To Be More Resilient in a Crisis, Focus on Meaning, Not Happiness

here are a lot of sad, stressed people out there right now, pacing their homes wondering how to be happier. But is happiness the right goal to chase?

The first clue that the answer might be no comes from Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman, who has argued that most people don’t really aim for happiness. That sounds shocking at first, but once you understand the distinction between happiness and satisfaction it makes perfect sense.

Happiness is the positive feeling you get from a walk in nature or tasty dessert. It’s definitely a good thing. But satisfaction runs deeper. It’s the sense of meaning and accomplishment that comes from a life well lived. At the end of the day, most people value satisfaction more. And the kind of things that bring satisfaction — building a business, raising kids — involve plenty of moment-by-moment unpleasantness.

For most of us, meaning trumps happiness. Experts insist that’s even more true in a crisis…

 

How to build resilience through COVID-19

After facing some of the worst natural disasters in its history, Australia is now affected by the global pandemic COVID-19, leaving many bosses and employees alike, emotionally exhausted and overwhelmed.

While one in five Australians are already vulnerable to mental health issues, this risk is heightened when faced with prolonged isolation, financial stress and, for those front-line workers, fear of contracting the virus, according to the Black Dog Institute.

With this in mind, it’s important that leaders start to strengthen their own and their teams’ ability to cope with the challenges as we move to transitioning into a new reality…