In the longest running health on happiness (80+ years and running), Harvard researchers sought to answer the age-old but elusive question of “what is the secret to happiness?” The study started with 700+ men (from all walks of the socio-economic spectrum) and follows their lives to the present day. If you have 12 minutes, I highly encourage you to watch the TedTalk. But if not, here’s the punchline--- what really makes people happy is surprise--- not how many zeros are in your bank account, how famous you are, or how many Instagram followers you have (tho obviously that didn’t exist for most of the study). The number one predictor of people’s happiness  (drumroll please)—the strength of your social connections—which is different than the absolute number of friends—it’s  how many deep human connections are in your life. We humans are social creatures and those social connections need to be nurtured and you need to invest in them. (following their social media doesn’t count!)

With more free time, why not take the opportunity to reach out to close friends/family or even those you’ve not talked to in a while. During these days of corona and social distancing, face to face is likely out of the question for most. For me personally, I’ve already had 2 virtual happy hours with friends (I enjoyed a superb super Tuscan wine and an albarino from Portugal in the process). Now more than ever, we need to feel “connection”—also a good laugh with friends can help counteract all the negativity in the news. Should this have happened 40 years ago, you’d have way less tools at your disposal but with Facetime, Skype, Zoom, Google hangouts—you have no excuse!

For bonus points, reach out to a long-lost friend you haven’t talked to in a while—maybe you were once close but fell out of touch or maybe because you’ve moved too many times and natural geographic distance took its tool. Take the challenge and believe me, they will be delighted to hear from you. If you feel awkward about reaching out, try to think about the roles in reverse—if someone from middle school reached out to you, how would you feel? Chances are, it’d be a very pleasant surprise! I took my own advice and reached out to an aunt I haven’t spoken to in several years

As the American physicist Leon Mlodinow said:  “social connection is such a basic feature of human experience that when we are deprived of it, we suffer.”

In the meantime, stay connected, share laughs, and wash your hands!