About Dr. Tracy Brower, PhD, MM, MCRW:
Dr. Tracy Brower is a PhD sociologist studying work-life fulfillment and happiness. She is the author of a new book, The Secrets to Happiness at Work as well as her previous book, Bring Work to Life. She is the Vice President of Workplace Insight for Steelcase and a contributor to Forbes.com and Fast Company. Tracy’s work has been translated into 17 languages and she is an award-winning speaker with over 25 years of experience working with global clients to achieve business results.
Tracy is on the board of the United Way of Greater Ottawa County and on the executive council of the Design Museum Everywhere. In addition, she is an executive advisor to Like|Minded, Coda Societies and to the MSU Master Industrial Mathematics Program. Tracy’s work has been featured in TEDx, The Wall Street Journal, Work-Life Balance in the 21st Century (book), Globe and Mail (Canada), InsideHR (Australia), HR Director (UK), T3N (Germany), Real Estate Review Journal, Fortune.com, Inc. Magazine, HBR (France) and more. Tracy holds a PhD in Sociology, a Master of Management in Organizational Culture, and a Master of Corporate Real Estate with a workplace specialization.
Episode Notes:
Dr. Laura welcomes sociologist, author, and thought leader Tracy Brower to the show to talk about happiness and work, and why those two ideas aren’t mutually exclusive. There is an incredible amount of research on happiness, as Tracy discovered when writing her latest book, The Secrets to Happiness at Work. She shares why she was compelled to write it and some of what she learned along the way.
Tracy acknowledges that a lot of times we hear that “happiness is fluffy.” On the contrary, she has found that happiness, and joy, are the drivers of physical and mental health, cognitive capability, and business benefits. She and Dr. Laura explore the ways in which work and life spill over into each other and how happiness in either one will tend to increase happiness in the other. Community, common goals, and our relationship to work are all places where happiness can be cultivated. Tracy’s insights on joy in work are more relevant than ever in our post-pandemic society.
“The other thing we can do in terms of creating the conditions for happiness at work is looking for opportunities to grow, to learn, to stretch. When we’re doing things that challenge us, it’s extraordinarily correlated with happiness.” Tracy Brower
Resources:
- Tracy Brower website
- Tracy Brower on LinkedIn
- “The Secrets to Happiness at Work” by Tracy Brower
- “Bring Work to Life by Bringing Life to Work” by Tracy Brower
- “Spark” by John J. Ratey MD
- “Friends” by Robin Dunbar
Learn more about Dr. Laura on her website: https://drlaura.live
For more resources, look into Dr. Laura’s organizations:
Season 3 Episodes:
Episode 51 | Getting Things Done: Alleviating Work/Life Overwhelm
About David Allen: YOUR MIND IS FOR HAVING IDEAS, NOT HOLDING THEM.® That’s why David Allen created Getting Things Done®. GTD is the work-life management system that has helped countless individuals and organizations bring order to chaos. GTD enables greater...
Episode 50 | The Cure for the Common Company: A Chief Medical Director’s Prescription for a Healthier Workforce
About Dr. Richard Safeer: Dr. Safeer is Chief Medical Director of Employee Health and Wellbeing at Johns Hopkins Medicine. Dr. Safeer completed his B.S. in Nutrition at Cornell University before graduating from medical school at the S.U.N.Y. at Buffalo (magna cum...
Episode 49 | Dr. Laura’s Tips: How Workplaces Can Evolve in 2023
About Dr. Laura Hambley Lovett: Dr. Laura Hambley Lovett is a work and career psychologist and thought leader on the evolution of work. She has always been fascinated by how work intersects with life and she loves using her expertise to improve organizations and help...
Episode 48 | Unlikely Connections, Affirmations, and the Power to Make a Difference
About Detective Dave Sweet: With over 24 years of policing experience, Detective Dave Sweet has been involved in some of Canada’s most infamous and famous cases. Dave has worked as a patrol officer, an undercover police officer, and led several task forces targeting...
Episode 47 | Tragedy as Our Teacher: Finding Silver Linings with Detective Sweet
About Detective Dave Sweet: With over 24 years of policing experience, Detective Dave Sweet has been involved in some of Canada’s most infamous and famous cases. Dave has worked as a patrol officer, an undercover police officer, and led several task forces targeting...
Episode 46 | The Power of Music for Work-Life Wellness
About Jennifer Buchanan: Jennifer Buchanan is an award-winning author and Music Therapist, instrumental in the implementation of hundreds of music therapy programs throughout Canada since 1991. Her company JB Music Therapy has thrice been nominated for the Community...
More Thriving Human Episodes:
Episode 57 | The Power of Exercise to Optimize your Brain and Mental Wellness
About Dr. John J. Ratey: John J. Ratey, MD, is an Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and an internationally recognized expert in Neuropsychiatry. He has published over 60 peer-reviewed articles, and 12 books published in 20 languages,...
Episode 56 | The Evolution of Flexibility at Work with Dr. Laura
About Dr. Laura: KEYNOTE SPEAKER | PSYCHOLOGIST | THOUGHT LEADER | PODCAST HOST | AUTHOR Dr. Laura Hambley Lovett helps organizations and people to grow and thrive, using the principles of organizational psychology. Through leading, speaking, writing, coaching, and...
Episode 52 | Making Space in Our Lives for What Matters
About David Allen: YOUR MIND IS FOR HAVING IDEAS, NOT HOLDING THEM.® That’s why David Allen created Getting Things Done®. GTD is the work-life management system that has helped countless individuals and organizations bring order to chaos. GTD enables greater...
Episode 51 | Getting Things Done: Alleviating Work/Life Overwhelm
About David Allen: YOUR MIND IS FOR HAVING IDEAS, NOT HOLDING THEM.® That’s why David Allen created Getting Things Done®. GTD is the work-life management system that has helped countless individuals and organizations bring order to chaos. GTD enables greater...
Episode 49 | Dr. Laura’s Tips: How Workplaces Can Evolve in 2023
About Dr. Laura Hambley Lovett: Dr. Laura Hambley Lovett is a work and career psychologist and thought leader on the evolution of work. She has always been fascinated by how work intersects with life and she loves using her expertise to improve organizations and help...
Episode 48 | Unlikely Connections, Affirmations, and the Power to Make a Difference
About Detective Dave Sweet: With over 24 years of policing experience, Detective Dave Sweet has been involved in some of Canada’s most infamous and famous cases. Dave has worked as a patrol officer, an undercover police officer, and led several task forces targeting...