Blue Monday blues
Today, January 23rd, is officially the most depressing day of the year, ‘Blue Monday’ apparently. When naked Christmas trees line our streets, we haven’t been paid since the Christmas splurge and we’re all on a diet. Ok ok when you put it like that it sounds pretty depressing but just to make a childish point I’m having an incredibly good Monday. Thank you very much. I’d even say we’re all pretty chipper in the office this morning. The whole concept a. sounds fairly dubious and accusations of it being a PR stunt don’t seem too far fetched and b. steeped in controversy about when it actually is, last Monday, this Monday blah blah blah. Not sure I really care. January is January, Monday is Monday, but at least it’s forced us, in the name of rebellion, to think of all the happy smiley things.
Unfortunately, although a little New Order may help, we don’t know the answer to happiness, we were going to give it a bash but instead opted for thinking of a few of our happiest places:
Hygge
Denmark tops the charts as the happiest country on earth. The Danes maintain the belief that even the smallest and simplest actions can produce a wealth of happiness, an ethos summed up in a single term – Hygge.
Malawi
According to its visitors (us included!), Malawi is one of the warmest and friendliest places in Africa despite being one of the poorest countries in the world.
Pura Vida
Coined by the Costa Ricans, this phrase meaning ‘full of life’ is evident in their rich and vibrant culture through their seize-the-day approach to life.
Gross National Happiness
As opposed to the tradition GDP, this is a more wholesome way to measure the success of a country, as famously celebrated by Bhutan. Gross National Happiness values sustainable development, cultural integrity, ecosystem conservation, and good governance. So what’s the secret of contentment? All answers are subjective, but looking at these examples it looks like the solution could be in a way of thinking. If I look at it that way, I suppose Christmas is only a year away, and as for the rubbish weather, well, I’ll either buy a beautiful umbrella or I’ll book a holiday to somewhere hot.
