Center for Workplace Happiness

Pardon me if I burst into rhyme in this podcast – I’ll do my best to refrain from channeling Dr. Seuss.

Did you have his books when you were a child? If you have children, do your children enjoy his silly words, rhymes and deep wisdom? Yes, wisdom from Dr. Seuss – his books are filled with wisdom and life skills tucked in among the colorful pictures.

One of my favorite Dr. Seuss-isms is “you have to be odd to be number one.” Or maybe that’s a quote attributed to him and he never said it. It sounds like he should have so let’s say that he did.

We’re all a bit odd in some way, and sadly many of us are more concerned with fitting in, so we try to hide our oddness. It’s that oddness that makes us unique, so embrace your inner odd, let it shine and get set to be number one!

Want more? Click here for a free audio course, "Happiness is an Inside Job"

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Are you a type-A personality? Driven to achieve, a bit of a perfectionist and someone who moves from goal to goal without stopping to celebrate your achievements? A lot of leaders are just like that, so if that’s you, you’re in good company.

A lot of leaders suffer from stress, lack of work/life balance and disillusionment, and if that’s you, then here’s an easy tool to help you find more balance and pleasure in life – focus on the steps toward the goal instead of the goal itself.

Let’s say the goal is to ride a horse from one end of a 5-mile road to the other – break that goal into the steps it will take to accomplish it. First, brush the horse down. Enjoy the peace of being in the company of a willing partner. Tack the horse up – bridle, reins, saddle blanket and saddle. Marvel at the training that’s gone into the horse as it patiently allows you to dress it. Get into the saddle. Enjoy your new view of the world from a higher...

Someone has done you wrong. You could probably tell the story of how they broke a promise, took something you valued or even physically harmed you. And to a lot of people, the worst part of that wrongdoing is that the person never owned it, never apologized, never made amends. They just went on with their life, leaving you to deal with the aftermath.

How do I know this about you?

Because everyone has at least one of these stories. Stop telling the story. Stop picking the scab off. Stop defining yourself by an old wound.

They never apologized? So what – pretend they did so you can move on. We’ve talked before about how your brain can’t tell the difference between an actual event or the memory of the event – harness this brainpower to make yourself feel better.

Change the story – the person is remorseful and wishes they hadn’t hurt you. They’ve grown and changed over time and one day they get the strength to show up on your doorstep,...

Have you ever counseled a friend and said something like, “you’re looking for love in all the wrong places?” Heck, there’s even at least one old country song with that title!

Brain science is clear – humans gravitate to the familiar, even when it’s bad for them. This is as true of relationships as it is with food, tobacco and alcohol.

One of the main ways most humans create their own stress is by looking to others for appreciation, acknowledgement and love. Maybe you know someone who is completely driven by the need for recognition – it gets exhausting, doesn’t it? Sometimes they’re sulky for no apparent reason, and it’s because they need to feel loved and appreciated and don’t.

Love, appreciation, acknowledgement, and recognition feels good and here’s the secret – it feels real when it comes from us first. When you love and appreciate yourself, you don’t need it from others.

And when you’re...

Possibly the most potent word in any language is “possibility.”

The possibility of something is where innovation happens. The possibility of improvement is where change happens. The king of harnessing the power of possibilities was inventor Thomas Edison, who said “When you’ve exhausted all possibilities, remember this – you haven’t.”

If something is feeling impossible to you today, shift your focus to something else. Dwelling on something that feels impossible usually makes it feel less possible, not more possible.

Borrow my mental game – when I don’t know how to do something I give it to the committee in the back of my head. By that I mean I hand off the need to think about it until a good idea occurs to me. When it does, I give the credit to the committee in the back of my head and celebrate their brilliance.

Behold the possibilities of possibility!

Want more? Click here for a free audio course, "Happiness is an...

Were you taught to say “please” and “thank you” when you were a child? In my family those words were called magical, and what we wanted didn’t happen without a “please” attached to it, so they did feel kind of magical.

And “thank you” has a hidden, even more magical power.

Most of us remember – at lease some of the time – to thank those who do things for us. When we thank them we make that other person feel good, which makes them more likely to do nice things in the future. That’s a powerful way to impact the world, and yet there’s another power that “thank you” has – it’s a polite way to ignore unsolicited advice.

People give advice because they want to help you, yet often the advice is unwelcome, unwanted and unuseful. (is that even a word?) Instead of arguing with or ignoring the person who’s trying to help you, say “thank you.” Nothing else – just...

Happy Giving Tuesday! You will probably be hit up a lot today, if you haven’t been already, by people asking for money for a good cause. Donating money to worthy causes is part of the Giving Tuesday mission and is a long way from all of it.

Today is the 10th Giving Tuesday, so it’s still pretty new. Non-profits were quick to catch on and tie donation requests to the concept, so if that’s all you know about Giving Tuesday, can I share more? Giving Tuesday isn’t just about today and money, it’s about reminding you that every day can be Giving Tuesday, and any kind of giving is perfectly appropriate.

• Random Monday in March, and you complimented someone on their smile? Happy Giving Tuesday!
• Kind of a blah Thursday in May, and you helped an elderly neighbor carry their groceries into the house? Happy Giving Tuesday!
• Sweltering Saturday morning in July and you donated blood? Happy Giving Tuesday!

Giving Tuesday was designed for all these kinds of giving,...

There are a lot of cliches about laughter:

• Laughter is the best medicine.
• Laugh until you cry.
• Laugh all the way to the bank.
• He who laughs last laughs loudest.
• I’ll be having the last laugh.
• I’m not laughing at you, I’m laughing with you.

There is no doubt that laughter is good for you, body and soul. Laughing releases your body’s feel-good chemicals, lowering your blood pressure and easing stress. Laughing with a group of people creates a release of oxytocin, the hormone closely related to feelings of connectedness, community and caring. Laughter therapy has even been incorporated into chemotherapy regimens, which seems to help cancer patients handle the chemo better and has been associated in some research studies with better long-term survival rates.

There’s a ton of evidence that laughter is good for you, so making ways to intentionally add more levity into your day is a great idea. The bad news about laughter is that, no matter how hard you try,...

Are you someone who finds yourself in arguments more than a couple of times a week? Or maybe you live with or work with someone who likes to argue?

What’s the argument really about?

Arguments are almost never about what they seem to be about – it’s not whether or not the trash is staying in the kitchen too long or the pants are hanging on the hanger wrong or the copier paper trays were all left empty…again!

People who argue a lot do it because they want recognition and validation, and if they have to argue to get it, so be it.

In a supportive environment, that recognition and validation will happen naturally – that’s how great teams operate. In an environment that might be lacking empathy and understanding between team members, arguments are the natural outgrowth. People want to find a solution that will solve a problem, once and for all. In a supportive environment, they work together to solve it. Otherwise, they argue and nothing gets solved.

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When did that phrase “use your words” become popular? Best guess is sometime in the late 1980’s or early 90’s when it started showing up in parenting books, television shows and comedian’s stand-up routines.

While it’s an odd way to phrase it, “use your words” is great advice.

We all think people understand us way more than they do. Even those closest to us don’t know what’s really going on inside our heads and our hearts. So – when you’re feeling frustrated, say so. When you’re feeling elated, say so. Sad? Share with someone close to you how you’re feeling. Angry? Don’t make people guess why – say what you need to say. Feel like you were wrong? Apologize. Out loud. To the person who needs to hear it.

Our ability with language sets us apart from most of the other mammals on the planet. Our inability to use it when emotions are strong is the cause of almost all the misunderstandings in our...