Work It 44% of us are unhappy at work – is burnout the real reason?
Mar 1, 2026
Jasmine Liew, organisation development consultant and founder of Breakthrough Catalyst, who advises on workplace happiness and burnout. She explores why many report unhappiness at work. Talks cover the three drivers of workplace happiness, when work becomes transactional, burnout versus engagement, middle-manager strain, and practical steps to reclaim meaning and reduce workload.
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Three Pillars That Define Workplace Happiness
- Workplace happiness rests on three pillars: meaningfulness, competence and autonomy as Jasmine Liew defines them.
- Jasmine connects competence to feeling you're at your best and autonomy to having space to propose ideas, which together create daily happiness.
Ask What Drives Energy And Follow Up
- Leaders must start conversations about what drives employees' energy by asking what happiness at work means to them.
- Jasmine recommends two-way dialogues and follow-up actions after engagement diagnostics to close the gap between belief and reality.
Go Beyond Pay To Build Engagement
- Move beyond hygiene factors to build engagement through recognition, career progression and belonging.
- Jasmine highlights empowerment in meetings and a sense of connection as levers that turn satisfaction into engagement.