4.19.2007

We're happy (most of the time)

Todd Rhodes over at Monday Morning Insight has an interesting post of a survey that recently labeled Pastors as the people being the happiest out of all professions. This conclusion was drawn from surveys of job satisfaction. I won't steal the thunder or link love (go read his post) but I will say that while Pastors were the "happiest" of all professions, the least happy were... Laborers.

I see a direct correlation between "happiness with a profession" and the "perceived impact" that profession makes on the lives of people in society. As you glance through the happiest people you find people who are freed up to love/serve/protect in ways that make a clear impact in people's lives. As you look at the least happy you will see task-minded jobs. These are things that have to get done for society to function but aren't particularly full of impact.

Two take-aways for today.
1. Be appreciative for what you do, even when it stinks. God has blessed us with the ability and opportunity to serve the Kingdom this way.

2. Be extra thoughtful with those who serve you. Go out of your way to ask the wait staff how their lives are going. When you see someone cleaning a building, stop to thank them and comment how the clean facility always keeps your mood high. Those on the "least happy" list need extra encouragement so they can see how their job impacts us all on a daily basis.

MMI
Link to Happiness post

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