Words by Smiley Team
When the non-profit social enterprise Museum of Happiness were forced to rethink their strategy due to coronavirus restrictions, little did they know how widespread their movement would become as a result - not just in the UK, but around the world.
‘Our shift has shifted to essentially enabling the enablers”, says Vicky Jonhson, Co-Founder. “We’ve been really pouring time into change makers that are already doing amazing work and teaching them the skills they need.”
“Since lockdown happened we’ve had 150 happiness teachers graduate from all over the world. We’ve also shifted our focus to working with schools and happiness teachers now, because that is where we feel we can make the most impacts.”
The shift to online has subsequently meant people from all over the world are able to get involved and train through online courses, spreading the happiness movement far and wide.
The Museum of Happiness works to ensure that people of all ages and backgrounds can learn more about the essence of happiness and well-being. By sharing the art and science of happiness in playful and reflective ways, they hope to give people to the tools they need to live happier lives.
Initially, the Museum of Happiness had a fixed space in Camden however soon began touring all over the world and the shift to online work once again emphasised their global reach.
However the Museum operates, they always ensure that there are a variety of interactive experiences, workshops and events which teach science-based techniques that people can implement in their everyday lives, even from the comfort of their own homes.
Although some people assume that happiness is innate, there is a growing number of psychologists and scientists who now consider happiness not only to be a skill that you can learn but one which can actively benefit all areas of a person’s or a community’s life.
“In psychology, they talk about the idea of flourishing - of not just surviving, but thriving. So we asked how do we thrive in life? So we created three elements of flourishing: flourishing you, flourishing schools and flourishing organisations.” notes Johnson.
Not only has the Museum of Happiness’ work continued to expand online, they have also worked to bring their tools into the classroom.
Johnson notes that “The work I’m most excited about is what we are doing in schools. It has this incredible ripple effect - you can train one happiness teacher and they spread happiness and the tools to their community. We try to take a whole school approach in our work and in one session can go on to impact the lives of between 300 and 1000 young people.”
Despite the incredible work of the Museum, like many organisations, they are struggling with the financial impact of the pandemic. To support their work, you can head to their website and donate. Every little helps and ensures they can bring life changing skills to army veterans and teenagers, to school children, and everyone in between.
Vicky Johnson recently joined us as part of our Smiley Talks The Art and Science of Happiness in which she shares some incredible thoughts on wellness and happiness.
