I am not a big New Year’s resolution person. I believe in the notion of using each day to learn and grow. That said, when the calendar turns to a new year, I do find myself pondering some bigger questions than usual and making more shifts in my focus and intentionality.

This recent reflection prompted me to ask: Am I actually happier at work than I was a year ago? And just as important: Are the people I lead happier? In leadership development, we spend an enormous amount of time talking about capabilities, behaviors, and results. We talk far less about happiness, even though it quietly shapes nearly everything else. This has led me to rethink what happiness really means in a work context – and what leaders can do to influence it.

That reflection was sparked by a recent episode of Peter Attia’s Drive podcast, featuring Arthur Brooks, titled “Cultivating Happiness, Emotional Self-Management, and More.” Peter Attia is a physician; his podcast explores longevity, health span, and the habits that contribute to a well-lived life. Arthur Brooks is a Harvard professor, social scientist, and best-selling author whose work focuses on happiness, meaning, and human flourishing in life and leadership.

Their conversation offers a thoughtful and practical framework for understanding happiness—one that goes well beyond fleeting emotions or surface-level perks. As I listened, it became clear that many of their insights translate directly into how we think about leadership, leadership development, and the cultures we create at work.

In today’s rapidly changing workplace, leaders are increasingly asking a question that once might have sounded soft or peripheral: “What does happiness at work really mean—and why should I care?” This isn’t about foosball tables or potlucks. It’s about creating workplaces, especially as more and more people are returning to the office, where people are engaged, resilient, and ultimately fulfilled.

Happiness Is Not Just a Feeling—It’s a Practice

In the podcast conversation, Brooks consistently pushes back against the idea that happiness is a passive emotional state we stumble into. Instead, happiness is something we can cultivate with intention. It’s built through habits, disciplines, and deliberate attention to how we think about our goals and relationships, disappointments and failures.

In an organizational context, this has powerful implications. Leaders often equate success with outcomes—revenue, output, growth—but happiness isn’t merely a by-product of success. In fact, the relentless chase for performance without reflection often undermines happiness. Brooks and Attia highlight the detriments of “success addiction” and workaholism—patterns that many leaders catch themselves in all too easily.

For leaders, the takeaway is clear: Happiness doesn’t come from doing more. It comes from doing well and with purpose.

Three “Macronutrients” of Happiness—and Their Workplace Counterparts

One of Brooks’s most useful analogies is his idea of the three macronutrients of happiness: enjoyment, satisfaction, and purpose.

• Enjoyment—This means the day-to-day positive experiences. At work, this translates to psychological safety, collegiality, recognition, and environments where people genuinely enjoy collaborating.
• Satisfaction—This reflects a deeper sense of life and work going well. Organizations that help people set and achieve meaningful goals—tied to personal and collective growth—foster satisfaction.
• Purpose—The deepest layer. It’s the conviction that your work matters and connects to something bigger than yourself.

Great leaders not only ask “Are we productive?” but also “Are people finding joy, satisfaction, and meaning here?”

Metacognition: Leaders Must Think About Thinking

Another powerful concept Brooks discusses in his work is metacognition—the capacity to observe one’s own thoughts and emotions without being driven by them.

For individuals, metacognition enables better emotional regulation and resilience. For leaders, it’s a linchpin skill: Self-aware leaders build self-aware teams. When leaders can pause, reflect on why they’re reacting, and choose their response, they model an essential capability for emotional intelligence. Teams led by such leaders are better equipped to navigate stress, ambiguity, and conflict—all of which directly influence workplace happiness.

The Paradox of Pursuit: When “Happiness” Becomes an Escape Hatch

Brooks also warns about a common fallacy: believing that happiness is a destination to be reached—a future state of constant bliss.

In workplaces, this can look like:

• Equating perks with well-being,
• Chasing culture trends without grounding them in purpose, or
• Viewing happiness as something to “fix” rather than something to cultivate.

This misguided pursuit often leads to a cycle where people look outward for happiness—in promotions, bonuses, titles—rather than inward toward meaning and connection. Leaders need to shift the focus from happiness as a deliverable to happiness as a capacity we build through values, habits, and relationships.

Designing for Happiness: What Leaders Can Do Today

So how do leaders make happiness at work a strategic advantage, and not a feel-good afterthought?

1. Prioritize psychological safety and trust.
People must feel safe to express ideas, challenge assumptions, and be themselves without fear of retribution.

2. Align work with purpose.
Help employees connect daily tasks to a larger mission. When people see why their work matters, engagement and satisfaction flourish.

3. Model intentional emotion management.
Encourage metacognition by creating space for reflection—through feedback loops, coaching, and leader vulnerability.

4. Focus on relationships.
The research is clear: Strong social connections at work are among the strongest predictors of well-being and performance. Build cultures that nurture connection.

5. Measure what matters.
Track well-being metrics, not just productivity and results metrics. Happiness isn’t a luxury—it’s a leading indicator of sustainable performance. Gallagher’s 2025 Workforce Trends study reporting on talent benchmarks found that two out of three leaders say they are concerned about the impact of stress and burnout on the organization. How does that compare to your organization?

6. Be a happiness coach.
As a leader, it is not just okay but encouraged to ask your employees: Are you happy at work? Truly listen to their responses, and assist in removing barriers standing in the way of the enjoyment, satisfaction, and purpose they desire from their job. In addition, help them shift their mindsets to make decisions at work that drive fulfillment. In the Gallagher study mentioned above, 44% of employers reported that communication is crucial for a healthy, productive workplace.

Happiness Enhances Leadership—Not the Other Way Around

At its core, Attia’s conversation with Brooks reminds us that happiness at work is not a distraction from performance; it is central to it. Happy teams are more innovative, more resilient, and more committed. Leaders who invest in the deeper elements of happiness—joy, satisfaction, purpose—unlock sustained engagement and performance.

As leaders, our role isn’t just to deliver results; it’s also to shape environments where people can thrive, feel seen, and do meaningful work. That’s not just good for individuals—it’s good for long-term, sustainable business results.

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