Happiness is like a balloon — as easily deflated as inflated.
Yet, there are attempts to measure this emotion at the workplace. So, we have a happiness index, which tries to quantify employees’ responses, usually on a scale of one to ten or with options such as ‘satisfied’, ‘not satisfied’ and ‘very happy’, to name a few.
If I were an employer, I would think very carefully before launching such an initiative. What happens if you receive brutally truthful answers and find that you are running the most miserable company in the city? Will you then take measures to address the problem or dismiss the results as an imperfect reflection of what you consider near ideal conditions?
Of course, it is much more likely that people will not give negative ratings simply because however much they may be reassured that their responses will be confidential and nothing they write will be held against them, suspicious minds will recall all the online leaks of late that have brought down many a powerful figure. Thus, they will decide that discretion is the better part of valour and write what they think their bosses want to hear. Even if their identity is leaked, they will be seen as employees with a positive attitude who are an asset to the company!
Under such circumstances, most respondents will say they are ‘happy’ or ‘very happy’, depending on how far-sighted they are, perhaps hoping for suitable recognition and reward if their names are ever revealed to the powers that be. So far I have never seen the ‘ecstatic’ option, because even the big guns know that that would be an unrealistic state of mind.
Truth, like happiness, is subjective. My truth may not be yours and, similarly, my idea of happiness may be very different from yours.
How truthful you are in your replies depends on your previous experience. Do you remember a time when your boss asked you for your honest opinion and when you gave it to him, you felt a cold front suddenly, which made you realise that some things are not meant to be taken literally.
Of course there are the survivors who, when confronted with trick questions such as ‘what do you think about the new system?’, dissemble and come up with everything but what they really think. The survivor instinct kicks in and one thinks ‘does he really think I’m foolish enough to give my unvarnished opinion when I know it was his brainchild?’ Or another thought could be along the lines of ‘how do I tackle this slippery slope without sliding into extinction’.
Before administering such surveys, the organisation should study the feasibility of such projects. Sometimes, just sometimes, they may open a can of worms if there are a lot of disgruntled workers.
Perhaps it would be best to maintain the status quo and remember the saying ‘Ask no questions and you’ll be told no lies’. There’s more than a grain of truth in most adages.
For most people, job security is important. So, while they may not be happy where they are, they cannot risk losing their bread and butter even if there’s no jam. They have families to consider or loans to repay.
So, most of us will acquiesce with the wishes of the person in charge as we want to be seen as the person he can rely on and who will never question his decisions, even if we privately think that they aren’t the smartest.
However, steam has to be let off, so we rant when in company of our peers and we are cheered as the chorus of disapproval or discontentment swells. The kindred spirit is balm to one’s bruised soul. Maybe that’s when we really are happy at work.
