The 5 symptoms of a happy organization
So what makes an organization truly happy. Is it an absence of worry? Well, as long as we are human, there will be adequate doses of worry! Is it a team of well-qualified people? Sometimes, companies with the highest no. of experts exude the lowest of spirits! Is it well-paid staff? If money were the key to happiness, the richest would be the happiest! Is it a swanky office? If glass and steel would lead to bursts of joy, people working in small , unassuming office spaces would be the saddest! But is that so?
So how do you scan the happiness quotient. What would be the way to evaluate?
Let’s call them the 5 symptoms of a truly happy organization
1. Frequent attacks of smiling
Have you ever walked into an office and felt as if you have just entered a mourning scene? Well, grim faces, robot-like humans staring at their workstations are hardly the recipe for a good vibe. Conversely, what if you would walk into an office where you hear cackle of laughter, smiling faces, a warm glance even at outsiders? The energy of that place is vastly different. There is a sense of joy in the air. One can well imagine the work environment and the happy outcomes in such a place. We all know the pleasure of being greeted warmly by a receptionist even as a stranger. Chances are such organizations deliver a happy work experience.
2. Overwhelming episodes of appreciation
How tough is it to offer acknowledgement and appreciation to another? Yet, within companies, this fundamental human ethic is actually considered with a ‘strategy’ built around it. Most company leaders fear an expression of appreciation may lead to corruption of the employees! Consider a different scenario where even the smallest act is appreciated without ‘rationing’ acknowledgement. Surely such a workplace would exude a happy ambience. After all, it is known that human beings are happy when appreciated. It’s a simple law of the universe.
3. Loss of interest in office politics
Working in silos or creating pockets and gangs within an organization is the surest recipe for a divisive work environment. True joy and productivity can seldom surface in these places. Yet ‘office politics’ is a well-known phenomenon to almost everyone who has worked in an organization. Yet there are some that actually propagate ‘zero tolerance for office politics’. In such places, there is abundant team spirit and more often than not high doses of productivity. Strategies are used for business, not against people.
4. Absence of human hierarchy
Titles within an organization exist to demarcate the work functions. Not to create a divide between people. Sometimes the hierarchy even dictates the body language and conduct . But the truly happy workplaces let go of this hierarchy. For eg., an organization where you see the CEO informally chatting up with a peon reflects a visionary leadership that will only take the ship to happier shores. It’s well known that when barriers between humans dissolve, harmony is the outcome.
5. Insatiable appetite for celebration
It’s not only big wins that merit a celebration. Celebration is actually a disposition. It is an innate attitude that inspires people to celebrate the smallest win. Have you ever walked in to an organization where there is always some or the other celebration on- whether it is a birthday or a new business win or sometimes just for no reason? What these moments do is create a positive energy field that attracts even more positivity that encircles the organization into a happy orb.
So while there are many leadership sessions and workshops designed to enhance work and productivity, are they enough if they lack these 5 symptoms? Something to think about.
