Rajesh K. Pillania is a multi-award winning researcher and sought-after teacher, trainer and consultant on happiness, strategy, innovation and humor. He is India’s leading happiness researcher and trainer, popularly known as India’s Happiness Guru. He wrote multiple columns for the media, 14 books and reports on happiness. His academic and research experience includes University Business School, Panjab University; Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode; RH Smith School of Business, University of Maryland (USA); Harvard University, among others. He is a professor of Strategy at the Management Development Institute (IMD) in Switzerland. During a work and research stay, he maintained a dialogue with Noticias.
News: Simple question for a complex answer: what is happiness?
Rajesh Pillania: We are talking about economics and life in society. So my purpose or focus of my research is to simplify the notion of happiness because there are many definitions of happiness. I define happiness in a very simple way. Happiness is the right balance between three things: having the right pleasure in life, purpose and social service. So the right balance between these three things. This is a general definition that is applicable to most of us. But we are all different. And happiness is something very personal. So I need to look at my own life and figure out what is my pleasure, what is my purpose, what is my form of social service and define my own personal happiness. Yes. And now look at it from a perspective that you’re trying to look at, from an economic perspective or from a personal life perspective. So I look at it like this, all of us want less pain, more gain.
N: And specifically, how do we get the concept of happiness down to earth?
RP: As human beings, as businesses, businesses want fewer losses and more profits. Countries want higher GDP growth and less recession. But on an abstract level, we all want more profit and less pain. And generally, on an individual level, we think about three things: our work, the way we make money, and the way we make an impact. In our physical and mental health; in our relationships, family, social, in the workplace and in society. And research from the last 40 years shows that when we are happy, we are more productive and innovative. Therefore, our work is better. When we are happy, we have less stress. And stress is our number one silent killer, according to the WHO. So we have less stress, so our health is better. And when we are happy, we are in a good mood, we relate better to people, listening to them and respecting them. Now, we can analyze these three things at the individual level, at the company level, at the economy level and even at the country level. So on an individual level, when I’m happy, my work is better, my relationships are better, my health is better. I usually say that oxygen is necessary for life and happiness is necessary for a good life. Health, good relationships, good work.
N: What impact does it have on the economic aspect?
RP: In a company, what do you want? Less losses and more profits. And at the company level, there are basically two types of strategy: either costs are reduced or costs are differentiated. And with happiness, people’s productivity improves and innovation improves. So we can also reduce costs and we can also differentiate ourselves. And that’s good for the company. Secondly, if the people who work at the company are happy, their health is better, so there will be less sick leave and lower insurance costs. And third, the company needs to work together. In a company, people need to work together. And if people are happy, they will be better team players. They will be good at building relationships. So it’s good for the company. Now we can add it to an economic level. When individuals and organizations in the economy are happy, at the individual level, the individual is more productive, more innovative, healthier, better relationships. At the organizational level, better productivity, more innovation, less costs in terms of employee health problems, better relationships within the company, more team players.
So, we added both. On an economic level, as a country, we can have more productivity, more innovation, less spending on insurance claims and perhaps better cordial relations between citizens.
N: There is a phrase in business administration and also in economics: you cannot control what you cannot measure. How can you measure happiness? What are the indicators?
RP: One of the best and simplest ways to measure happiness is that the individual himself is the person most qualified to know if he is happy or not. So we use the Cantril scale, created by an economist, Hadley Cantril (1906-1969). So it’s a scale from 0 to 10, with 0 being the worst possible life and 10 being the best. So we ask the person to rate themselves between the worst possible life they can have and the best possible life. And the person can give themselves any score from 0 to 10. So this is a very effective way to measure happiness because, like in democracy, we believe that the person is the best judge of voting. We can also do it at the company level by asking people to rate themselves and then adding the score. And the same can be done at the country level. In fact, the World Happiness Report uses the same simple scale. Yes. So this is my short answer.
N: You are from India, a huge country and the most populated in the world, but also with a lot of poverty. In Argentina we also have poverty, 45% of the population lives below the line. How can you talk about happiness with those shocking figures?
RP: I agree, India is a huge country, it has many advantages and some disadvantages. But in the last 15 or 20 years, perhaps more than 300 million people have been lifted out of poverty. So India is growing. And the best thing about India is that around 65% of the population is under 30 years old, 30 or 35. And history shows that when the population is young, countries grow much faster, because they are young people who have aspirations and They are willing to work hard and move the economy forward.
N: Does more wealth equal more happiness?
RP: Research shows that money can only reduce or eliminate our unhappiness, which is based on a lack of physical things. I don’t have, for example, a house or a cloth and someone gives me money. Then my unhappiness or sadness due to the lack of those things will disappear. But if someone gives me more money and I buy one more house, my happiness will not double. Research shows that money is necessary for the basic needs of life. If I don’t have them, I will feel sad for lack of them. But there is also an inverse relationship between money and happiness: more money brings more unhappiness. So that’s the first part of my answer: that money is not the only thing.
The path to happiness is based on a minimum amount of money. And the second part is that, if we want to lift people out of poverty, what are the ways? My suggestion is that we focus on happiness, because research from the last 40 years shows that when you are happy, you are more productive, more innovative, have better health and better relationships. And to achieve all this happiness, you don’t need money, you need a basic amount of money to satisfy basic needs. And if those needs are met, you can be happy. And when you are a happier person, with greater innovation, greater productivity, better health, better relationships, you are also in a better position to fight poverty.
N: A direct relationship, then…
RP: A famous American economist, I think in the 70s, posed this paradox: more money does not necessarily bring more happiness, but more unhappiness. Yes, because you can take some indicators, some proportion of the number of people who committed suicide, for example, or when they said they had no hope and all that, in the case of young people.
N: In our country, we have many problems and an erratic economy. And what impact can that uncertainty have on happiness?
RP: I have been here since November 10, a very short period to make a statement about such a great country with so much history and culture and so many things. So I go around, talk to random people, ask them stupid questions and try to find out what makes them happy and what makes them unhappy. And so far, I think I’ve met about 180 people or so. And people talk about financial difficulties, but no one says that money makes them happy. When I asked them, I asked them a different question: what makes you happy? I think maybe one or two people mentioned 180 money. When I asked what makes someone unhappy, some people talked about the economic situation. But in happiness, people talk about other things. I also ask them what their advice is for a young person in their 20s. Not even one person mentioned focusing on money. Nobody. I think people are reading a lot here and thinking a lot. And they give a lot of importance to freedom. So when I ask them what makes them happy, many of them talk about freedom, freedom to do what they want to do. And when I ask them, what is your suggestion for a 20-year-old about happiness, a large number of people talk about listening to yourself, following your heart, and doing more of what you want with your life. I am discovering that there are many people who prioritize their own freedom. All of this also cooperates with other research that indicates that money, the lack of money, can make one unhappy when it comes to basic needs.
N: And what caught your attention?
RP:I find so many good things here! For example, the positive vibe that people have. I don’t speak Spanish and I try to use an online translator sometimes, but people are very patient. And they are willing to talk. Some of my questions are stupid. Even they are willing to tolerate them and cooperate. It is an incredible country. And the love of partying, going out late at night. It’s amazing! For example, I went to a tango lesson in Palermo. And around one o’clock, which was my time to go to bed, when I left there were people who had just entered. They told me that the session lasted until 4 or 5 in the morning. The party is important and is reflected in that spirit of living life. I meet people in parks and they are also talking about nature or having a job that gives you more time to enjoy it.
N: What conclusions do you draw from these perceptions?
RP: My goal is mainly to understand happiness and how happiness and business can go hand in hand. My training is that of a professor of management, strategy and innovation. And now I’m trying to unite happiness, strategy and innovation because they need each other. In fact, research shows that sustainability and happiness are also two sides of the same coin. Happy people take better care of the environment and when we are in a better environment, we are also happier. It’s simple!
