The Happiness Lifecyle

I love my job! Not something you hear much. And the last few years have proven that companies aren’t looking out for you. Jobs are unstable, layoffs hit overnight, and loyalty is mostly a slogan. The one thing you can count on? You.

It may seem overly luxe to demand happiness at work. But it isn’t self-indulgent, it lines up with what companies want - productive folks who are reliable and achieve real results.

Happiness Matters! Here are the receipts

• Safety first. Google’s Project Aristotle found psychological safety is the #1 factor in high-performing teams. Translation: if you feel safe to speak up, you do better work. Back-stabby cultures tank performance.

  A strong team culture was correlated with each member’s perception of the consequences of taking an interpersonal risk. Those on teams with strong cultures feel safe taking risks in the face of being seen as ignorant, incompetent, negative, or disruptive. In a team with high psychological safety, teammates feel safe to take risks around their team members. They feel confident that no one on the team will embarrass or punish anyone else for admitting a mistake, asking a question, or offering a new idea.

• Happy = productive. Experiments show people given “happiness shocks” (snacks, comedy clips, the dream) were 12% more productive. No shocker there…when you hate your boss, that’s your focus and nothing else.

• Politics get weird when we’re miserable. The World Happiness Report links low life satisfaction and low trust to a hard-right shift. Higher trust? People drift left.

• Engagement is big money. Gallup estimates the cost of low engagement at $8.9 trillion globally. Managers’ engagement is sliding fastest.

• Small stuff matters. Affective Events Theory tells us micro-moments such as in-the-moment praise, rude clients, hitting a mini goal all build or break overall job satisfaction.

• Great 1:1s matter. Status-only check-ins? Meh. Real conversations about career goals and challenges? That’s where loyalty lives. Focus can’t just be on frequency but the quality of the 1:1.

  “Leaders are judged by what their followers achieve. The higher you climb, the more your success depends on making other people successful —  Adam Grant

Happiness is not a moment at work. It starts from the first interview and extends past when you leave the organization. Here’s how to spot it and then build it at every stage.

1) Hiring and interviews: curiosity over guardedness

Look for interviewers who genuinely listen, ask follow-ups, and reflect back what they heard—early signs of psychological safety.
Ask “How did you devise the process for hiring for this role? Can you share important criteria for being successful at this role?”

2) Onboarding smoothly

Look for clear goals, a named buddy, and early wins that build competence so your brain can shift from vigilance to nesting.
Ask “In week one, what decisions can I make without approval?” Be direct about what you need to succeed (for example, time to study the customer journey, shadow a team, or chat with sales).
Do co-create a 30-60-90 plan with your manager and document explicit autonomy zones and key relationship introductions so you can own your space and connect across the team.

3) 1:1s: the engine of well-being

Look for regular cadence, shared ownership, and depth. Strong 1:1s are employee-led and cover workload, growth, and well-being. If meetings are too frequent and shallow, suggest async updates so live sessions can focus on career progress.
Ask “Here’s what’s energizing me and what’s draining me this week. Here’s where I could use your help or feedback. Does my work align with what you’re seeing as a priority?”

4) Day-to-day collaboration: design the micro-events

Look for meeting hygiene: clear agendas, balanced voices, and space for constructive disagreement.
Ask “Here’s what I see as success for this meeting—does that fit with what you need?”
Do rotate facilitators and use AI or simple tracking to monitor speaking time. If the highest-paid person dominates, call it out and rebalance.

5) Feedback and performance: facts, care, and agency

Look for specific, timely feedback tied to impact and delivered with respect.
Ask “How do we handle mistakes and make sure we don’t repeat them?”
Do offer feedback with consent: “Is now a good time to share thoughts on that presentation?” Candor only works when trust runs deep.

6) Recognition and progress: show it, often and authentically

Look for rituals that make progress visible and treat failures as learning moments.
Ask “How do we share progress between big launches? How do we document failures so we don’t repeat them? Is now a good time to do a retro?”
Do give weekly shout-outs and share wins with specifics, not fluff.

7) Retention and mobility: can I see my path?

Look for a clear career matrix, visible internal moves, and skill-building opportunities. If exits are creeping up, find out why.
Ask “What percent of people changed roles internally last year? What did we change after the last engagement survey? What is the career path based on my demonstrated skills and experience?”

8) Exit and alumni: honest endings

Look for exit interviews that feed real improvements and leaders who stay in touch with alumni.
Ask “What did you learn from the last three exits, and what changed?”

I’d love to continue this conversation with you. Add me on Substack, and let’s navigate this chaotic career landscape together. If you are trying to figure out what’s next for your career, or need help understanding and working on your leadership skills, hit me up!