A wealth of research has been done over the past few years on happiness – why it’s so important to be happy, how to measure your own happiness and of course, how to improve your own happiness. Yet we’re all so busy on a day-to-day basis, that trying to focus on happiness can seem like a luxury.

It’s important to know why happiness is such a big deal. Here are a few proven by- products of happiness that just might surprise you!

•    It feels good. Perhaps this is the most obvious benefit: it feels better day-to-day if you’re happy than it does if you’re unhappy.  This benefit isn’t just psychological — happier people live better, and live longer.

•    Happier people do better in their jobs. A recent study found that happy people make more money and obtain better job performance reviews than do unhappy people.

•    Happier people are more creative. People who experience positive emotions on a regular basis are better at a wide variety of mental tasks that tap things like self-discipline, creativity, and decision-making.

•    Happier people are more resilient. People who are optimistic about the future, and about their ability to make an impact on their future, are better suited to persevere in the face of adversity and find opportunities for growth. It turns out that positive emotions are a key ingredient of resilience in the face of adversity.

•    Happier people have better relationships. Being happy makes people more interested in befriending you. When we are happy, we behave in certain ways that make people enjoy being around us more. The friends we already have will be more likely to stick with us when the chips are down if the chips aren’t always down.

For more information on the science of happiness, view the 60+ exclusive videos from the happier.com experts.  The videos are free but they require a 3-question registration.

What do you think?  Have you come across any research findings about happiness that surprise you?

Feel free to leave comments at the end of this post.

This is adapted from a post originally published on Not Just the Kitchen.

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