I recently returned from a vacation in Europe, where I was impressed with how happy and content the Europeans are.  The experience made me question how dependent our happiness is upon our government and society in general and how policies that affect our happiness should affect the decisions we make. 

While on my vacation, I was particularly amazed by the transformation I observed in Budapest.  The last time I visited this charming Hungarian city was in 1987, when it was still under Communist rule.  At the time, the grey and gloomy city was seemingly packed with solemn residents.  Today, Budapest is a beautiful, vibrant place, full of relaxed and joyful people. 

We know what makes us happy as individuals – family, friends, a sunny day.  But are there some special social elements that play a role in determining our level of happiness? 

Dan Buettner is an award-winning happiness expert who has been researching what makes us healthy and happy for over 15 years.  The author of the recently published “The Blue Zones of Happiness,” Buettner identified three of the world’s happiest people and followed them throughout their days to learn their best practices for happiness.  As a result of his quest, he discovered three different threads that weave together to create lifelong enjoyment.  He calls them pleasure, purpose, and pride.  By introducing us to these people and exploring the countries where they live, Buettner helps us discover the secrets to what makes Alejandro in Costa Rica, Douglas in Singapore, and Sidse in Denmark much happier than the average human. 

He first followed Alejandro Zúñiga, a healthy, middle-aged Costa Rican father who socializes at least six hours a day and has a handful of trusted friends. He enjoys a diet that is rich in fruits and vegetables, walks to work, gets at least seven hours of sleep, and volunteers a few hours every week.  Although Alejandro loves his job and coworkers, he limits his workweeks to 40 hours.  To sum it up, his daily choices encourage happiness and his Costa Rican neighbors share his attitude. 

Buettner also studied Douglas Foo, a wealthy entrepreneur, who drives a $750,000 BMW when he is not luxuriating in his $10 million house. He is married, with four polite children who are exceptional students.  Douglas put himself through school while working four jobs and started a company that became an international success valued at $59 million. Even though he is a dedicated executive, he finds time to dedicate to his philanthropic passions, earning him the respect of employees, colleagues, and community members. While he admits that he worked very hard to achieve his success, Douglas confides that he could not have created this life anywhere other than Singapore.

The third happy human Buettner followed is Sidse Clemmensen, a woman with a devoted partner and three young children.  She is a sociologist who lives in a friendly, communal neighborhood, where families share meals, chores, and childcare.  Although she pays high taxes, she and her family get guaranteed healthcare and education, along with secured retirement income.  Throughout her country of Denmark, people live in happy comfort, secure in the knowledge that their government will take care of them.

As Buettner points out, Alejandro, Douglas, and Sidse illustrate his three different strands of joy that harmoniously intertwine to produce eternal happiness. Like many of his fellow Costa Ricans, Alejandro lives life to the fullest in a society that relieves stress and emphasizes happiness. Scientists call this type of pleasure “experienced happiness” and it is measured by determining how often a people smile, laugh, or feel joy.  According to Buettner, Costa Rica is not only the happiest country in Latin America, but it is also a country where people feel more pleasure or “experienced happiness” than nearly any other place in the world.

Typical of Singapore’s apparent obsession with individual drive and success, Douglas exhibits a strong sense of pride and motivation for success and accomplishment.  Researchers at Project Happy also call this the “life satisfaction” strand of happiness and measure it by asking people to rate their lives on a scale of zero to 10.  According to Buettner, life satisfaction is the best predictor of well-being, and Singapore consistently ranks first in Asia for life satisfaction.

Sidse embodies a brand of happiness typified in the purpose-driven life of Danes. Like other characteristics of happiness, the purpose-driven life assumes that one’s basic needs will be provided so that people can pursue their passions at work as well as at home.  Scholars refer to this as “eudaimonic,” a Greek term that defines happiness in terms of the degree to which a person is fully functioning. In Aristotle’s works, eudaimonic was used to describe the highest human good, believing that true happiness comes from leading a purposeful life.  Denmark, a country that consistently tops Europe’s happiness rankings, makes it relatively easy to live a purposeful life. 

Alejandro, Douglas, and Sidse are strongly dedicated to their ambitions, but they pursue them in a manner that still seems to foster happiness.  In some part, they are able to do this because their societies support them and help drive them towards behaviors that foster long-term happiness.  As results of these reports imply, we should all feel inspired to be socially aware and involved in the factors that shape our happiness.  The next time you cast a vote, support a cause, or choose how to spend your precious time, ask yourself how that decision will impact your happiness.