IN FINLAND WE HAVE A SAYING, “Kell’ onni on, se onnen kätkeköön.” In short, it means “whoever has found happiness, that happiness she should hide”.
At first hearing, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this doesn’t sound very uplifting, but it is phrases like this that I believe have contributed to making Finland the world’s happiest country for the last six years.
Not wanting to ignore this correlation, I have spent some time reflecting on what it is to be Finnish in a bid to help others maximize their happiness.
It feels fitting that I write this as CEO of an organization dedicated to measuring happiness for businesses. Yes, those smiley-faced feedback buttons you see in airports and stores, that’s our Finnish company, HappyOrNot.
I must start by saying that this happiness title is not self-proclaimed. I can assure you that Finns would never be so bold as to come up with this.
