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May 1, 2025 31 mins

Join futurist Hanna Lakkala as she shares powerful insights on why Finland is the world’s happiest country—and what that means for the future. In this compelling episode, Hanna discusses her return to the North of Finland after spending years in other Nordic countries and locations around the globe, her work in positive psychology, and what the world can learn from Finland’s social cohesion, trust, and resilience. Drawing from global experiences, she explores how happiness can be nurtured—even in a future shaped by AI, automation, robotics, and disinformation. You won’t want to miss a warm, thoughtful, and eye-opening conversation.

Q&A

2:37

Q1

So, Hanna, you're also, in addition to all those other things. You're a positive psychology coach. Tell us about that.

7:39

Q2

Tell us about your journey to becoming a futurist.

10:16

Q3

What brought you back from your journey to the northern part of Finland? Tell us about that.

11:15

Q4

So we'll be talking a lot about happiness today, as part of this series, what makes you happy?

12:11

Q5

So what role does saunas play in making Finland the happiest country in the world?

12:54

Q6

What makes Finns in general, ranked so high? Do you believe the ranking? And Number two, why do you think they score so high each year?

14:45

Q7

Does that say something more about Finnish psychology or the benefits of Generous social services?

18:26

Q8

What were some of the decisions that Finnish society had to think about, plan for, and decide on early on that led to this ranking?

21:15

Q9

Is there a way to export and teach the skills, mechanisms, and systems that the Nordic nations have been created to score high on these reports?

23:00

Q10

What are the big challenges that Finland faces?

26:59

Q11

Will the future of automation and AI disrupt or enhance the positive qualities of Finns? Will Finns be able to survive and support happiness through that?

29:51

Q12

How can we manage, control, and diminish those things? I think that's what we're going to end up doing. Hanna, what do you think?

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For additional information, please visit: Reimagining the Future Blog: https://frankdiana.net/

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About the Reimagining the Future Series | The Future of Business

The Reimagining the Future Series, produced by the Future of Business team, helps our clients and partners see the combinatorial effects of science, technology, digital forces, and societal factors that are rapidly shaping our emerging future. The series provides inspiration, strategic ideas, actionable thought leadership, and guidance to better understand the transformational journey and its implications to help business leaders reimagine and position their organizations for the future.

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BLOG: https://frankdiana.net/

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#finland #happiness #futurist

#futureofbusiness #reimaginingthefuture #scienceandtechnology #digitalforces #societalfactors #emergingfuture #businessstrategy #AI #advancedlinguistics #covid19 #pandemic #postpandemicstrategy

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