The pursuit of happiness

What a strange thing for the Founders to have put in the Declaration of Independence. We want to pursue our happiness, dammit, and we don't need the King bossing us around!

I saw 20/20 last night on ABC, and the topic was happiness. How happy are we? How do we achieve happiness? Where is the happiest place on earth? Well, surprisingly, the happiest country on earth is Denmark. Turns out most people in Denmark rate themselves very high on a scale of "happiness" in surveys. I'm attaching some of the copy from last night's show to the end of this post, but two things caught my attention and those of you who know me well will understand why they did. The first is that even though Denmark has really high taxes, there is incredible health care coverage, and education programs. There are programs for social networking and transportation. Think about how your life would change if you didn't have to worry about paying for medical care, or having an illness that was going to bankrupt your family. Think about how you would feel if you knew that your school system had the same level of quality as the one across town.

Another aspect of this is that it tends to even out income. As they said on the program a doctor, an artist, and a garbage collector all even out in their incomes because of the combination of taxes, and the benefits they receive from the government. So, you can truly make a career choice based on life fulfillment rather than income. They interviewed the garbage collector, who is treated like a friend in the neighborhoods he works in. People come out to talk to him, and offer him coffee. When is the last time you offered coffee to your CWI collector? This man (in Denmark) said he chose his career because he only has to work five hours a day, and he can spend time with his kids, and coaching sports teams the rest of the time.

Two other points about the Danes to consider....they have more time to have friends. In fact hobby clubs, and having dinner with neighbors and friends is high on their priority list. And second, they aren't as interested in "things" as we are. They are not into purchasing stuff for their homes, and buying bling and flash cars like we are.

Now honestly, this sounds like a perfect discription of a socialist society, and perhaps there is something to be said for it. One caveat, there are only 5.5 million people in Denmark, and it does tend to be a homogenous society (I think that is the right word) so collectively they tend to agree on most things. It would be MUCH harder to have that sort of collective ideal in the US because we can't agree on much.

So, what I got from this is that happiness can be achieved...not from things, or status...but from time spent with family and friends, and from just taking time to pursue your interests...reading books, singing, watching birds, whatever.

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Here is some of the text pulled from last night's script:


Danes do have one potential complaint: high taxes. The happiest people in the world pay some of the highest taxes in the world -- between 50 percent and 70 percent of their incomes. In exchange, the government covers all health care and education, and spends more on children and the elderly than any country in the world per capita. With just 5.5 million people, the system is efficient, and people feel "tryghed" -- the Danish word for "tucked in" -- like a snug child.

Those high taxes have another effect. Since a banker can end up taking home as much money as an artist, people don't chose careers based on income or status. "They have this thing called 'Jante-lov,' which essentially says, 'You're no better then anybody else,'" said Buettner. "A garbage man can live in a middle-class neighborhood and hold his head high."

Hanging out with other Danes just may be their happiness secret. Ninety-two percent of Danes belong to some kind of social club, dancing, singing, even practicing laughing with other Danes. Get a few people together who enjoy model train building, for example, and the government will pay for it. In Denmark, even friendship is subsidized.

And Denmark is what is called a "post consumerist" society. People have nice things, but shopping and consuming is not a top priority. Even the advertising is often understated. Along with less emphasis on "stuff," and a strong social fabric, Danes also display an amazing level of trust in each other, and their government. A University of Cambridge happiness study found that both kinds of trust were higher in happier places.