Creating a Happier Workplace Is Possible — and Worth It

Raw Text

Navigation Menu

Subscribe

Sign In

Account Menu Account Menu Hi,  Guest

Search Menu

Close menu

CLEAR

SUGGESTED TOPICS

Explore HBR

Latest

The Magazine

Ascend

Podcasts

Video

Store

Webinars

Newsletters

Popular Topics

Managing Yourself

Leadership

Strategy

Managing Teams

Gender

Innovation

Work-life Balance

All Topics

For Subscribers

The Big Idea

Data & Visuals

Reading Lists

Case Selections

HBR Learning

Subscribe

My Account

My Library

Topic Feeds

Orders

Account Settings

Email Preferences

Log Out

Sign In

Subscribe

Latest

Podcasts

Video

The Magazine

Ascend

Store

Webinars

Newsletters

All Topics

The Big Idea

Data & Visuals

Reading Lists

Case Selections

HBR Learning

My Library

Account Settings

Log Out

Sign In

Your Cart

Visit Our Store

My Library

Topic Feeds

Orders

Account Settings

Email Preferences

Log Out

Reading Lists

1 free

s

last free article

Subscribe

Create an account

Business and society

by

Jennifer Moss

by

Jennifer Moss

Alena Ivochkina/Getty Images

Tweet

Post

Share

Annotate

Save

Get PDF

Buy Copies

Print

Summary.

Being happy at work isn’t just a win for employees; it’s also a win for employers. Research shows a causal link between happy workers and a 13% increase in productivity. On the flipside, unhappiness at work costs the world $7.8 trillion in lost productivity, equal to 11% of global GDP. But too many of us are disconnected, disengaged, and bored at work. 50% of the global workforce is quiet quitting  and  18 percent are loud quitting – sharing openly that they are unhappy at work. Social media trends like #QuietQuitting and #ActYourWage have reached over 1.2 billion views and their virality confirms that we’re all still feeling the effects of chronic stress and burnout from the pandemic. Obviously, the current state of workforce unhappiness is a big problem to solve. Happiness at work has to come from a deeper, more intrinsic connection to why we’re there. A culture of autonomy, belonging, and purpose comes from a shared vision, and right now, it’s fair to say that many companies and their employees are simply not seeing eye-to-eye. This article covers three steps organizations can take to turn that around.

Tweet

Post

Share

Annotate

Save

Get PDF

Buy Copies

Print

For many of us, being an adult at work today is like being a kid at a school without art, gym, and recess — no fun. And, that’s a huge reason why so many of us are disconnected, bored, and disengaged.

Read more on Business and society or related topics Inclusion and belonging , Human resource management , Flex time , Time-off policies , Employee engagement , Personnel policies , Employee retention , Organizational culture , Personal purpose and values and Work-life balance

Jennifer Moss is a workplace expert, international public speaker, and award-winning journalist. She is the bestselling author of  Unlocking Happiness at Work (Kogan Page, 2016) and The Burnout Epidemic  (HBR Press, September 2021).

Tweet

Post

Share

Annotate

Save

Get PDF

Buy Copies

Print

Read more on Business and society or related topics Inclusion and belonging , Human resource management , Flex time , Time-off policies , Employee engagement , Personnel policies , Employee retention , Organizational culture , Personal purpose and values and Work-life balance

Partner Center

Latest

Magazine

Ascend

Topics

Podcasts

Video

Store

The Big Idea

Data & Visuals

Case Selections

HBR Learning

Subscribe

Explore HBR

The Latest

All Topics

Magazine Archive

The Big Idea

Reading Lists

Case Selections

Video

Podcasts

Webinars

Data & Visuals

My Library

Newsletters

HBR Press

HBR Ascend

HBR Store

Article Reprints

Books

Cases

Collections

Magazine Issues

HBR Guide Series

HBR 20-Minute Managers

HBR Emotional Intelligence Series

HBR Must Reads

Tools

About HBR

Contact Us

Advertise with Us

Information for Booksellers/Retailers

Masthead

Global Editions

Media Inquiries

Guidelines for Authors

HBR Analytic Services

Copyright Permissions

Manage My Account

My Library

Topic Feeds

Orders

Account Settings

Email Preferences

Account FAQ

Help Center

Contact Customer Service

Follow HBR

Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Instagram

Your Newsreader

About Us

Careers

Privacy Policy

Cookie Policy

Copyright Information

Trademark Policy

Higher Education

Corporate Learning

Harvard Business Review

Harvard Business School

Single Line Text

Navigation Menu. Subscribe. Sign In. Account Menu Account Menu Hi,  Guest. Search Menu. Close menu. CLEAR. SUGGESTED TOPICS. Explore HBR. Latest. The Magazine. Ascend. Podcasts. Video. Store. Webinars. Newsletters. Popular Topics. Managing Yourself. Leadership. Strategy. Managing Teams. Gender. Innovation. Work-life Balance. All Topics. For Subscribers. The Big Idea. Data & Visuals. Reading Lists. Case Selections. HBR Learning. Subscribe. My Account. My Library. Topic Feeds. Orders. Account Settings. Email Preferences. Log Out. Sign In. Subscribe. Latest. Podcasts. Video. The Magazine. Ascend. Store. Webinars. Newsletters. All Topics. The Big Idea. Data & Visuals. Reading Lists. Case Selections. HBR Learning. My Library. Account Settings. Log Out. Sign In. Your Cart. Visit Our Store. My Library. Topic Feeds. Orders. Account Settings. Email Preferences. Log Out. Reading Lists. 1 free. s. last free article. Subscribe. Create an account. Business and society. by. Jennifer Moss. by. Jennifer Moss. Alena Ivochkina/Getty Images. Tweet. Post. Share. Annotate. Save. Get PDF. Buy Copies. Print. Summary. Being happy at work isn’t just a win for employees; it’s also a win for employers. Research shows a causal link between happy workers and a 13% increase in productivity. On the flipside, unhappiness at work costs the world $7.8 trillion in lost productivity, equal to 11% of global GDP. But too many of us are disconnected, disengaged, and bored at work. 50% of the global workforce is quiet quitting  and  18 percent are loud quitting – sharing openly that they are unhappy at work. Social media trends like #QuietQuitting and #ActYourWage have reached over 1.2 billion views and their virality confirms that we’re all still feeling the effects of chronic stress and burnout from the pandemic. Obviously, the current state of workforce unhappiness is a big problem to solve. Happiness at work has to come from a deeper, more intrinsic connection to why we’re there. A culture of autonomy, belonging, and purpose comes from a shared vision, and right now, it’s fair to say that many companies and their employees are simply not seeing eye-to-eye. This article covers three steps organizations can take to turn that around. Tweet. Post. Share. Annotate. Save. Get PDF. Buy Copies. Print. For many of us, being an adult at work today is like being a kid at a school without art, gym, and recess — no fun. And, that’s a huge reason why so many of us are disconnected, bored, and disengaged. Read more on Business and society or related topics Inclusion and belonging , Human resource management , Flex time , Time-off policies , Employee engagement , Personnel policies , Employee retention , Organizational culture , Personal purpose and values and Work-life balance. Jennifer Moss is a workplace expert, international public speaker, and award-winning journalist. She is the bestselling author of  Unlocking Happiness at Work (Kogan Page, 2016) and The Burnout Epidemic  (HBR Press, September 2021). Tweet. Post. Share. Annotate. Save. Get PDF. Buy Copies. Print. Read more on Business and society or related topics Inclusion and belonging , Human resource management , Flex time , Time-off policies , Employee engagement , Personnel policies , Employee retention , Organizational culture , Personal purpose and values and Work-life balance. Partner Center. Latest. Magazine. Ascend. Topics. Podcasts. Video. Store. The Big Idea. Data & Visuals. Case Selections. HBR Learning. Subscribe. Explore HBR. The Latest. All Topics. Magazine Archive. The Big Idea. Reading Lists. Case Selections. Video. Podcasts. Webinars. Data & Visuals. My Library. Newsletters. HBR Press. HBR Ascend. HBR Store. Article Reprints. Books. Cases. Collections. Magazine Issues. HBR Guide Series. HBR 20-Minute Managers. HBR Emotional Intelligence Series. HBR Must Reads. Tools. About HBR. Contact Us. Advertise with Us. Information for Booksellers/Retailers. Masthead. Global Editions. Media Inquiries. Guidelines for Authors. HBR Analytic Services. Copyright Permissions. Manage My Account. My Library. Topic Feeds. Orders. Account Settings. Email Preferences. Account FAQ. Help Center. Contact Customer Service. Follow HBR. Facebook. Twitter. LinkedIn. Instagram. Your Newsreader. About Us. Careers. Privacy Policy. Cookie Policy. Copyright Information. Trademark Policy. Higher Education. Corporate Learning. Harvard Business Review. Harvard Business School.