Are you Happy?
What does that mean? How do you define it? And how do you measure it?
Happiness is a surprisingly complex concept comprised of conditions that highlight positive emotions over negative ones. And upon a bit of reflection, happiness is bolstered by the support of comfort, freedom, wealth, and other things people aspire to experience.
Regardless of how hard it is to describe (let alone quantify) ... humans strive for happiness.
Likewise, it is hard to imagine a well-balanced and objective "Happiness Report" because so much of the data required to compile it seems subjective and requires self-reporting.
Nonetheless, the World Happiness Report takes an annual look at quantifiable factors (like health, wealth, GDP, and life expectancy) and more intangible factors (like social support, generosity, emotions, and perceptions of local government and businesses). Below is an infographic highlighting the World Happiness Report data for 2025.
World Happiness Report via Gallup
Click here to see a dashboard with the raw worldwide data.
I last shared this concept in 2022. At the time, we were still seeing the ramifications of COVID-19 on happiness levels. As you might expect, the pandemic caused a significant increase in negative emotions reported. Specifically, there were substantial increases in reports of worry and sadness across the ninety-five countries surveyed. The decline in mental health was higher in groups prone to disenfranchisement or other particular challenges – e.g., women, young people, and poorer people.
Ultimately, happiness scores are relatively resilient and stable, and humanity persevered in the face of economic insecurity, anxiety, and more.
While scores in North America have dropped slightly, there are positive trends.
The 2025 Report
In the 2025 report, one of the key focuses was an increase in pessimism about the benevolence of others. There seems to be a rise in distrust that doesn't match the actual statistics on acts of goodwill. For example, when researchers dropped wallets in the street, the proportion of returned wallets was far higher than people expected.
Unfortunately, our well-being depends on our perception of others' benevolence, as well as their actual benevolence.
Since we underestimate the kindness of others, our well-being can be improved by seeing acts of true benevolence. In fact, the people who benefit most from perceived benevolence are those who are the least happy.
"Benevolence" increased during COVID-19 in every region of the world. People needed more help, and others responded. Even better, that bump in benevolence has been sustained, with benevolent acts still being about 10% higher than their pre-pandemic levels.
Another thing that makes a big difference in happiness levels worldwide is a sense of community. People who eat with others are happier, and this effect holds across many other variables. People who live with others are also happier (even when it's family).
The opposite of happiness is despair, and deaths of despair (suicide and substance abuse) are falling in the majority of countries. Deaths of despair are significantly lower in countries where more people are donating, volunteering, or helping strangers.
Yet, Americans are increasingly eating alone and living alone, and are one of the few countries experiencing an increase in deaths of despair (especially among the younger population). In 2023, 19% of young adults across the world reported having no one they could count on for social support. This is a 39% increase compared to 2006.
Takeaways
In the U.S., and a few other regions, the decline in happiness and social trust points to the rise in political polarisation and distrust of "the system". As life satisfaction lowers, there is a rise in anti-system votes.
Among unhappy people attracted by the extremes of the political spectrum, low-trust people are more often found on the far right, whereas high-trust people are more inclined to vote for the far left.
Despite that, when we feel like we're part of a community, spend time with others, and perform prosocial behavior, we significantly increase perceived personal benefit and reported happiness levels.
Do you think we can return to previous levels of trust in the States? I remember when it felt like both parties understood that the other side was looking to improve the country, just with different methods.
On a broader note, while we have negative trends in the U.S., the decrease is lower than you might expect. The relative balance demonstrated in the face of such adversity may point towards the existence of a hedonic treadmill - or a set-point of happiness.
Regardless of the circumstances, people can focus on what they choose, define what it means to them, and choose their actions.
Remember, throughout history, things have gotten better. There are dips here and there, but like the S&P 500 ... we always rally eventually.
Onwards!
What My Recent Surgery Reminded Me About Technology.
One of my recurring messages is to focus on what you want, rather than what you don’t want.
Likewise, I believe the best way to get through challenging periods is to focus on your resources or progress.
Anyway, two weeks ago, I had a minor surgery.
Let’s face it, very few people “want” to have surgery (even small ones) ... and, for those that do, it’s a sign that something else is bothering them even more.
As much as it sucked, I have a lot to be grateful for. The practical realities of time, technology, and progress made the procedure and the recovery process easier than at any point in our species’ history.
Procedures that used to mean multiple days in a hospital bed have you home in under 24 hours.
It brought back memories of my knee surgery from 12 years ago... and reminded me of what technology makes possible.
Before my knee surgery, I wasn’t enjoying the prospect of the needles, the knock-out drugs, the cutting, or the recovery process. Frankly, I was scared.
History is littered with tales of once-rare resources that have become plentiful through innovation. The reason is pretty straightforward: scarcity is often context-dependent.
Imagine a giant orange tree packed with fruit. If you pluck all the oranges from the lower branches, you are effectively out of accessible fruit. From that limited perspective, oranges are now scarce. But once someone invents a piece of technology called a ladder, the problem is solved.
Here is a picture from inside my knee (unlike years ago, they didn’t have to slice me open to gain access for the picture or the repair): less damage, less time, less drugs, less recovery.
Bottom-Line: I walked over 2,500 steps the day after the surgery.
Think how far diagnostics and surgery have come since then?
Whether it is 3D imaging, minimally invasive surgical instruments, or linking big data and elastic computing, technology is a resource-liberating mechanism. It can make the ‘once scarce’ the ‘now abundant’ (or ‘readily accessible’) ... and a lot less painful.
From ‘Doctor Klingon’ to Clarity — and What That Means for You
But where are we today – and how was surgery different?
It sounds like a joke, but the future of medicine is in your pocket.
One of the biggest differences for me was having AI available to help me feel informed throughout the process. From the beginning, where I wanted to understand the issue and potential solutions, to having AI available on my phone in the recovery room. For example, while waiting for the doctor to tell me “how things went,” I downloaded the surgical notes from the hospital portal, only to find that they were written in “doctor speak” Klingon. So I opened Perplexity in incognito mode and asked it to interpret the notes, and explain everything to me as if I had minimal medical knowledge but still wanted to understand what happened and what I should expect. The result was incredibly comforting, and I was able to use that to send updates to family and friends.
Meanwhile, try to imagine the extensive technology used by doctors and medical staff throughout the process to test, analyze, interpret, monitor, and treat.
Soon, we’ll be able to utilize real-time data for diagnostics and design treatment plans and preventive care tailored to an individual’s unique biology and lifestyle. As a result, personalized, predictive healthcare will become the norm. Likewise, the idea of tailoring treatment to your unique biology will be expected, not exceptional.
It’s also easier than ever to imagine the shift from reactive to preventive medicine. Surgery will become less frequent as AI and wearables catch problems before they require intervention. Likewise,. That means better care and better outcomes - at scale!
Pretty cool!
Posted at 05:44 PM in Business, Current Affairs, Gadgets, Healthy Lifestyle, Ideas, Market Commentary, Science, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0)
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