Why Danes are the happiest people on Earth

(CS) Danish ambassador to Luxembourg Louise Bang Jespersen explained why Danes are considered the happiest people on Earth, offering some food for thought for Luxembourg, at a lunch event hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce on Monday.

In the second World Happiness Report, published by the UN in September, Denmark ranked first out of 156 countries when it comes to happiness, with Luxembourg still in the top 20 at rank 19.

But what makes the Danes so much more content with their lives than people elsewhere in Europe? After all, even people in Denmark like to complain about high taxes and other everyday grievances, much like anyone else, ambassador Jespersen joked.

With reasons for happiness heavily subjective, Jespersen said that an overall sense of security, trust and freedom prevails in the northern state, with efficient and well-functioning structures in place, offering citizens something in return for their tax “kroner”.

Freedom to design your own life

However, the ambassador not only talked of political freedom or freedom of speech, but commented that there is a feeling of freedom to design your own life “model”, financed in large parts through some of the highest income taxes in the EU.

Universal health care, free education and generous parental leave allow citizens to build a life as they imagine it, greatly contributing to satisfaction and, ultimately, happiness, Jespersen argued. And with such obvious benefits, seeing around half your wages given to the state becomes a lot more bearable, she added.

For example, parents are entitled to a combined 52 weeks of parental leave, and with low-cost child care available nearly 80 percent of women return to the workforce at the previous level of their job. However, this did not come over night, Jespersen explained.

Women have been “on the labour market for decades,” she said, and the country has put in the place the right infrastructures to make Denmark one of the top ten countries for gender equality.

Generous social welfare has also caused what the ambassador called “happiness equality”, with only a small gap in perceived happiness between the richer and those well-off.

Danes like their jobs

Denmark is a trailblazer when it comes to satisfaction - and not just in private life . For example, seven out of ten Danes say they would still enjoy their job even if they would not have to do it for the money, Jespersen said.

Added to that is a diverse economy with players in global markets, from shipping company Maersk and toy manufacturer Lego, to Bang & Olufsen electronics and popular shoe bran ECCO. More recently, Denmark has also begun exporting its creative talent, from architecture and design to television programmes, such as “Borgen” or “The Killing”.

As a “hot-house” for innovation and entrepreneurship, Denmark was recently ranked fifth globally and fourth in Europe for ease of doing business in the World Bank's “Doing Business” report. Luxembourg only ranked 60th out of 189 countries in the study.

A mix of influence and autonomy at the workplace, with flat structures and a consensus-based approach, make people happy in their job, a key factor for overall happiness, according to Jespersen. But not only work itself, but also work-life balance makes the Danes happy.

European leaders in volunteering

Over 40 percent of people in Denmark volunteer in their free time, a European record, Jespersen said. This fosters not only a sense of collective responsibility but also stronger social networks, she explained.

With everyone so involved, it comes as no surprise that in the last national elections in 2011, over 87 percent of people turned out to vote, proud of the “democratic process,” according to the ambassador.

Add to that a strong and ambitious green agenda, which wants to see the country independent of fossil fuels by 2050, and a capital city that is becoming a model for cycling and sustainability around the globe, and it is easy to imagine why Danes are so happy.

That, however, is not the whole story, and Jespersen warned that things are not “black and white” and that happiness, which has only recently come under the global spotlight, is challenging.

A piece of Danish happiness for everyone

After all, happiness is subjective and about perception. Maybe Danes are just less high-maintenance than other nations and satisfied more easily. Possibly, they are just better at self-deception than the rest of Europe, or they have set their bar lower.

All cynicism aside, Jespersen said that Denmark has problems to tackle, from a poor health record, which includes the third highest use of antidepressants in the OECD, according to a 2011 report, to a troubled history of immigration laws.

What works in Denmark, is not necessarily right for Luxembourg or any other country in Europe or around the world. And, everything takes time, Jespersen said.

One factor for happiness, however, everyone should take on board. The Danish concept of “hygge” - a word with no accurate translation. The ambassador quoted a definition from the internet, which describes “hygge” as “a complete absence of anything annoying, irritating or emotionally overwhelming, and the presence of and pleasure from comforting, gentle and soothing things.”

A bit of Danish “hygge” could do us all some good this coming winter!