What makes you happy? 6 Minute English 

If you enjoy this video, you will LOVE this episode of our funny drama The White Elephant, where you can learn some useful everyday phrases related to being happy. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-VfHdHYHTZFo.html

Neil Hello. Welcome to 6 Minute English, I'm Neil. This is the programme where in just six minutes we discuss an interesting topic and teach some related English vocabulary. And joining me to do this is Rob. Rob Hello, Neil. Neil Now Rob, you seem like a happy chappy. Rob What's the point of being miserable? Neil Well, that are many things that could make you feel down in the dumps - a phrase that means 'unhappy' - but what are the things that keep you feeling happy, cheerful and chirpy, Rob? Rob Oh many things like being healthy, having good friends, presenting programmes like this with you, Neil! Neil Of course - but we all have different ideas about what makes us happy - and that can vary from country to country and culture to culture. It's what we're talking about today - concepts of happiness. Rob Now Neil, you could make us even happier if you gave us a really good question to answer. Neil Here it is. Happiness is an emotion that actually gets measured. The World Happiness Report measures "subjective well-being" - how happy the people are, and why. But do you know, according to a United Nations agency report in 2017, which is the happiest country on Earth? Is it… a) Norway b) Japan, or c) New Zealand? Rob WeIl, I think they're all very happy places but the outdoor life of many New Zealanders must make New Zealand the happiest place. Neil OK, we'll see. I'll reveal the answer later on. But now back to our discussion about happiness around the world. Rob Happiness can be hard to define. Research has suggested that while personal feelings of pleasure are the accepted definition of happiness in Western cultures, East Asian cultures tend to see happiness as social harmony and in some parts of Africa and India it's more about shared experiences and family. Neil It's something author and journalist Helen Russell has been looking at - she's even created an 'Atlas of Happiness'. Her research focused on the positive characteristics of a country's population - and guess which country she found to be one of the happiest? Rob New Zealand? Neil Actually no. It was Japan. Here she is speaking on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour programme. What concept - or belief - is it that promotes happiness? Helen Russell, author and journalist Millennials and perhaps older people are better at remembering wabi-sabi - this traditional Japanese concept around celebrating imperfection, which I think is something so helpful these days, especially for women - it's this idea that there is a beauty in ageing, it's to be celebrated rather than trying to disguise it, or trying to cover up the scars instead you gild them with kintsugi - if you break a pot instead of chucking it away, you mend it with gold lacquer so the scars, rather than being hidden, are highlighted in pure gold… We all have laughter lines and rather than being ashamed of them, they're something to be celebrated. Neil So in Japan, there is a belief that people should celebrate imperfection. Imperfection is a fault or weakness. So rather than hiding something that's not perfect, we should celebrate it. Rob Getting old, for example, is not something to be ashamed of - don't hide your wrinkles or laughter lines - these are the creases you get as you skin ages or even you get from smiling too much! Neil Rather than spending time being ashamed of our faults, we should accept what and who we are. This concept is something that Helen feels is particularly being celebrated by Millennials and older people. Rob Yes, and Helen compared this with the process of kintsugi - where the cracks or scars on broken pottery are highlighted with gold lacquer. This is called gilding. So we should highlight our imperfections. Neil This concept is something that maybe English people should embrace more because according to Helen Russell's research, they are not a very happy population. Here she is speaking on the BBC's Woman's Hour programme again - what word does she use to describe people like me and you? Helen Russell, author and journalist In England what we have is 'jolly', which many of us now associate with this kind of 'jolly hockey sticks' or maybe an upper-class thing but actually it's something that really plays through a lot of British culture in a way that we may not think of so much. So there's this sense that in a lot of our comedy, in a lot of our approach to life you just sort of… you get out there, you go for a dog walk, you have a boiled egg and soldiers ['soldiers' in this case are small slices of toast that you can dip into your egg and eat], and we do sort of get on with things - it's a coping mechanism, it's not perfect but it's worked for many Brits for a while. Rob In the past we would use the phrase 'jolly hockey sticks' - a humorous phrase used to describe upper-class school girls' annoying enthusiasm. Neil But Helen now thinks 'jolly' describes an attitude that is used as a coping mechanism - that's something someone does to deal with a difficult situation. We smile, do everyday things - like walking the dog - and just get on with life. Rob I guess she means carry on without complaining. Neil Well, here's something to make you happy, Rob - the answer to the question I asked you earlier, which was: according to a United Nations agency report in 2017, which is the happiest country on Earth? Is it… a) Norway b) Japan, or c) New Zealand? Rob And I said c) New Zealand. Neil The answer is a) Norway. The report has been published for the past five years, during which the Nordic countries have consistently dominated the top spots. OK, now it's time to remind ourselves of some of the vocabulary we've mentioned today. Rob We mentioned the phrase down in the dumps - which is an informal way of describing the feeling of unhappiness, sometimes with no hope. Neil The next word was imperfection, which is a fault or weakness. You won't find any imperfections in this programme, Rob! Rob Glad to hear it. Maybe we should gild this script - to gild something is to cover it in a thin layer of gold. We also heard about the word jolly which means 'cheerful and happy'. Neil And being jolly can be used as a coping mechanism - that's something someone does to deal with a difficult situation. If something doesn't go well, you just smile and carry on. Rob Well, there's no need to do that in this programme. Now there's just time to remind you that we have a website with lots more learning English content. The address is bbclearningenglish.com. Neil Thanks for joining us and goodbye. Rob Goodbye!

Thank you BBC for helping us with English pronunciation. Greetings from Peru.

I really love 6 Minute English from BBC learning English. Thank Rob and Neil so much. Hope to see you soon

I'm an English teacher and I came looking for listening resources. I have stayed just because of the interesting content.

Hello BBC Learning English Programme! I'm Tuyen from Vietnam, this is the first time I have just learnt English listening through BBC. In my opinion, this programme is so useful for learners to improve listening skill as well as practice for the IELTS test. If to answer the question ' What makes me happy, now?' , I'm ready to say that I find a happy family and a good job. thanks

Good afternoon all this first time I write comments in RU-vid thanks I would like to say thank you from bottom of theatre my English uplift and I gain plenty of vocabulary by the channel

My sentences: 1. Mary feels jolly whenever gathering with friends. 2. Mary is optimistic and not miserable to deal with poor stuff. 3. Mary should have asked for refund once finding an imperfection on her vase. 4. Childhood is believed a chirpy time in a life to most of us. What's an amazing topic!!! Thanks BBC team.

Learning English with BBC makes me Happy!. Simplicity makes me Happy!

thank you a lot for this channel! it hepls to learn english more efficiently. you're doing really well, many thanks.

Thanks for the video. Be happy and enjoy your life!

Thanks to all of the videos you guys have done. I can improve my listening skills and learn many interesting things!

Hello BBC This is a useful topic with anyone. In my opinion, i see that happiness can define through the most simple action such as: get together with family,friends, get a goal,…as long as you are satisfied

Great foods, nice weather, friends and family, progress of my English skill make me happy 😊

Thanks BBC English service for your daily English lesson to learn n improve English language.

Good morning everybody, thanks bbc learning English ❤

love both of you in the BBC learning English, funny and witty.

Thank you for your good and hard works.

watching youtube is my coping mechanism , it helps me fill up my freetime in a jolly way instead of think about miserable stuffs

understand every thing in this postcad make me feel the hapiest person in the world, thanks BBC

For over decades, one research found that having good relationships is a key to happiness.

Learning English through BBC is interesting ! Learning new things, doing right and helping people always make me happy. Mistakes happen everywhere every minute, correct those you can and accept those you can't control will also make you very happy. Do right and feel good!

Very sweet accent and style of speaking. I was delighted to hear and I enjoyed. Thank you

I listen 6 minute English every single day! That make me feel better in listening... thanks

Guys you nailed it😍I m learning English with insteresting content and your voice rejuvenate my mind

BBC this way it's useful for everyone needs to improve her english languages thank you

This subject is very interresting. It is difficult to define "the happiness". That vary from country to country, from culture to culture, and the most important is depended of the concept/opinion of each person in the life.

I love this channel so much ❤️

Thank you. I like your work.

Thank you!

Learning english makes me happy 😀 tks for your helpful video

Hello I'm Hadi from Iraq and I'm New in your channel thank you so much BBC for this useful video .

I am happy living in Japan. It's not good or not.sometimes just differences among countries. ... Thank you Arigato for this video! I like to hear when people spilling the tea... ;-) Please stay safe and healthy.

..."Celebrating Imperfection"... Worthy wisdom. Thanks and regards

thanks .It is useful

thanks BBC

Good relationship, good health, beautiful environment, good food and sun makes me feel happy

What still makes me happy is the fact that there are selfless souls the world over.

Having my favorite dish always makes me happy , spending my time doing things I enjoy such as playing videogames , walking in the park near to my house especially in the evening and reading books make me happy too also the must enjojable thing I do and makes me happier than other things I do is spending time with my family and my girlfriend

I live in a county where people are usually sad :( but I try to find things that make me happy. I like to talk to my friends and watch movies. these things make me happy. also I like learning english and see the progress and that makes me happy too!

Your voice is beautiful, I love your video!!!

SO USEFUL, Thank u BBC English...

Thanks... the videos are very well!!! and help me in my English class. I am happy. Goodbye. 😄

Thanks 🤗🤗🤗

You're happy when you're satisfied with you have

Just love these videos

Thanks... your speeches are always helpful for improving our english... and also for the life!

Very good i listening english everyday. I hope i will study good english.

That's... That is awesome!

Thanks for help!

I think that BBC learning English crews are prominent English teacher in the world. Not one or two. It’s all the crew.

I like BBC channel ♥️

Real good program

You are the great BBC i love your videos!!!

it is very useful to me, thanks

I like your channel alot . You are the best .

First off, thanks BBC for the amazing content you provide most of the time. However, since when Japanese society celebrates imperfection? The concept you mentioned applied to pottery is true but definitely NOT applied to people. What's more, Japan's an extremely demanding society, with one of the highest suicide rates in Asia (I think the highest one is in South Korea). People there are under a lot of pressure and looking perfect and young is key to have access to the job market (especially for women). Indeed, their type of happiness is harmony, not creating unnecessary conflict.Nevertheless, that's one thing and what you stated about them not caring about their "physical imperfections" is just downright wrong. Cosmetic treatments and operations are becoming the norm in Asia (and all over the world, to be honest). Please, as a means of communication, you're responsible for being professional and getting your facts right.

thank you

Filipinos are jolly people too...we can smile even though we are hungry..we are still laughing in time of calamities..

Thanks you

I really like this videos

What is actually the standard of state where people can be said is in happiness state?happiness is in ourselves.in my opinion once you feel thankful of every state you are in. In every condition you are in. Feeling grateful and suffiecient with what you have.. Apreciate what god gave to you. In every case happy is always associated with wealthiness. Happiest means wealthiest. That is completely wrong.

I feel happy if I Finnish my tasks.

Thnak yous so much

Nice video, kudos , and good information reated to happiness index

I do hope... Again I will see this.. Nice

Good👍

Thank you for your sharing video. I’m from Vietnam. I really enjoy to watch your videos. I wonder if you can give me your transcript of this video? Thank you so much!

I liked this video so much because it is so relevant for me. Many things can make us feel down in the dumps. It is true. How can we deal with our unhappiness? I love this concept of Japanese. We should celebrate our imperfection instead be plagued by it. People are not perfect and we should realize that this weakness can be our strength. I try not to worry about the fact that my body gets older with years, that some wrinkles cover little by little my face and laughter lines appear. For women it can bring many worries and lack of confidence. But we should get rid of bad thoughts and enjoy our live.

So Nice speaking and learning English

I'm trying to be jolly even though,we are all facing uncertainty

Transcript Note: This is not a word for word transcript Neil Hello. Welcome to 6 Minute English, I'm Neil. This is the programme where in just six minutes we discuss an interesting topic and teach some related English vocabulary. And joining me to do this is Rob. Rob Hello, Neil. Neil Now Rob, you seem like a happy chappy. Rob What's the point of being miserable? Neil Well, that are many things that could make you feel down in the dumps - a phrase that means 'unhappy' - but what are the things that keep you feeling happy, cheerful and chirpy, Rob? Rob Oh many things like being healthy, having good friends, presenting programmes like this with you, Neil! Neil Of course - but we all have different ideas about what makes us happy - and that can vary from country to country and culture to culture. It's what we're talking about today - concepts of happiness. Rob Now Neil, you could make us even happier if you gave us a really good question to answer. Neil Here it is. Happiness is an emotion that actually gets measured. The World Happiness Report measures "subjective well-being" - how happy the people are, and why. But do you know, according to a United Nations agency report in 2017, which is the happiest country on Earth? Is it… a) Norway b) Japan, or c) New Zealand? Rob WeIl, I think they're all very happy places but the outdoor life of many New Zealanders must make New Zealand the happiest place. Neil OK, we'll see. I'll reveal the answer later on. But now back to our discussion about happiness around the world. Rob Happiness can be hard to define. Research has suggested that while personal feelings of pleasure are the accepted definition of happiness in Western cultures, East Asian cultures tend to see happiness as social harmony and in some parts of Africa and India it's more about shared experiences and family. Neil It's something author and journalist Helen Russell has been looking at - she's even created an 'Atlas of Happiness'. Her research focused on the positive characteristics of a country's population - and guess which country she found to be one of the happiest? Rob New Zealand? Neil Actually no. It was Japan. Here she is speaking on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour programme. What concept - or belief - is it that promotes happiness? Helen Russell, author and journalist Millennials and perhaps older people are better at remembering wabi-sabi - this traditional Japanese concept around celebrating imperfection, which I think is something so helpful these days, especially for women - it's this idea that there is a beauty in ageing, it's to be celebrated rather than trying to disguise it, or trying to cover up the scars instead you gild them with kintsugi - if you break a pot instead of chucking it away, you mend it with gold lacquer so the scars, rather than being hidden, are highlighted in pure gold… We all have laughter lines and rather than being ashamed of them, they're something to be celebrated. Neil So in Japan, there is a belief that people should celebrate imperfection. Imperfection is a fault or weakness. So rather than hiding something that's not perfect, we should celebrate it. Rob Getting old, for example, is not something to be ashamed of - don't hide your wrinkles or laughter lines - these are the creases you get as you skin ages or even you get from smiling too much! Neil Rather than spending time being ashamed of our faults, we should accept what and who we are. This concept is something that Helen feels is particularly being celebrated by Millennials and older people. Rob Yes, and Helen compared this with the process of kintsugi - where the cracks or scars on broken pottery are highlighted with gold lacquer. This is called gilding. So we should highlight our imperfections. Neil This concept is something that maybe English people should embrace more because according to Helen Russell's research, they are not a very happy population. Here she is speaking on the BBC's Woman's Hour programme again - what word does she use to describe people like me and you? Helen Russell, author and journalist In England what we have is 'jolly', which many of us now associate with this kind of 'jolly hockey sticks' or maybe an upper-class thing but actually it's something that really plays through a lot of British culture in a way that we may not think of so much. So there's this sense that in a lot of our comedy, in a lot of our approach to life you just sort of… you get out there, you go for a dog walk, you have a boiled egg and soldiers ['soldiers' in this case are small slices of toast that you can dip into your egg and eat], and we do sort of get on with things - it's a coping mechanism, it's not perfect but it's worked for many Brits for a while. Rob In the past we would use the phrase 'jolly hockey sticks' - a humorous phrase used to describe upper-class school girls' annoying enthusiasm. Neil But Helen now thinks 'jolly' describes an attitude that is used as a coping mechanism - that's something someone does to deal with a difficult situation. We smile, do everyday things - like walking the dog - and just get on with life. Rob I guess she means carry on without complaining. Neil Well, here's something to make you happy, Rob - the answer to the question I asked you earlier, which was: according to a United Nations agency report in 2017, which is the happiest country on Earth? Is it… a) Norway b) Japan, or c) New Zealand? Rob And I said c) New Zealand. Neil The answer is a) Norway. The report has been published for the past five years, during which the Nordic countries have consistently dominated the top spots. OK, now it's time to remind ourselves of some of the vocabulary we've mentioned today. Rob We mentioned the phrase down in the dumps - which is an informal way of describing the feeling of unhappiness, sometimes with no hope. Neil The next word was imperfection, which is a fault or weakness. You won't find any imperfections in this programme, Rob! Rob Glad to hear it. Maybe we should gild this script - to gild something is to cover it in a thin layer of gold. We also heard about the word jolly which means 'cheerful and happy'. Neil And being jolly can be used as a coping mechanism - that's something someone does to deal with a difficult situation. If something doesn't go well, you just smile and carry on. Rob Well, there's no need to do that in this programme. Now there's just time to remind you that we have a website with lots more learning English content. The address is bbclearningenglish.com. Neil Thanks for joining us and goodbye. Rob Goodbye!

it's really interesting content

This discussion is awesome, but what was the third word? Was it gold or what ? Thanks in advance.

As a English learner in Japan , this video is difficult to understand coz I'm not familiar with Wabi-sabi culture even Japanese And for the second update from Helen about British and jolly.... hope someone summarise for her second message?

Best!!

wow, its very cool , Ihope BBC Learning English can have many video about 6 minute English

Very good

Naples is very happy city. 😉

It's very interesting

Being spiritually uplifted. Whether alone or with people. I find no happiness in being with people who have no sense of spirituality. Being alone can also be difficult but sometimes better than spending time with people who don't value motivating and encouraging one another to do good. Being able to be a benefit to others also makes me happy. But I would rather be alone than to be around people that I cannot benefit and to be around people who just want to hang out for the sake of wating time and to amuse themselves.

Be happy Allah will give you peaceful and healthy

it is amazing

What makes me happy is that you add sub here.

I find it hard to understand the program at first. But, I believe that I'm get used to it quickly, sooner or later.🤣😂😂

I felt more happy when i had watched this video

I'm 42 years old..& I'm still trying to figure out what makes me HAPPY.......i really hate struggling with; #MajorDepressiveDisorder.

Bbc learning english make my good feelings i don't know if it's happy but it's similar.

Thanks alotsw

Because i am happy....🎶 Pharrell Williams 🤹❤️💙👈👍

0:21 What does "chappy" mean ?

Good ☺☺

If you are happy with yourself , you may be happy with others

Perfect session for learning new words and some good tips to take care of mental health. "Celebrating imperfection", I am ashamed of my imperfections, Now I have got something spiritual that touches my soul. I am listening to this while I am down in the dumps, though I was a jolly minded people before, nowadays I prefer to be alone.

would you like to make video which topic is history?

What makes me happy? I make myself happy :v

nice

Hi!

Nice

The happiest country can vary depending on the criteria used to measure happiness.