Were you suprised by the countries identified as the world's happiest places or best places to live? Or perhaps curious about what it is exactly that makes the people in Denmark,Finland, Sweden, Norway, and the Netherlands the "happiest" people in the world?
This interesting and often humorous article is by a Washington Post writer who traveled to Denmark to learn the answer. Why Are the Danes So Happy? It's the Simple Things
Back in 2008, 60 Minutes also did a segment on the world's happiest places. You can watch the video or read the transcript.
If happiness is something we're seeking, what can we learn from the Danes?
- Kathy Wood
- Kathy Wood
4 comments:
Well, I think Americans can learn an infinite amount from the Danes. First of all, we need to have more modest and more realistic expectations so that when we meet those short term reachable goals, we will be happy and successful and can pat ourselves on the back. If we set our goals too unattainably high, then we will be unhappy that we never reach them. Also, when Danes experience setbacks, they don't get too disappointed; rather, they just keep trucking along with their lives. Americans, on the other hand, fall into deep cycles of depression when things don't go their way (in some circumstances, not everyone). Also, they have 37-hour work weeks and 6 weeks of vacation...I'm sure all of America would benefit from that type of structure, but the tradeoff is that when you're not working, you're not making money and making money is seemingly way more important to Americans than Danes. Finally, there is little disparity of wealth and little violence in Denmark. They don't have to be anxious like we do. All of these things lead to the Danes being ultra laid-back people. I'm jealous! This sounds a lot better than being stressed out trying to be perfect and live the American dream.
I wholeheartedly agree with you Edie on this one. Sometimes the bar has to be set lower in order to achieve satisfaction and happiness. I was having a conversation with a friend of mine 2 weeks ago and he began a job earning 26,000 gbp a year in the uk (equivalent of $40,000), yet is afforded 25 days annual holiday by his company. He is a recent graduate, and to my mind that is great money to be on, and with 5 weeks holiday to boot. In America, students on average earn the same coming out of college, yet seem to be working 3 weeks more in order to earn that. I wish that things were less intense over here, and that the media were not able to influence people into believing they need to be perfect and always have the next big thing. Although as a Marketing and Logistics major I may be in trouble if this became a reality.
Qahir, I am jealous of your friend's job! In Hong Kong, fresh grads are somehow nothing to companies. Holding a degree is just an entry level to many companies. Many of my graduated friends are working 6 days a week, earning just HKD$8000-13000 which is around USD$1000-1625. With the gloomy economy, everyone was in so much pressure. Not to mention they have to work overtime most of the times, the housing in Hong Kong is ridiculously expensive! Therefore, when I come to America, (although I know the economy here is bad too), I think working here is still better than working in Hong Kong. This makes me wonder whether the Danes are really that happy. I think back in home, we all have many problems and pressure to deal with so we always think other countries are better than our own. Is this really true? Are other countries really better or they just provide us a picture to escape from our problems?
I found the 60 minutes video covering this to be very funny. I can understand how having lower expectations can help reap greater rewards. It's a good way to look at things. However, I do not believe that someone can truly measure happiness. I also believe that happiness is a matter of perspective. Everyone has a different reason to be happy. Just as one person may find in one things, another person may not. There is bound to be someone who finds "more" happiness living in a lower ranked country than they would living in Denmark.
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