Tomorrow is April Fool’s day and here I am with a fitting question: Is laughter really the best medicine?

Based only on my gut feeling, I would wholeheartedly say yes. I always feel so relaxed and stress free after a good laugh. This must be good for my body and health, don’t you think so?

Imagine my surprise when I discovered, researching the topic “laughter and health” that there are actually conflicting results with respect to the stress-reducing effect of laughter.

Laughter evolved to bring people together. It’s a social activity, and consequently we laugh much less when we are alone. The physiological effects are described as an increase in heart rate and blood pressure.

According to a Swedish study, laughter activates the fight or flight system and thus increases the release of certain stress hormones. Another study points to a stress relieving effect of laughter, and consequently a reduction in stress hormones.

Studies about another supposed effect of laughter convey less confusing results: Laughter seems to make people less sensitive to pain.

One effect for sure is: We are in a better mood, if we have something to laugh about.

Therefore, any ideas for April fool’s day?

CNN lists today the 10 best pranks; among them all female employees told the boss confidentially that they are pregnant: http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/worklife/03/31/fool.pranks.work/index.html

The top ranked prank on the list of the Museum of Hoaxes is a BBC TV story. In 1957, BBC announced that thanks to a mild winter Swiss farmers would have a record spaghetti harvest. The report showed footage of people pulling strands of spaghetti down from trees. After the show, many people called BBC wanting to know where they could get a spaghetti tree. BBC’s advice: “Place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best.” This story and 99 more pranks at: http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/aprilfool/index

(Information about laughter is based on an article by Robert R. Provine, Ph.D., published in Psychology Today, 11/01/2000)

Money, money, money – that’s all what counts with respect to job satisfaction. Are you sure? Think again.

My students in my Psychology in Business and Industry class at the college, where I’m teaching believed like many other people at first that money is the main motivator that accounts for their job satisfaction. A few minutes later they had proven themselves wrong.

I had asked what makes a job satisfying, and they quickly came up with many aspects, not only pay: The environment, clean facilities, good benefits, competent bosses, nice coworkers, and flex-time, to name a few. Then I asked to rank those points, and “pay’’ easily won the top spot. Some objected and were saying, they wouldn’t take any job just because of a high salary. The majority, however, stayed with their assessment: As long as the job is “halfway decent”, a good pay would make the difference between job-happiness and job-frustration.

My next question was about the reasons, why they had been unhappy in previous jobs and quit. Surprisingly, it turned out almost nobody had ever quit about money. Reasons have been a boss, who was micro-managing, not enough appreciation or recognition of hard work, issues with co-workers, malfunctioning equipment and safety concerns, boring work or not getting to do the work they have been hired for. They had quit because they have been either unhappy with the work environment and the climate at the workplace or with the work itself.

In the end, they all agreed that there are apparently more important factors for job satisfaction than money. For some, the job fulfills their need for communication and relationships with other people. Consequently, nice bosses and co-workers are most important factors.  Others love challenges and opportunities to grow. Therefore, they feel happier in jobs that offer responsibilities, independence, control over the work, and stimulation.

Obviously, People have different needs. Since most of us spend more time at work than with family and friends, it’s all the more important to clarify the own needs. A Life Coach will not only help you with this; a Life Coach will also assist you in finding the perfect job for you that fits to your needs. Read: What will I get from coaching?

Here is an exercise that gives an idea, how a life coach may work with you:

Think of a job that you liked and of one, where you quit because you couldn’t stand it there. Why was the first a good job and the second a bad job?