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First: Elements of Happiness:

§                  Purpose: liking what you do each day and being motivated to achieve your goals

§                  Social: having supportive relationships and love in your life

§                  Financial: managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security

§                  Community: liking where you live, feeling safe, and having pride in your community

§                  Physical: having good health and enough energy to get things done daily

World’s happiest country? Where and Why?

 Positive people: Panama's population has plenty to smile about. Photo:theguardian.com

For years we have been told it is the dark, cold, but seriously egalitarian Scandinavia – with Denmark heading the majority of lists of our most contented countries. But suddenly there is a new leader in the satisfaction stakes: Panama.

A poll by Gallup and Healthways Global reports that the Central American country now has the most positive population, after 133,000 people from 135 countries were asked to rate their wellbeing in five categories: purpose, social, financial, community and physical.

The Central American country topped four of the categories, with neighbour Costa Rica closely following as the second happiest country. Denmark, for once, came a mournful third. So what makes people in Panama so cheery?

Cultural attache for Panama, Laura Montenegro, thinks it is down to the fact the country has a thriving economy and has maintained its traditional values. “Family bonds are very strong here, and on Sundays everyone still gets together,” she says. “So even when people are struggling they don’t feel alone. We have a very beautiful landscape too and even in Panama city you never feel too far from nature. We have a booming economy and financial stability. When the global financial crisis hit, Panama came out of  it even better than before, because our banks had been very cautious.”

But what of the Danes? We have heard much about their society’s strengths – from state-subsidised childcare to having one of the smallest wealth gaps in the world. Yet despite this, younger Danes are less likely than their older countrymen to report themselves as “thriving”.

Guardian journalist and author of How to be Danish Patrick Kingsley thinks an increased sense of individuality among the young might be why the country is losing its happy crown.

“The Danes aren’t exactly all grinning from ear to ear ... but they’re more contented than most. When Danes leave home in the morning, they don’t see many people who are markedly better off than themselves – and this breeds a sense of social solidarity, and by extension, contentedness.

“But the reason why so many Danish brands – from The Killing to Noma to the architect Bjarke Ingels – have recently made it big outside Denmark is because a younger generation of Danes are doing things differently. Perhaps this increased individuality, coupled with uncertainty about the future of Denmark’s welfare state, has threatened the traditional Danish formula for contentedness.”

Of course, they are still ahead of glum Great Britain, which is 76th on the list – mostly because we don’t like our jobs. “Though Britons are strong in financial wellbeing, they are much weaker in purpose wellbeing, suggesting that many workers do not enjoy what they do each day,” the report says.

But the situation is not hopeless. Now the UK’s economy is improving, employers might be more inclined to ensure staff are happy at work. Phew!”

*The above article was first published in the Guardian on 17 September 2014:

World’s happiest country: how did Panama overtake Denmark? | World news | The Guardian 

Read more:

Country Well-Being Varies Greatly Worldwide | Healthways Blog

Adam Smith and the Pursuit of Happiness

Ten Virtues to Lead a Good Life

In Search of Meaning in Life: Happiness Revealed

Implications of Gallup and Healthways’ findings:

“Objective measures including GDP, life expectancy, and employment statistics are important and useful in assessing a country’s “success,” as are historical trends over time. However, the concept of subjective well-being encompasses the broader aspects of a life well-lived.

Gallup and Healthways research has shown that people with higher well-being are healthier, more productive, and more resilient in the face of challenges such as unemployment. People with higher well-being bounce back faster, are better able to take care of their own basic needs, and feel better able to contribute to and support the success of their organizations, communities, or countries.

Subjective well-being does not necessarily correlate with GDP, the presence of conflict, or other absolute indicators. Residents in poor countries may report that they have high well-being in certain well-being elements while those in wealthy countries may report that they have low well-being in particular elements. War-torn populations such as those in Syria may have extremely low well-being, but low levels are also found in countries that are relatively stable, such as Croatia and Italy.

There are policy implications for country leadership, development organizations, employers, health insurers (private and governmental), and others in the well-being status of their constituents. For example, Mexico has relatively high physical well-being scores. However, the country overtook the U.S. in 2013 as the most obese country in the Western Hemisphere and grapples with a high rate of diabetes. Diabetes and heart disease are the two most common causes of death in Mexico. While the physical well-being element captures more than just obesity, the high scores on this element in Mexico reveal areas where education is needed to help the population become more aware of health and healthy behaviors, and make better choices.

Because subjective well-being can correlate with outcomes such as healthcare costs, productivity, and business performance, world leaders should consider well-being, in addition to objective measures such as GDP, to provide a better picture of progress toward specific policy and development goals.”

Source:

Country Well-Being Varies Greatly Worldwide | Healthways Blog

“5 Lessons in happiness I learned from travel”*

Photo: wordpress.com

Gratitude

The nearest place to get food to me right now is 30 meters away, I have access to clean water, i’m educated, I have a car, somewhere to live, a shower, healthcare and all my limbs. Be grateful for what you have, there are millions of people around the world who would give almost anything to be where you are now. Its nothing more than a lucky roll of the cosmic dice that you ended up where you are, so stop taking things for granted and be grateful for everything you have.

Humility

If you buy $400 jeans are you a bad person? Yes, yes you are. You don’t need $400 jeans. Don’t ever confuse needs with wants. Look up at the stars and always remember you are an infinitely small speck of dust, flickering into existence for a fraction of an instant on a pale blue dot and then treat everyone around you with respect and never act like a dickhead, we’re all in this together and no one’s getting out alive!

Community and Relationships

The most important things in your life are the relationships you share, friends, family, partners and the wider community. These relationships are what really make you happy and enrich your life more than anything else. Some of the poorest people on the plant have a better sense of community than most of us in the 1st world, they share, integrate and look after each other in a way that some people in The West would never understand. Travel has taught me to treasure these relationships and always be open to new friends and connections with new people.

An open mind

New ideas are the lifeblood of innovation and change, travel will broaden your mind in a way that nothing else can, new ideas keep you fresh and an open mind will make you more accepting of change, different opinions and generally a better more well rounded person. Change is inevitable, those who can’t change will be left behind, accept it and move on, travel will help you do that.

The Unimportance of Material Things 

When you live out of a bag the key is simplicity and minimalism, the philosophy of less is more applies here. Treasure relationships and experiences not things, things can be fun but they don’t matter, how does a shinier watch make you a better person? Don’t waste time or money on the unimportant, ignore the Joneses and remember to always question why you ‘want’ something you probably don’t need.

The problem with the pursuit of happiness is that you are always pursuing it. Like Wylie Coyote after the Roadrunner or a donkey following a carrot into infinity, we’re always going to be chasing it but never actually catching anything. We don’t need a Tony Robbins seminar or some other dodgy self help ‘guru’ to show us the way, we already have all the answers. Embrace your relationships, look at the stars and be grateful for your lucky roll of the cosmic dice and just be happy, most people never have the chances we do and travel is the best way I know to remember that.

*See the original source:

Lessons in happiness learned from long term travel