Happiness - Publications - Faculty & Research

01 Sep 2010
News

Now Starring: Single Dad

Wand said he hoped it would show people in similar situations that there can be happy endings. “I’ve had a pretty wonderful life,” said Wand, who in 1983 married classmate Beverly Patton (MBA ’81) and today is an adjunct finance professor... View Details

Keywords: single parents; fatherhood; Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services

28 Feb 2023
Research & Ideas

Can Apprenticeships Work in the US? Employers Seeking New Talent Pipelines Take Note

in school with the option to join the company when they graduate, Fuller’s analysis finds that three-quarters of employers wind up happy with their trainees and two-thirds of apprentices go on to college or career. “Employers see a real... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

24 Jun 2002
Research & Ideas

Four Keys of Enduring Success: How High Achievers Win

get up, look at the sunshine; they look at a sunset and really smile, knowing full well the sunset wouldn't be there in just twenty minutes. They were very happy in terms of what they saw in their life." In short, said Stevenson;... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

Web

General Management Curriculum - Faculty & Research

Ben Creo , Brian Walker Fall 2024 Q1 1.5 Law, Management and Entrepreneurship (also listed under Entrepreneurial Management) John Batter Fall 2024 Q1Q2 3.0 John Batter Spring 2025 Q3Q4 3.0 Leadership and Happiness Arthur Brooks Spring... View Details

25 Mar 2022
Blog Post

Meet the HBS Women's Student Association

on negotiating your offer letter, and more. Social Events Of course, a large part of the HBS experience is meeting new people and making lifelong friends. Whether it’s exercise classes or happy hours, the WSA regularly hosts events to... View Details

26 Jan 2022
News

Making Peace with Anger

trip with some friends to go to a friend’s bachelor party and Sheila came over to my house. And I was getting packed and she sat on the floor in the closet and as I was getting packed, we just started talking. And she said, “I can tell that you’ve changed.” And I said,... View Details

01 Jul 2020
Blog Post

How SVMP Helped Me Take My Next Steps (2+2) and Find Myself

confidence. While it was daunting, I wrote the email and was happy to see that they were supportive. I was told I still had to complete a full internship load of work and I happily took on that challenge. In the end, I still got an offer... View Details

02 Jun 2020
Research & Ideas

Coronavirus Careers: Cloud Kitchens Are Now Serving

Review) What Quarantine Can Teach You About Spending and Happiness (Wall Street Journal) Read COVID-19 coverage from Working Knowledge Emerging trends Before the onset of COVID-19, a number of trends were becoming clear. It was apparent... View Details

Keywords: by Lena Ye and Geoffrey Jones; Food & Beverage

02 Mar 2009
Research & Ideas

When Goal Setting Goes Bad

because they find the work rewarding in and of itself. Given that goals can undermine this intrinsic value of work, sometimes the best solution is no specific stretch goal at all or at the very least mastery or learning goals. I do not need someone to set a stretch... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

Article

Is Life Nasty, Brutish, and Short? Philosophies of Life and Well-Being

By: Michael I. Norton, Lalin Anik, Lara B. Aknin and Elizabeth W. Dunn

Three studies examine the extent to which laypeople endorse Thomas Hobbes' (1651) view of life as "nasty, brutish, and short" and explore the relationships between this philosophy and well-being. We asked participants to answer two binary choice questions: Is life... View Details

Keywords: Happiness; Satisfaction; Welfare

27 May 2022
Blog Post

Q&A with the HBS Armed Forces Alumni Association, MBA Class of 2023

MBA? If you're considering an MBA, reach out to veterans for a chat through the Armed Forces Alumni Association (AFAA) here or even to veterans directly. We're always happy to help think through whether an MBA makes sense given your... View Details

Profile

Nika Duan

going back to my grandparents' house. We'd all brave the cold to wish our friends and neighbors a happy New Year, make dumplings, and set off incredible fireworks. Who is one person from your life that you admire the most today? My... View Details

11 May 2023
News

How FOMO Became a Fixture

Sapiens (the name of my podcast) over the last few years, so when I got the good news, I put on a FOMO Sapiens cap and did a little happy dance." Where do you plan to display the trademark document? "I framed it for my FOMO gallery wall.... View Details

Blog

The Harvard Business School Faculty Summer Reader 2023

Arthur Brooks: Spirituality and philosophy This March, I returned from my fifth trip to Dharamshala, India, to work with His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. We held a conference on how leadership and happiness principles are entwined.... View Details

23 Jun 2022
Research & Ideas

All Those Zoom Meetings May Boost Connection and Curb Loneliness

interactive and one pre-recorded—and examined how happy and connected people felt before and after the videos. Those who participated in the live experience felt much less lonely, although that bump didn’t last. The team shared their... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

06 Mar 2006
Research & Ideas

Four Strategies for Making Concessions

would be more than happy to engage in mutual give-and-take during his negotiations, he often has trouble doing so with his contractors and customers. Some are clearly untrustworthy or entirely self-interested. Such negotiators are likely... View Details

Keywords: by Deepak Malhotra

17 Feb 2022
Book

When Employees Feel a Sense of Purpose, Companies Succeed

and child” so that they can enjoy “a healthy, happy family.” In building its culture, the firm focuses squarely on recognizing and affirming employees’ individuality. One of Ovia’s core values is “Be yourself, be candid, be kind.”... View Details

Keywords: by Ranjay Gulati

11 May 2016
Research & Ideas

Fix This! Why is it so Painful to Buy a New Car?

effect. Another time she told the dealer she wanted a car with a manual drive. “No you don’t,” the salesman snapped. Says Avery, “I felt disrespected.” “I’m happy with the car, but it was a roller coaster of emotions going through the... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Auto

22 Dec 2020
Blog Post

The Forward Fellowship Convinced Me That I Belong at HBS

didn’t believe I fit the bill as the all-ambitious corporate guru that I imagined all HBS students to be (hilarious in retrospect). With encouragement from my friends and professors, I decided to apply anyway, and wow, am I happy I did. I... View Details

01 Apr 2013
Research & Ideas

First Minutes are Critical in New-Employee Orientation

process.” Previous studies have shown that employees are especially productive and happy when employers encourage them to use their individual signature strengths on the job, but historically those studies did not consider the employee... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Web Services; Service; Telecommunications

Publications