Improve Your Health, Improve Your Income: Why Happy People Earn More

A reader, Ben, sent this as a guest post. I identified with it immediately. I’ve found that as I improve one area of my life, other areas seem to fall in place. It’s one of the main themes at Be Better Now.

We all have that person in our lives we love to hate. They are the ones who have it all. They have the nice house, the beautiful wife and worst of all, they are always smiling. New research is finally indicating what we already know; happy people earn more. Why is it that happy people are not only lucky enough to be happy, they earn more to boot? The reason is that the two go hand in hand. If you want to make more this New Year, try to improve your overall health and happiness, it will have a positive effect on your pocketbook and career as well. These are the six reasons that being happier will help you be more financially successful.

1. You will be more productive

When people are happy, they have much more energy. The reason that depression is called “depression” is because when someone is unhappy, it puts them in a depressive state. That makes everything they do less productive. In fact, a study done at the University of Warwick found that happy people are on the average 12% more productive than those who aren’t happy. Being productive will lead you down the path to more opportunity and better career growth.

2. You will be more optimistic

There is nothing that can tank any career quicker than a “Negative Nelly”. Being negative about your future, financing, and your chances for success, create a self-fulfilling prophecy. Not only do people who are negative not take the chances necessary to excel, when there are opportunities available, but they also don’t notice them or take advantage of them. Not feeling in control of their own destiny, negative individuals don’t generally rise to the top.

3. You won’t miss work due to illness

Happier people tend to be more healthy overall. Research at Illinois Wesleyan University found that, on the average, happy people spent 15 days less out sick during the year than those who reported themselves as being “unhappy.” Even more, they lived up to ten years longer than those who were perpetually unhappy. Improve your happiness, improve your health, it really is that easy.

4. You will build better relationships and networks

Any smart businessman knows that being successful is all about networking and business relationships. When someone is happy, they are more likable. That makes others want to be around them. When someone is not fun to be around, they are more likely to be passed up for a promotion, or not invited to hang out on potential networking building opportunities.

Happy people are also more liable to receive better performance reviews and to be viewed favorably by their cohorts and managers. Working better with others, being happy can make you more popular, personally and professionally.

5 You will like yourself more

When you are happy, you are more likely to invest in yourself and believe that you are worthy of good things and praise. Taking care of yourself, happy people are more liable to work out, to take better care of themselves, and to ask for promotions and opportunities believing themselves worthy of them. When you are happier, you are more willing to put yourself, and your own success, above others. That is key to a positive financial future.

6 You will be a part of making things better not worse

We all know that cancer in the office. The employee that is never happy and never has anything positive to say about anyone or anything. It is not helpful to point out a problem unless you are willing to be a part of the solution. If you want to be happier and healthier, it is important not to sit and wallow in what you see wrong, or injustice. Happy people are more willing to work to change those things they don’t agree with or to find resolution instead of finding misery merely talking about it.

If you want excel in your career and your life, it is important to be happy. Your mental status is highly correlated to your physical one. Happy people are not only more wealthy, but they also enjoy a better quality of life and live longer. Instead of worrying about putting in overtime and making yourself miserable, focus on happiness this New Year to create change in your life and your finances.