Have you ever truly hated your job? Have you ever dreaded the alarm going off in the morning because you knew it meant you had to head off to work? Have you ever needed to force a smile onto your face at work because you were so miserable inside?

Have you ever found yourself struggling to do your job to the best of your ability simply because you lack the motivation to do it brilliantly?

How unhappy and frustrated did it leave you feeling?

Most of us have experienced it at some stage in our life and, it is probably true to say that, few of us would ever choose to find ourselves in that situation ever again.

I was reminded  of when it happened to me during a wonderful evening workshop by Kimberley Hare called "Your Inner Twinkle".

Kimberley made me realise that, a bit like the 'chicken or egg' conundrum, it is important to ask ourselves, which comes first happiness or success?

Is it true that if we work hard, we will succeed and that will bring us the happiness we crave?

What if, instead of the traditional way of seeing happiness as something that will come with 'success', we see happiness as the fuel that drives our success? What if it is when we are happy that we are at our most able to do what we do best & get great results?

I reflected on the last 12 months. A year ago I was in a job that made me completely miserable; my normally plentiful tanks of energy & enthusiasm were empty and I was not performing at a level that made me proud. Hard work was not leading to success or happiness.

I felt horrible.

Yet fast forward 12 months, I have set up my own business, I have met some brilliant people and I am doing work that the perfectionist in me thoroughly approves of.

If you are one of the 2 million people who have seen Shawn Achor's TED presentation (http://www.ted.com/talks/shawn_achor_the_happy_secret_to_better_work.html) you will know that he believes that it is when we look for the positives that we feel good.

That when we show kindness and consideration not only to others, but ourselves too that we feel even better. That when we feel good, nothing feels impossible; it is easy to see a way forward.

In his presentation, Shawn Achor encourages us all to undertake a daily "random act of kindness". He is right. Even a simple email or tweet saying thank you or well done feels good to send and helps someone else tackle the day with a smile on their face and confidence in their mind.

As ever, the greatest learning comes when we are reminded of the simplest of things.