According to a new meta-analysis of, well, people-interacting-with-people, social support can increase survival by up to 50 percent! Finally science does something useful and “proves” what historians, hippies and Freemasons have known all along: having a strong sense of community positively impacts one’s emotional and physical health.
Findings from this study, interestingly enough, also lumped all social interactions together. Yup, even the bad ones were in there. Consequently, we can extrapolate from the data that positive social relationships inspire elements of a healthy lifestyle to an even greater degree. Oddly enough, in our fast-paced, media-laden, hyper-connected world, one-in-three people claim that they do not know a single person in whom they can confide. And I thought Facebook was making the world a closer place, Zuckerberg! Amidst all the noise of the Twitterverse, the study shows that if we can find one person out there this will greatly benefit our health and wellness. For the record, my one person is Steve Nash.
A few weeks ago, Clayton M. Christensen posted a thoughtful piece on the Harvard Business Review blog that reflects on how people – or at least HBS students – are changing the way that we measure our lives. Especially when it comes to the word “success.” Christensen encourages his students – many of whom will wind up divorced, overworked, alienated, or in jail – to ask this important question as they create their strategy for life: How can I ensure that my relationship with my family proves to be an enduring source of happiness?
All too often we fail to take happiness into the equation of success. And a positive-influencing social network can’t help but bring smiles into one’s life.
As an aspiring community builder on several fronts, I have a few tips on ways to re-enforce your social fabric with some healthy activities:
- Never eat alone.
- Hug people (for emotional robots and Germans out there, try a two-handed shake instead).
- Interface with real people, not video games ones.
- Volunteer.
- Host and/or attend at least one dinner party per month.
- Have lunch with one, two or several colleagues.
- Talk to strangers.
- When you see something you like, pay the doer of said thing a nice, genuine compliment.
- Give away what you most want to receive.
So there it is. Have fun being socially healthy!
No wonder this show was on the air for so long. It was because of the community-based longevity of Jennifer Aniston!