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A new study published recently in the journal Perspectives on Psychological Science suggests that if we feel super-duper happy, we are likely not as well off as those who feel only moderately happy. The study found that those who scored their happiness as a 10 (on a 1 to 10 scale) earned less money. The uber-happy students in the study received lower grades. The researcher’s conclusion? In short, if you’re “too happy” you get lazy, you don’t work as hard, you’re not as motivated to find new ways of doing or approaching whatever that lead you to being happier. “…we need negative emotions,” is how one of the study’s authors put it. Now, no one wants to be too low on the happiness scale, but if you really think you’re perfectly happy, you may want to reconsider. For you own good, that is.

Those who read this blog know that I trade-up for books. Not only do I have a “thing” for books, I even wrote one back in 2003. It’s a childhood memoir called Running from the Devil. It’s about my 1970’s youth and some pretty big secrets I kept. It sounds kind of heavy, and in some ways it is, but the story is mostly light-hearted. Publisher’s Weekly called the book “hilarious, sad and fully absorbing.” It was also an alternative selection of the Literary Guild, and I appeared on NPR’s “The Diane Rehm Show” for a full hour. The book was a joy to write and promote (even though it never even came within shouting distance of the New York Times’ bestseller list).

One of the cool things about my book-writing experience is that Barefoot permitted me to work part-time while I wrote the book over the course of about one year in 2001. And though the book didn’t sell all that well, I have received over 500 letters and emails from strangers around the country who read the book, found something to like in it, and then took the time to write me.

And just the other day, I sold the TV and movie rights to Madison Park Pictures, a small, but very creative, award-winning production firm. Check out the trailer for their movie, “LBS.” The odds of anything coming of this option that I sold are slim, at best, but it’s still cool how a one labor of love has brought me so much happiness. Maybe, just maybe, there will be a Running from the Devil movie or TV series that will bring some joy to a few others. You can’t blame a guy for dreaming, right?

Reuters today reported on yet another research study that validates what we all intuit: The happier you are, the healthier you’re likely to be.

This British study of about 3,000 adults ages 50 to 75 found those who were happier produced lower amounts of cortisol, a hormone that can contribute to obesity, increased blood pressure and an impaired immune function. One might think that happier people are just more apt to live healthier lifestyles, but that theory hasn’t held up to research. So now scientists are trying to find a tight biological link between happiness and health.

The leader of the study, Dr. Andrew Steptoe, said, “We need to help people recognize the things that make them feel good and truly satisfied with their lives, so that they spend more time doing those things.” No duh, right? But now I have a top-notch scientist and a published study to quote when I do what makes me happy: buy books, clothes and other stuff I trade up for. Thank you, Dr. Steptoe! I do feel better. And happier.

For my fellow book lovers out there, I have to tell you: the new digital book reader from amazon.com, called “The Kindle,” is a real treat. After just one week, I’m hooked! I highly recommend it to anyone who finds happiness in the written word.

Now, before going any further, I will tell you that the device isn’t a design wonder like, say, the iPhone, nor is its usability quotient really up there like, say, the iPhone’s. But despite those two drawbacks, it’s still sure to make any book (or magazine or newspaper or blog) reader very happy indeed. Here’s why:

You can visit the Kindle store on amazon.com and with one click order a book. Within minutes, it’s beamed wirelessly to your Kindle. You don’t need to download content and transfer to your Kindle. It just magically appears! And herein lies the crucial difference between the Kindle and other digital book readers that have been offered (and that haven’t taken off).

The books cost about half, or even less, than the kind made with paper. You can select from a handful of major newspapers, like The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, to be delivered to your Kindle early every morning. The same basic approach works for magazines and some blogs, too.

Now if you’re a reader who likes pretty pictures, the Kindle isn’t for you. The images are grainy and in black and white, and most of the content comes devoid of the supporting imagery you would find in actual printed edition. But for a lot of us content junkies, that’s OK; it’s the words that matter most and if something really jumps out at us, we can go online for the color images.

Just think about it: With a Kindle, you can wake up every morning and put right in your hands your favorite newspapers, blogs and books ready to be savored along with your coffee and pastry.

In the November 26 issue of Time magazine, there’s a graphic-driven article that speaks to on-the-job satisfaction. (You can also find an interactive version of the data on the Time website.) According to this survey, the clergy are the most content, with a full 67% claiming they are “very happy” with their work. No doubt because they toil day-in and day-out for the “Big Boss,” and bring a lot of comfort to people (if they’re doing their job well). Interestingly, firefighters are among the very happiest at work, too.

I’m pleased to note that folks in our field seem pretty happy as well. Those broadly placed in the category “advertising” appear in the top 1/3rd of the happy-at-work list, with about 42% saying they, too, are “very happy.” Those that they report to are only oh-so-slightly less happy: about 41% of managers in the fields of marketing and advertising claim to be “very happy.”

This doesn’t surprise me. Having been in the ad/marketing biz for some 20 years, I would have to say that I’ve always felt, in the big picture, at least, very happy about my job. Yes, I’ve had some real difficult clients that had me thinking that being a firefighter might actually be a more comfortable job. And I’ve had some crazy-ass supervisors, one who had less self-awareness than a rock, who made work so painful at times that the thought of joining the clergy crossed my mind (until, that is, the notion of celibacy popped into my mind). Those bad job experiences aside, a life in advertising has been a true joy–most notably here at Barefoot. Why?

Well, for me, it’s because the culture is open, free and stimulating. There’s no heavy-hand demanding a certain way of thinking or approaching work, other than the requirement that you seek excellence and, along the way, respect yourself, your colleagues and your clients. While some agency cultures seem to reward jackasss and prima donnas, not Barefoot. An abundance of talent and an abundance of kindness are by no means mutually exclusive. You need both to do well at Barefoot. That’s why it’s such a happy place to work. And, at the end of the work day, a happy place in a happy industry is one great place to be.

We Americans are a happy lot. Just ponder some of these recently published stats (and noted in The New York Times today in David Brooks’ column). Some 86% of Americans are content with their current job (General Social Survey). On top of that, 76% say they are satisfied with their household income (Pew Research Center). And the future makes us happy, as a some 62% of these happy folks say they expect their future to be even happier in the coming five years (Harris Poll).

On the flip side, Americans are downright unhappy (disgusted is a more appropriate word) with our government. An alarming 80% of Americans believe that the current Congress has accomplished nothing. Zilch! The big goose egg! We generally think that whenever the government gets involved it means nothing but incompetence and inefficiency. Here’s how bad things have gotten: We are more displeased and unimpressed with government than we were in 1974 when the Vietnam War was wrapping up and Watergate was all the buzz.

No matter how happy we may be with our private lives, our happiness is not as full as it could be if our government lacks our trust and respect. Let this be a reminder to us all, but especially to our young people: pay attention to who is running for office at the local, state and national levels; get registered; and vote for the candidate you believe will restore faith, efficiency and progress to government. Our happiness depends upon it.

The current issue of Newsweek (October 22, 2007) has a story about how the anemic housing market, the rise in fuel costs and general economic anxiety have led people to choose to scaling down rather than trading up.

The piece, entitled “The Latte Era Grinds Down,” makes this point: “For the past several years, American consumers at every rung of the income ladder have been trading up—splurging on a growing array of luxury products, from $4 lattes to $4,000 handbags. With easy access to credit, especially home-equity loans, middle-class Americans began regularly trading up for items that appealed to them, buying food staples at Kroger but splurging on Kobe beef at Whole Foods. Suddenly, everybody was a luxury consumer—for certain items.

“But as the saying goes, what goes up must come down. Now many of those same Americans who traded up are shunning luxuries and returning to basics. The upshot: many of the companies that expanded in the hopes of reaching a mass audience of luxury consumers are suffering.”

Our cars, houses and even are coffee mugs are being down-sized. (Cheap coffee at McDonald’s is enjoying a sales boom.) In a recent survey, 70-percent said they were not spending as much on certain accessories such as watches and bags.

But don’t despair! The article also notes that trading up expert and author Michael Silverstein “points to powerful, long-term trends that suggest customers will continue to reach for luxury. Real income is still growing, and ‘trading up has been driven over the long term by women going to work and earning wages that are closer to parity with men.’”

That said, the situation makes for an even stronger argument that, now more than ever, trade up brands must market with real insight and conviction, not to mention providing what we at Barefoot have coined “Reasons to Rationalize.” This downturn, if indeed that’s what it is, can actually help some smart luxury brands build business by seizing consumers’ attention (and pocketbooks) while competitors are inclined to adopt a wait-and-see attitude.

There is a lovely piece (as almost always) in the “Lives” section of today’s New York Time’s Sunday Magazine. Called “Money Always Talks,” the essay is about a woman and her daughter as, together, they walk around Southampton and take in the mesmerizing sites of great wealth to be found there.

The most striking part of this piece written by Daphne Merkin was her commentary on how many of us feel about the wealthy–and the money at their command. I thought it relevant to the notion of trading up, particularly in the luxury marketing segment. More specifically, I think it sheds light on the guilt and uncertainty many of us feel whenever we spend more than we have to for something, be that a guitar, a home or a private jet. Here’s an excerpt:

So, as it turns out, Ernest Hemingway was wrong, and F. Scott Fitzgerald was right: The rich are different, not only because they have more money but also because they elicit such an oxymoronic barrage of responses. They’re worse, and they’re better, reviled and adulated. They stir up envy, and they invite respect. Most of all, they make us think we would do better if we had their dough (exercise more discerning taste, give more generously to worthy causes, assume a more modest air). Or, at least, we want the option to prove our lofty conjectures. As Kingsley Amis wrote before he got lucky: “I want to prove that money isn’t everything.”

Is it or isn’t it? In the history of love-hate relationships, our paradoxical romance with money ranks among the oldest and the most enduring. And there is no end in sight.

Good stuff. Though I remain convinced that should I become one of the super-wealthy, I will buck the trend and do far greater good with that cash than most anyone. Well, I’d be in the top 30% anyway. Well, at the least the top 70%-80% On a good day, anyhow.

At yesterday’s monthly all-staff meeting, we announced that in late October we’re going to have something of an art/talent show (combined with the universally popular happy hour). The point of the event will be that each and every Barefoot employee will bring in a piece of art of their own creation (or, by proxy, their kid’s creation) or show off a special talent. I expect we’ll see some fine photography and poetry alongside some expert juggling and model ship building.

I’m not sure what I’m going to show off. My Popsicle-stick bird feeders have rarely, if ever, been fully appreciated. Neither have my windsocks made out of athletic socks. It’s time for something new, I guess.

We have some very talented people at Barefoot. For example, take interactive designer Rob Sloan. He can design sites, blogs and banners that will take your breath away. There’s copywriter Sarah Knott who can write like, well, the Dickens. And there’s Amanda Brown who can write a creative brief that will actually make you grateful for such things as brand equity and reasons to believe. This is not to overlook our highly skilled and motivated project managers, such as Jana Roszkowski, or our nimble application developers, such Bobby Uhlenbrock. Thing is, we see the talents of our colleagues day in and day out. Now it’s time to see how they shine during their free time.

I expect to be just as impressed by my colleagues’ off-the-clock creativity as I am with their on-the-clock achievements. As such, I’m feeling considerable pressure to make a positive impression–I’m a creative director, for crying out loud! Maybe it’s time to unveil my 1/74th scale Statue of Liberty made entirely of Play-doh and dried pasta. Getting it out of my mother’s basement could be a little tricky, though.

Somewhat to my surprise, it occurred to me just the other day that I have become someone who trades up for fashion. It used to be that my wardrobe was nothing but jeans and T-shirts from the likes of The Gap, Target and Old Navy. But now I’m paying two- to five-times what I used to shopping at the likes of Buckle, Fossil and Guess.

What gives?

I think the answer can be found in the fact that I started trading up for clothes about a year ago, but subconsciously chose to sort of ignore it, meaning I was hiding something from myself. (Of course, after you spend so much, there’s no ignoring the AmEx bills.) Why have I been paying more for arguably more “hipper,” more “fashionable” clothes? I think the honest truth comes down to a mild mid-life crisis. Why else would a married 36-year-old worry that much about what he wore? Or spend considerably more than he had to meet basic clothing needs?

My new wardrobe makes me feel younger and more with it, even though I realize that I run the risk of looking like a 36-year-old who dresses like a 14-year-old. But, assuming that I’m not falling into that trap, I feel younger, which makes me feel better. Vain? Probably. But who cares? Isn’t psychic gratification a big part of trading up? Of course it is!

It’s not easy admitting to vanity, to coming out of the fashion store closet, so to speak. But as a student of the buying mind, I find the lengths we will go to rationalize our purchases (or even hide them for a while) quite fascinating. Once again, I’m reminded of how those who market trade up products can help themselves by providing their prospects and consumers with what Barefoot has trademarked as the “Reasons to Rationalize.”

My clothes may cost more than they used to, but I rationalize the added expense by convincing myself that I look younger (and better), that the clothes are at least marginally better made and that, as an advertising creative, I need to look “with it.” Silly? Maybe. But so is the fact that I’m actually older than 36. How much so? That’s for me to know and you to guess.