Have you ever been unsure about whether or not you were happy? Maybe you thought, “Gee, it sure would be nice if I could wear a device around my neck that would tell me how happy I am.”
Well you’re in luck! Japanese technology company Hitachi has come up with a “happiness meter.” It’s a device that you wear around your neck, letting it pick up little signals that measure exactly how happy or unhappy you are. Best of all, it’s designed for use in companies, so that your boss will know exactly how happy you are all the time.
Even though the happiness meter is sounding creepier by the second, it’s already been tested in several companies to great effect. For example, in one call center where it was used, information from the employees’ happiness meters showed that those who had lively conversations during break time were happiest.
Because of this, the company restructured break time, letting people around the same age (who would be most likely to have “lively conversations”) take their breaks at the same time. The results were incredible, resulting in three times the productivity as before, and leading to more layout and infrastructure changes.
