The Happy Way to Drop Your Grievances

Want to stay current with Arthur’s writing? Sign up to get an email every time a new column comes out.

In 15th-century Germany, there was an expression for a chronic complainer: Greiner, Zanner, which can be translated as “whiner-grumbler.” It was not a complimentary term. A popular tavern song at the time (which the great renaissance composer Heinrich Finck also arranged as an instrumental piece) had lyrics that ran, by my rough translation, “Greiner, Zanner, you know what? I’ll sit at your table and kiss your wife on the mouth! How do you like that?” In other words, quit your whining, or I’ll give you something to whine about.

Are you a bit of a ? If so, you’re not alone: Survey show that American customers today are more than twice as likely to complain about a product or service as they were in 1976. People are grumbling over a two-year period prior to autumn 2022, and according to an executive in the , a majority of employees either complain themselves or listen to complaints about upper management for at least 10 hours a month.