Dr. George Land was hired by NASA to develop a highly specialized test that would measure the creative potential of its rocket scientists and engineers, and along with his associate he developed a test that was accurate and simple. Partially because of its simplicity, he decided to test it on 1600 children between ages 4 and 5 and was amazed to discover 98% scored at genius level. Pretty spectacular, right?
He was so impressed he decided to continue testing the same children at five-year intervals and was shocked with the next test results. After five years the children’s genius level had dropped to only 30% (that’s a 68% decline). And you guessed it, five years later the kids were down to 12%. Later Land tested adults and you probably won’t be surprised to learn that only 2% of adults tested at genius level. Something happens to us between four and five and adulthood!
Wake up Creative Juices
We can’t roll back the clock of course, but we can do some amazing things to start waking up our brain’s creative juices in order to be more effective and productive in our work and play. We are not born with or without a creative gene, it’s learnable, even if we are no longer in that 98% genius ranking.
Creativity, it seems, as well as longevity, health and productivity, can all stem from deciding to start being happier at work, and making it a priority for all employees.
Great Argument for Eating Well
Happiness has a positive effect on nearly every metric of human performance. We already know exercise and healthy eating impact how we feel, but did you know that the brain produces only 10% of the serotonin (neurotransmitter contributing to feelings of well-being and happiness) and the stomach produces 90%? Pretty good argument for eating both healthy and well.
There is no rule that says we can’t have fun at work, which is the premise of Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh’s best seller, Delivering Happiness. His incredibly successful company is run on the premise that when the employees are really happy, everything else is going to work, and work well.
Below are a few of the myriad ways we can start to actually be happy at work (and elsewhere). Think about it, either we are living our resume or our eulogy every day. Are we living each day the way we want to be remembered and the way we really want to live (joyful, inspiring, etc.) or are we following a prescription on our resume that usually means working as many hours as possible to prove our success? No one, as far as I know, ever lamented on their death bed that they didn’t stay longer at work to answer more emails. Another advantage of every-day happiness; no regrets.
Happiness Jump-Starters
Before bed each night for a week write at least five things that went well during the day. Maybe the line at Starbucks was short, or you saw a red-shouldered hawk as you were getting in your car. The more we appreciate what went well and direct our focus, the more we’ll attract positive opportunities. Aggravations occur, but it’s never what happens to us, it’s what we choose to do about it.
Give no air time to ANTS (Automatic Negative Thoughts), focus on what’s going right instead. It’s easy to get in a conversation about what isn’t working. Refusing to get into that conversation has a surprising impact on how we think and feel. Catch friends and colleagues doing something right, and get in a habit of telling them.
Write down three things that make you smile and do the exercise for a week. Don’t forget to smile while you’re thinking of your three things; the brain releases feel-good neurotransmitters including dopamine, endorphins and serotonin when we smile, not to mention we look better as well.
Create one new habit that will enhance your life. It might be using your phone to photograph nature each day as you’re waiting for your ride or celebrating with your family by trying a new recipe every Friday night and then really savoring the experience and taste. By the way, try out different experiences and rate them 1-5. If it’s a 5 make it a new habit. If it’s not then pat yourself on the back for trying something new, and say “yes” to a variety of new experiences.
Write a story about your Best Possible Future Self. You’ve done what you’ve wanted in life, in fact things turned out even better than expected. Write in detail how your life is going and then look at what steps you need to take to make that life your current reality. It’s never too late to change anything, and it starts with small, focused steps. When we are working toward something we are happier; we’re making progress.
