This is the first in a two-part series about happiness and the effects of happiness in the workplace.

The cover article of the February issue of Psychology Today explores the phenomenon of happiness–how to turn it on: what works and what doesn’t.

I was Recently discussing the differences between happiness and contentment with a senior strategist in my office. He reminded me of the ebb and flow that comes with happiness–like sadness and everything in between–is something completely different than the contentment that comes with a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Contentment means experiencing the full-range of emotions God has equipped us with to deal with our humanity with the knowledge–peace–that happiness is more than experiencing a temporary high. It’s simply how we’re wired!

I was fascinated to learn that in the last year there have been roughly 4,000 books on happiness released as compared to about 50 in 2000. I also found it curious that “as a nation, we’ve grown sadder and more anxious during the same years that the happiness movement has flourished.” Finally, the most astounding information I read was this:

“What is happiness? The most useful definition—and it’s one agreed upon by neuroscientists, psychiatrists, behavioral economists, positive psychologists, and Buddhist monks—is more like satisfied or content than “happy” in its strict bursting-with-glee sense. It has depth and deliberation to it. It encompasses living a meaningful life, utilizing your gifts and your time, living with thought and purpose.

It’s maximized when you also feel part of a community. And when you confront annoyances and crises with grace. It involves a willingness to learn and stretch and grow, which sometimes involves discomfort. It requires acting on life, not merely taking it in. It’s not joy, a temporary exhilaration, or even pleasure, that sensual rush—though a steady supply of those feelings course through those who seize each day.”

More like satisfaction and contentment? Maximized as a part of community? Not temporary exhilaration?

Sound roughly familiar?

We don’t know if the neuroscientists, psychiatrists, behavioral economists, positive psychologists, and Buddhist monks have pin-pointed where exactly this happiness that’s more like “satisfaction and contentment” comes from, but their definition has certainly received an upgrade. Could the academic and professional contingents be on to something? Could “happiness” be a “peace that (sur)passes all understanding?”

If this is an insight into individual happiness and organizations are a collection of individuals, what does it mean for your organization to be “happy?” That’s tomorrow!