{"id":884,"date":"2023-01-13T08:00:50","date_gmt":"2023-01-13T08:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/?p=884"},"modified":"2025-02-19T20:37:31","modified_gmt":"2025-02-19T20:37:31","slug":"to-start-a-new-year-in-need-of-a-bit-more-happiness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/2023\/01\/13\/to-start-a-new-year-in-need-of-a-bit-more-happiness\/","title":{"rendered":"To Start a New Year: In Need of a Bit More Happiness?"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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A recent article in the Wall Street Journal<\/b> suggests that we may all\u00a0<\/span><\/span>be in need of a bit more happiness.1 I<\/span>t pointed to the \u201c<\/span>Misery Index<\/b><\/span>,\u201d\u00a0<\/span>which has climbed to double digits in recent times. This may not come\u00a0<\/span>as a surprise. We\u2019ve been through a lot lately: a pandemic, ongoing\u00a0<\/span>war, high inflation, rising interest rates and market volatility.<\/span><\/p>\nFor many years, economists have been fascinated by the relationship\u00a0<\/span><\/span>between economic factors and happiness \u2014 so much so that the\u00a0<\/span>\u201ceconomics of happiness\u201d has become a recognized field of study,\u00a0<\/span>complete with doctoral dissertations and professorships. In fact, the\u00a0<\/span>Misery Index<\/b><\/span> is an economic indicator invented by late economist\u00a0<\/span>Arthur Okun, who believed that a nation\u2019s collective happiness\u00a0<\/span>is influenced by inflation and employment. The index adds the\u00a0<\/span>unemployment and inflation rates together \u2014 suggesting that as\u00a0<\/span>more people become unemployed and inflation rises, the greater\u00a0<\/span>our unhappiness. Various academic studies support this finding; one\u00a0<\/span>study didn\u2019t explicitly ask people about the economy, yet could still tie\u00a0<\/span>their happiness to these factors. Other studies find that inflation and\u00a0<\/span>unemployment contribute differently to happiness (or lack thereof):\u00a0<\/span>higher unemployment depresses our well-being more than inflation;\u00a0<\/span>almost twice as much in one study and up to five times in another.<\/span>\u00b9<\/span><\/span>\n

So perhaps we have an understanding of what drives our\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u201cunhappiness,\u201d but what drives happiness? There is, indeed, a\u00a0<\/span>relationship between happiness and income. Happiness and GDP are\u00a0<\/span>highly correlated; happiness often rises steadily with income.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\nThere is also a link between happiness and economic outcomes.\u00a0<\/span>Research shows that happiness can make us more productive,\u00a0<\/span>wealthier and nicer.<\/span>\u00b2<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>The share price of <\/span>Fortune\u2019s 100 Best Companies\u00a0<\/span>to Work For<\/span><\/b> posted annual increases of 14 percent, compared to just\u00a0<\/span>six percent for the overall market between 1998 to 2005. One study\u00a0<\/span>primed people to feel happy and found that they were 12 percent\u00a0<\/span>more productive than their peers.<\/span>\u00b3<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Another looked at hundreds of\u00a0<\/span>studies on the causal effect of success on happiness and found the\u00a0<\/span>reverse: the stronger effect was how happiness engenders success.<\/span>\u2074<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>A recent study in China may provide some insight: when web\u00a0<\/span>broadcasters who rely on voluntary viewer tips for income showed\u00a0<\/span>more positive emotions, their tips increased.<\/span>\u2075<\/span>\n

Yet, when it comes to the happiness of society as a whole, we may not\u00a0<\/span><\/span>be doing a good job. Even before the challenges we\u2019ve recently faced,\u00a0<\/span>the <\/span>World Happiness Report<\/b><\/span> reported that worry and sadness have\u00a0<\/span>been rising over the past 10 years. It may be particularly telling that\u00a0<\/span>Canada has fallen in its global happiness rank: from 5th in 2012 to 15th\u00a0<\/span>in 2022. Wealth has increased substantially, but we haven\u2019t increased\u00a0<\/span>our happiness. This may\u00a0<\/span><\/span>not be surprising \u2014 studies\u00a0<\/span>show that greater wealth\u00a0<\/span>leads to rising happiness,\u00a0<\/span><\/span>but once it reaches a certain\u00a0<\/span>level the effects plateau:\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Money can buy happiness,\u00a0<\/span>but only to a certain extent.\u00a0<\/span>As such, many economists\u00a0<\/span>now argue that we need a greater focus on increasing societal\u00a0<\/span>happiness.<\/span>\u2076<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Back in the 1970s, Bhutan began to track happiness\u00a0<\/span>through its <\/span>Gross National Happiness Index<\/b><\/span>. Other countries, like\u00a0<\/span>New Zealand and the U.K., have now begun to follow suit by building <\/span>well-being metrics into their policymaking.<\/span><\/p>\nIs happiness the key? Reflecting on the many challenges of today,\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Harvard professor and happiness guru Arthur Brooks believes so.\u00a0<\/span>His goals are far from modest: to build \u201ca grassroots movement of\u00a0<\/span>happiness hobbyists. That\u2019s actually how you change the country.\u201d<\/span>\u2077<\/span>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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1. www.wsj.com\/articles\/inflation-and-unemployment-both-make-you-miserable-but-maybe-not-equally-11668744274<\/a> ;\n2. www.theguardian.com\/lifeandstyle\/2014\/nov\/03\/why-does-happiness-matter<\/a> ;\n3. www.warwick.ac.uk\/newsandevents\/pressreleases\/new_study_shows<\/a> ;<\/span><\/p>\n

4. https:\/\/escholarship.org\/content\/qt1k08m32k\/qt2k08m32k.pdf<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>;<\/span><\/p>\n

5. www.theatlantic.com\/family\/archive\/2022\/10\/prioritizing-happiness-before-success\/671714\/<\/a> ;\n6.<\/span>\u00a0www.weforum.org\/agenda\/2019\/02\/what-will-succeed-gdp<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>;<\/span><\/p>\n

7.<\/span>\u00a0www.gq.com\/story\/arthur-brooks-secrets-happiness<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

The information contained herein has been provided for information purposes only. Graphs, charts and other numbers are used for illustrative purposes only and do not reflect future values or future performance of any investment. The information has been provided by J. Hirasawa & Associates and is drawn from sources believed to be reliable.\nThe information does not provide financial, legal, tax or investment advice. Particular investment, tax, or trading strategies should be evaluated relative to each individual\u2019s objectives and risk tolerance. This does not constitute a recommendation or solicitation to buy or sell securities of any kind. Market conditions may change which may impact the information contained in this document. Wellington-Altus Private Wealth Inc. (WAPW) and the authors do not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information contained herein, nor does WAPW, nor the authors, assume any liability for any loss that may result from the reliance by any person upon any such information or opinions. Before acting on any of the above, please contact me for individual financial advice based on your personal circumstances. WAPW is a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund and the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada.\n\u00a9\ufe0f 2023, Wellington-Altus Private Wealth Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. NO USE OR REPRODUCTION WITHOUT PERMISSION<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal suggests that we may all\u00a0be in need of a bit more happiness.1 It pointed to the \u201cMisery Index,\u201d\u00a0which has climbed to double digits in recent times. This may not come\u00a0as a surprise. We\u2019ve been through a lot lately: a pandemic, ongoing\u00a0war, high inflation, rising interest rates and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":68,"featured_media":3017,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"_oasis_task_priority":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[161,162,163],"class_list":["post-884","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-economics-of-happiness","tag-gross-national-happiness-index","tag-misery-index"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/68"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=884"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/884\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1720,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/884\/revisions\/1720"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3017"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=884"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advisor.wellington-altus.ca\/towerwealthadvisory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}