It’s Nice to Be Nice. Nice for Your Career, That Is.

Being nice at work makes you twice as happy as people who’re rarely or never nice. ARE YOU READING THIS, DEBBIE?

People who are nice at work are likely to be happier, healthier and earn more than workers who are rarely or never nice, according to a recent study by Monarch Airlines.

Why? For one thing, it would seem that being nice to people makes them more likely to be nice back. Go figure.

People who are nice at work are likely to be happier, healthier and earn more than workers who are rarely or never nice. Why? For one thing, it would seem that being nice to people makes them more likely to be nice back. Go figure.

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“Nice people say that their colleagues are more willing to help them if they are nice to them (73 percent) however only one in ten rarely/never nice people would agree,” reports SmallBusiness.

But nice workers also benefit their employers; workers who consider themselves nice also rate themselves more productive – twice as productive, in fact – as workers who are not nice.

Nice Work, If You Can Get It

According to SmallBusiness, 93 percent of business owners look for “nice” employees. “If nice employees are happier this also indicates a lower staff turnover which is a huge benefit to businesses,” the site reports.

And nice workers at nice companies seem to attract other nice workers; Again, according to SmallBusiness, “The nicest people in the survey rated their company as seven/ten (for niceness) where as those who are rarely/never nice only rated their company a four/ten.”

Nice Guys Finish… First?

According to head of digital and marketing at Monarch Rob Foulkes, “Our original study showed that nice people have higher levels of emotional intelligence, helping them to deal with stressful situations that arise. This can be a really useful skill for employees and managers, and our survey results prove that niceness is an important quality that shouldn’t be overlooked or undervalued in the workplace.”

Finally, the study suggested a few ways to maintain a “nice” attitude in the office, the most popular of which included:

• Staying positive, calm and happy – smile!
• Being honest and professional
• Counting to ten
• Breathing techniques and mindfulness
• Making a cup of tea/take a break
• Looking at the bigger picture

So when you’re faced with an opportunity to be nice in the face of adversity, we suggest you take it; it’ll likely be good for you and for your career.

No More Mr. Nice Guy

While taking the above advice to heart, as we wrote in 2016, “Being nice isn’t the same thing as being a doormat.”

“It’s important to remember that being kind-hearted doesn’t mean taking whatever you’re offered,” we said. “It’s possible to be polite without letting your colleagues, present and prospective, walk all over you.”

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK

Do you find that being nice benefits your career? We want to hear about it! Leave a comment or join the discussion on Twitter.