For those who do not know, Bhutan has been ranked the happiest country in the world in 2016. It is a really small country in Southeast Asia that is just south of China. I’m going to give you the most crucial reasons to what makes Bhutan the happiest country in the world. How do they do it?

Bhutan : Happiest Country in the World

1.  They live in a gorgeous place

Before I say anything else, when we’re talking about Bhutan, we do not miss out on its incredible beauty. It is situated in the Himalayan Mountains and well over 60% of their country is untouched wilderness. People go to places like this for vacation. I imagine that living there is probably more preferable, peaceful, and visually enjoyable than stomping around the concrete jungle that is the city every day. Who wouldn’t be happy in a haven like this?

2.  They have less pollution

One of the side effects of being so environmentally conscious is that the Bhutanese people live in less pollution than pretty much everyone else. They do have some things around that cause pollution such as automobiles. However, they lack the miles upon miles of factories and waste-producing businesses. This makes the air, water, and ground much cleaner.

3. They maintain material and spiritual happiness equally

In today’s world, we put way too much thought onto the things we own. We’re happier when we have the latest iPhone or the latest fashion. That’s not a very good way to think and it can cause us unnecessary stress and unhappiness when we can’t afford those things. In Bhutan, they only let globalization affect them over the last ten years but they have done so in a manner that allows their citizens to balance their material possessions and their spirituality and that only makes them happier. They don’t care if they are not up-to-date with the latest trends. They’re just happy to be alive.

4. They actually measure their happiness

It’s always nice when the government lends a helping hand but when was the last time any of us actually believed our government wanted us to be happy? In Bhutan this is not something people have to wonder. Their government actually measures their countries happiness using a metric called the Gross National Happiness or GNH. They’re not perfect at providing happiness to their citizens but the fact that they acknowledge and measure happiness probably makes them better at keeping their people happy than other governments.

5.  The gap between normal people and the royalty isn’t that wide

Thanks to their isolationist tendencies, the people of Bhutan are very close to one another. In one journalist’s visit, he spied a young man playing basketball with a bunch of kids on a public court. Later on he was introduced to that man and also played basketball with him. Much later it was revealed that the man was actually a prince of Bhutan. Donald Trump isn’t out shooting basketball with a bunch of random local kids. That kind of closeness between the high and low classes probably helps everyone like everyone more.

6. They don’t care about the TV or the internet

Let’s face it, those things make us feel terrible about ourselves. On TV, we see beautiful people making dump trucks full of money and that makes us jealous and angry. On the internet there are trolls, a constant influx of bad news, and all sorts of other bad things. We get obsessed with social media and get upset when we don’t get re-tweets or likes on those Instagram selfies. When you don’t have to deal with that nonsense, life is generally better

7. They have among the fastest growing GDPs in the world

When people are making money, everyone’s happy. Bhutan’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product) has been growing steadily over the last several years. By allowing India to invest heavily in hydro-power in their country, Bhutan is quickly becoming rich and they don’t have to do that much work. Talk about managing your resources well!

8.  Half the country is protected as a national park

The environment is an important thing to the Bhutan people. So much so that half of their country is a national park. The forest, animals, and environment are strictly protected and the country announced not long ago that 60% of their country would be safe from things like deforestation permanently. Caring that much for the planet makes people feel happy.

9. They’re mostly Buddhist

Buddhism is one of the calmest and happiest religions on Earth. They believe in Karma. The Buddhist version of Karma (the original definition) is that people who live good lives are closer to enlightenment and are reincarnated as better creatures when they’re reborn. This prompts them to live good lives, do good deeds to one another, and be good people. When people aren’t at each others’ throats, it makes those around them generally happier.

10. They’re well rested

According to national surveys, around 2/3 of all Bhutanese people get at least eight hours of sleep per night. That’s a lot better than most countries and that’s especially true of industrialized countries. The benefits of sleep on happiness, productivity, and overall health is extremely well documented. Having most of the country get a bunch of sleep definitely contributes and having a culture that inspires people to get the appropriate amount of sleep every night is something they do differently.