Basically, the documentary went into explaining how most developed nations, such as ourselves, put so much emphasis on having high paid jobs, owning large houses and new cars, being able to supply our family with the best possible life experiences and being able to experience worldwide travel regularly, that we were putting our health into great jeopardy.
The Japanese, since world war two when they were forced to recover from severe financial loss, by approaching everyday with incredible long work hours and an almost absent amount of rest and leisure time. This has served them well in the sense that over the last decade, they have been one of the biggest players in the business and finance world, however it has come at a great cost.
The effect of having no time to socialise, to priority on making themselves happy as well as pushing themselves to the limit in the amount of effort and time they put into making money; has left many people with mental disorders (anxiety and depression), high blood pressure, high risk of cardiovascular disease and some cancers, an increased risk of substance abuse, severe fatigue, decreased motivation in general life as well as an increased amount of absenteeism in the workplace. As much as 75% of Japanese people view their jobs as stressful.
These negative effects are leading to earlier death, which the Japanese have names 'Kiroshi'.
In comparison, the documentary showed other nations and cities who prioritise community connectedness, happiness and leisure time. These nations had higher levels of 'rated happiness', a reduced amount of illness' and disease and seemed to enjoy the life they lived, all with an ear to ear smile across their faces.
It made me think about the amount of pressure we put on ourselves to have such material possessions, earn higher amounts of money and have greater social status. What positive effects do these actually bring? Are we happy working hours past our working day, not spending time with our family and friends and removing ourselves from our sense of 'self' to achieve these so-called 'priorities'?
According to the documentary, despite the increased amount of money and employment we are reaching since the days of the financial crisis during the war, our levels of happiness, mental health and satisfaction with life have not made any sort of marked increase.
Please don't get me wrong - I do know of people who earn quite a bit and are very busy in their field of work - some of which LOVE it. If you are one of the super lucky ones who jumps out of bed each day into a job (which many have worked for and have made something for themselves through their own passions) that is time consuming at the best of times, but fulfilling, challenging and makes you happy - we are all jealous!!
So why not ask yourself. What is important to you? What makes you really happy? If your answer is encouraging you to look past money and high profile jobs, but look around at life.
Without life, is life really worth living and making us content? When was the last time you really laughed??
XXxx
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