United America, Core Value 8: Pursuit of Happiness

You might find it in “The Great Happyfication,” an animated short film that’s one of Coca-Cola’s “Happiness Factory” series. It’s depicts a happy land devoted to producing and delivering happiness “one bottle at a time.” Since 1923, the company has associated the consumption of its cola drink with enjoyment, pleasure, and happiness.

Does a bottle of Coke make you happy?

The pursuit of happiness is one of America’s 10 Core Values, as I document in United America. It’s one of the principles enshrined in the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Americans have pursued happiness with a passion, but often it has proved elusive. When the French aristocrat Alexis de Tocqueville traveled the country in the 1800s, he observed that many Americans were restless and anxious despite possessing ample material goods.

These days, happiness is a serious field of study. There are happiness psychologists and economists. In my new book United America, I discuss the practical advice proffered by happiness psychologists like Sonja Lyubomirsky and the father-son team of Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener.

Today in our series on the 10 core values, we are exploring Core Value 8: “Pursuit of Happiness”—“enjoyment, leisure, pleasure.”

Take a look at Coke’s video and see what you think …

What’s your opinion of marketing campaigns that link happiness and products?

For you, what is the secret of happiness?