77. People are happier when they're busy

Baggage Claim Example

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Rubrica: : Photo by Ricardo Cruz on Unsplash

Let's say you are at an airport, and your flight has just landed. You now have to make your way to the baggage claim area.

Walking time - 12 minutes

The time it takes you to walk to the baggage claim area is 12 minutes. Once you get there, you have to sit and wait for 3 minutes for your bags to come.

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Rubrica: : Photo by Edgar Pereira on Unsplash

Walking time - 2 minutes

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Rubrica: : Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash

In a different scenario, you are only a 2 minute walk from the baggage claim area. You now have to sit and wait for 13 minutes to get your bags.

The person who was sitting idle for 13 minutes is feeling a lot more impatient than the person who only had to sit there for 2 minutes. That is because the person that was busy walking had something to do for that amount of time. While humans would normally chose to be lazy and save energy, the busier people are more happy.

Happiness Levels