A new academic study is out; apparently happy workers are 13% more productive than unhappy workers.

Surprised?

Apparently, not only do happy employees work longer hours, they’re more productive in the hours that they’re *not* working longer. Double win.

And 13% is only an average. Numbers far higher are also plausible. 

One thing to remember, though "happiness" gets a lot of ink in today’s business media, it is not an end in itself, it is a symptom that you’re doing things right, that you’re growing in the right way. Sure, not everything is business is candy, teddy bears and ice cream, nor should it be, but to quote Napoleon (yet again), good morale is worth fifty thousand men in the field

Are you happy? More to the point, are your people happy?

Not so easy, eh?

Should a company be customer-obsessed like Amazon or employee-focused like Richard Branson said? originally appeared on Quora: the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.

Answer by Jason Korman, CEO, Gapingvoid Culture Design Group, on Quora:

Businesses do best when they’re built around high-purpose cultures, which are equally focused on both employees and customers. Some skeptics think this is impossible, and that one or the other must end up taking precedence. But most of the time, business leaders can do right by their staff and the consumers they serve.

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