The happiest country! "Finnish happiness" challenges your perception

Author＼Life Newspaper Orange Zheng Minwen

When it comes to the number one "happiest country", the first thing you might think of is Bhutan? In fact, according to the World Happiness Index report presented by Gallup in 2018, Finland is the country with the highest happiness index in the world.

But if you ask Finns about this research result, they may chuckle and say, "Isn't that wrong? It's us?" Some may even argue with you about the credibility of this research. Spend. In fact, they are not modest, but because Finns are really not in a hurry to make themselves happy, and they take happiness very lightly. So why on earth can they become "the happiest country"?

Let’s first define happiness!

Happiness or happiness, no matter what words are used to replace it, are actually very complex concepts, and happiness may be defined differently by different races and countries. Usually when we talk about happiness, we think of nothing more than a cheerful atmosphere, everyone’s smiling faces, and every day full of hope! If your happiness looks like this, with extremely surging emotional expressions, then for you, perhaps Latin America should be the happiest country!

In fact, Finns are a very introverted nation. They usually don’t show their emotions or anger. If you look at the pictures on this is finland official, a Finnish national marketing website, you can probably understand what I mean. That makes sense. At the same time, because of Finland’s long cold winter, a survey by the World Health Organization even found that the rate of depression among Finns ranks second in the world, with happiness and depression in the top three! Is there a mistake in the World Happiness Index report?

Recommended reading: Create happiness by yourself! Three thoughts that suddenly enlightened people

John Helliwell, a professor at the University of British Columbia, explained that the "happiness" mentioned here does not simply refer to the study of emotions, but the study of the "quality of life" of people in various countries. . Factors for high quality of life include whether people in this society can help each other, whether the overall sense of trust is strong enough, etc., and Finland scores very high in these items.

Happiness is the mutual support and trust of the entire society

Some people may say that maybe the happiness of the Finns is just a national character, which is owned by the Nordic people. Some characteristics? However, research shows that immigrants in Finland also rank first in happiness. This shows that the happiness of the people is actually related to the way the country is governed.

For example, there are many things worth learning about Finland’s social policies. When you search for Finnish education, the information will tell you how successful Finland’s education reform is and how well connected the education and health care systems are, making Finland Be the best place to raise children. When it comes to work, Finland does not believe that "the longer the working hours, the higher the efficiency." Finns attach great importance to the balance between work and life, which makes Finland a suitable land to live.

In addition, thinking about others and helping each other is also the norm in Finland. Martela, a social psychology researcher at the University of Helsinki, used the example of losing a wallet to illustrate the "trust" that Finns have in each other: "Reader's Digest actually did a wallet-dropping test. After the test, it was found that Of all the cities, Helsinki has the most wallets returned to their original owners,” and not even a cent is missing.

"Moderation, balance, and flexibility" are Finnish happiness

Martela also pointed out another possible key to happiness for Finns: not showing off their happiness. People's satisfaction with life often comes from "social comparison." If you think everyone is living a better life than you, even if objectively speaking you are already living a good life, you will still be dissatisfied. That's why many studies worry that overly idealistic representations of life on social media may make people feel more depressed.

"For the Finns, happiness is more about living a reserved, balanced and resilient life." (from BBC) For the Finns, happiness is more about living a reserved, balanced and resilient life. ”

The introverted sense of happiness of the Finns prevents them from overly comparing each other and allows them to live a more pragmatic life.

From the trust and support network of the entire society to everyone's attitude towards life that is stable, not showing off, and living every day peacefully, this is Finland, and this is why it is the country with the highest happiness index in the world.

Seeing this, what we should think about is not that we all move to Finland together, but that we redefine "happiness" in our minds together.

Of course, Finns also have moments of depression, and when they are sad, they will get drunk at home. By not putting yourself under the pressure of pursuing happiness, maybe you can truly see the present and be satisfied with life!

Recommended reading: The prerequisite for maintaining happiness is to "live in the moment" by constantly zeroing and restarting.

I saw a Finnish person describe happiness like this: "Happiness is like the sun, it es and goes. ——Pauli Kulho"

Not pursuing or holding on to happiness, accepting it as it rises and sets like the sun, is the happiness wisdom of the Finns.