A landmark Psychological Bulletin review found that happiness doesn’t simply follow success. Across hundreds of studies, happier people were more likely to go on to succeed in work, relationships, income, and health — suggesting we may have been taught the formula backwards.
There is a familiar workplace story that runs quietly underneath a lot of ambition: first you succeed, then you get to be happy. The promotion comes first. The money comes first. The stable relationship, the recognition, the healthier routine, the sense of arrival. Happiness is t…