creativity
Spontaneity
Problem solving
Lack of prejudice
Acceptance of facts.
Maslow’s hierachy of needs would suggest that in a countries where the basic needs of the population have been met that the people would be happy; but is this the case in the West?
Captalism and Ego
Western captalism works hand in hand with the ego which believes that things outside ourselves bring happiness.We are bombarded with marketing messages designed to make us feel insecure and dissatified. Adverts suggest that if we purchase a particular car we will be imbued with a set of psychological characteristics for example “ it may be a 4×4 that we purchase but it was freedom that we were looking for” ( Alain De Botton 2006)
Products give the impression that we can be part of a select, sophisticated group if we buy this or that product. This in turn sets off a series of emotional responses “I need, I want, I must have”. But all these thoughts about what we “need” simply add to the sum of human suffering. For some people the gap between aspiration and reality becomes wider and painful for others they achieve material success only to find that it does not give them the satisfaction they expected (David Bates Tree of life Coaching 2008)
According to Judith Summer Brown Professor at Naropa University Colorado the origin of suffering is our constant craving; we want therefore we consume,we want therefore we suffer.
This whole pattern gives us the impression that we can only be happy by external things; purchasing things that we do not need perpeturates the myth that happiness exists out there,that something is missing within us that must be safisified by an external source (Buddhist Philosopher Daisaku Ikeda 2008)
What is happiness?
Professor A.C Grayling suggests that instead fo talking about happiness we need to specifically talk about satisfaction, achievement, interest, engagement, enjoyment, growth and the constant opening of fresh possibilities. The activities that yield these things are challenging and take effort and determination. “A person in the midst of doing something objectively worthwhile may not describe himself as happy, usually because he is too absorbed to notice; only later will he realise that what it is to be happy is to be absorbed in something worthwhile” Printed in the Daily Telegraph June 2008)
A man is poor, however, who despite owning millions of pounds is restless and yarns for more because he feels that he cannot have enough, and in particular who lacks the things that money cannot buy; friendship, love, a sound digestion and the natural ability to sleep at night. These factors are inseparable to the possiblity of happiness and things that money cannot buy.(Alain De Botton 2006)
The true equation between happiness and wealth according to Professor A.C Grayling is this: that happiness is wealth. Unlike wealth, in the form of money and possessions, happiness cannot be quantified only felt, and if one has it, it does not matter if the level changes. ( cited on the Positive Psychology message board June 2008)
Measuring Happiness
Measuring happiness is difficult by the very nature of its subjectivity, however the Macroeconomic of Happiness Research Team produced the following equation:-
W =a +Bx it +E it . In this equation W is reported as well-being of the individual i at the time, t and x is a vector of known variables, which include socio-demographic and socio-economic characteristics. (Rafael Ditella, Robert Macculloch and Andrew J Oswald 2001)
How Coaching Strengthens Happiness
Whether we are happy or not is matter a choice. According to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy there is an indisputable link between our
THOUGHTS = FEELINGS = ACTIONS
Whether we are happy or not is largely to do with choice. This may sound like a tall order but with careful coaching clients can strengthen their personal power by developing and understanding that they have one thing that they can fully control their thoughts. According to Brian Tracy “the only thing we truly have control over is our thoughts.” The Psychology of Achievement 1984 he went on to say- People are happy when they are “in control”, that is, when they feel competent to satisfy their needs and reach their goals.
“We are what we think. All that we are arises within our thoughts. With our thoughts we make the world. The Buddha circa 563- 483 BC.
Understanding that we can control what we think.
With the aid of a professional Life Coach individual’s can learn to notice their thought patterns and decide whether such thoughts are helpful or not. Careful questioning enables individuals to understand how they have been hard wired to think and react in a certain way. Coaching effectively helps individuals to gain control over their thoughts and encourages them to replace unhelpful, judgmental thoughts, with accepting and empowering ones.
Coaches have many tools at their disposal to encourage a change of thought patterns and strengthen positive thought processes. Here are just a few of the tools available to Coaches adapted from the Power Tools Module located at learn.icoachacademy.com/powertools
Responsibility v Blame
Many people, when they hear the word “responsibility” immediately associate it with burden or having to carry a load. Ironically it is exactly the opposite. Responsibility leads to freedom. The feeling of having freedom is directly linked to the feeling of happiness.
When we blame others or ourselves (self blame is having a guilty conscious) we disempowered ourselves, and in so doing, deplete our energy levels. Choose to take responsibility for dealing/managing a problem. This then creates feelings of empowerment and freedom.
Trust v Doubt
This power tool can be applied quickly and easily and lead to a change of perspective from negative to positive. It can be applied to any situation, both big and small. If we believe, and trust that the universe is looking after us, rather than conspiring against us and ready to trip us up. This shift helps to manage stressful and, fearful situations. Living with a sense of trust gives us as sense of confidence and security which again brings freedom into our lives and in so doing increases a sense of happiness.
Response v Reaction.
When we react to some thing we get hooked in and behave without any aforethought. When we respond we apply our intelligence. The act of response becomes an act of freedom and consequently has power within it. It is by definition an action of responsibility. Reaction however, comes from somewhere in the past and leads us to get sucked in to events in the past and getting stuck in the same old pattern. By applying this positive psychology it enables us to stay in the present, the here and now. By practicing a mental attitude of being in the here and now (living in the present) happiness levels can increase because individuals can practice the power of choice.
Action v Delay
The art of coaching is goal orientated we know that when a person decides on a goal or to fulfil a desire; we must first conceive an idea, having an idea is the first step; we then create a plan and know what it is we want. Action brings results, talking about what you are going to do someday will not! Ideas without action are worthless. By taking action we create the movement that is necessary to make things happen. In so doing Coaches assist their clients to have a sense of direction and a purpose and research has indicated that having purpose is one of the necessary ingredients of a happy state of mind.
For a more detailed look at using power tools in the coaching relationship refer to learnicoachacademy.com
Conclusion
Having established that there is no link between material wealth and happiness save for having enough money to provide food and shelter the key to happiness is to have friends, goals, and purpose and positive thoughts.
There is a well documented link between thoughts and feelings “As a man thinketh in his heart so he is” (James Allen 1902). A person is literally what they think about all day long; their character is the sum of their thoughts.
With these firmly established coaches have a major part to play in improving happiness because this profession has the tools and the skills in which to enable individuals to consider a problem from a different perspective and let go of unhelpful thinking. The happiest people in the world are those who feel absolutely terrific about themselves, and this is the natural outgrowth of accepting total responsibility for every part of their life (Brian Tracy 1884).
