This episode is part of the Happiness Reset at Work campaign, where Klaudia introduces you to 5 drivers that contribute to building more satisfaction in our careers so that you can reconnect and re-energise with your work in 2025. 

The 4th driver of happiness at work is Belonging.

The episode emphasizes the importance of forming genuine connections and friendships at work, highlighting that employees with good friends are more productive and contribute to a safer, more enjoyable work environment.

Klaudia invites listeners to reflect on their own sense of belonging through three thought-provoking questions.

Hello Happiness seekers. My name is Klaudia and you are listening to the Happiness Challenge.

Follow me on LinkedIn and join my new Substack newsletter to receive a summary of each driver and also get free tickets to webinar on the Science of Happiness at Work that I'll be hosting in February.

And finally, if you would like to dive deeper, join my new masterclass program online to build your individual action plan to create more fulfillment and impact at work.

There are only 15 places available and you can sign up@happinesschallenge.co.uk courses and I don't believe that we are already more than halfway through the campaign because this is episode 142 where I'm diving into the fourth driver of happiness at work. The Sense of Belonging so what does it mean to belong?

And the simplest way to think about it is that sense of belonging at work refers to us feeling accepted, valued and welcomed in our workplace communities. And it's actually more than just being part of the team.

It's very much about forming genuine, meaningful connections and feeling that what our presence matters and why is it important to happiness?

The first important aspect to consider is that feeling a sense of belonging boosts our mental health because when we feel accepted, we are likely to experience lower levels of stress anxiety.

This is because when we are accepted, we are more likely to share our difficulties with others and take positive actions to solve them because other people provide us with that essential solution, social and emotional support at work.

In contrast, if we don't feel we belong, we'll feel quite isolated and often we may experience signs of burnout because we don't feel we can ask for help. Next Very important part of belonging is that belonging drives our performance.

When we feel that we can express our authentic selves without judgment, we are more inclined to contribute ideas, solve problems, innovate, and take initiative. We are not just there to clock in, clock out.

We are invested in the success of the team, in the success of the project, in the success of the organization, because we ultimately see the people around us as a unit that we care about and finally, if we feel that we belong at work, we are more likely to open up, we are more likely to express who we are as a person, and therefore we are more likely to make friends at work and here.

Research by Gallup shows that employees who have good friends at work are significantly more likely to get more done in less time because friends at work keep them accountable.

They are more likely to support a safe workplace with fewer accidents because ultimately we care that our environment is safe for everyone, are more likely to innovate and share ideas and also have fun while at work, which is also very important.

So in a nutshell, if we feel we belong, we feel happier at work because one we have essential social and emotional support two we are more innovative and committed to having that positive impact for our team and organization and 3 we are more likely to be authentic and make friends at work who frankly make our days fun and engaging. So to consider your sense of belonging at work, I encourage you to reflect on the following three coaching questions. 1.

How at ease do you feel at work to share your ideas with others? 2.

How confident do you feel that you have a range of colleagues supporting you at work when times are tough and actually can you recognize those colleagues? And 3 how often do you spend time forming new connections or friendships at work outside of your day job?

So thank you so much for listening to the Happiness Reset at Work campaign. I hope to see you at the next episode 143 where I'll be sharing some practical hacks for strengthening our sense of belonging at work.

If you are interested overall in the topic of friendships, listen to episode 40 how friends help Us Live Longer and Happier Lives. It's an incredible interview with Professor Robin Dunbar.

As always, I would love you to share this episode with others and subscribe to my podcast and newsletter so you don't miss out on any future content. But for now, thank you for listening and I see you at the next episode. Bye.