The Key to Happiness?

In the United States, having a job or career that you enjoy is considered a key cornerstone for leading a fulfilling life. According to a survey by Pew Research Center, 71 percent of respondents said that having a job or career that they like is either extremely or very important to feeling satisfied with their lot. The next most popular perceived element for a fulfilling life was having close friends, with 61 percent of respondents picking the option. Having children, a lot of money or getting married were less highly rated. In the case of having children, 42 percent of respondents said it was not important, while 44 percent said marriage was not important.

Women were slightly more likely than men to say that their job or career is important to achieving a feeling of fulfillment, at 74 percent compared to their counterparts’ 69 percent. Men were slightly more likely to say having children (29 percent versus women’s 22 percent) or marriage (28 percent for men versus 18 percent for women) were key to such perceived metrics of success.