Happiness index

Once again, 24/7 Wall St. has examined the OECD's report on life satisfaction. And once again, the United States fails to make the top 10 happiest nations in the world. Which countries do? Some may surprise you.

Job growth in the traditional market is tepid, but among contractors, freelancers and e-lancers, hiring is booming. Of course, if you go that route, that means you have to handle a host of things your employer used to, but there are ways to make it less of a chore -- and new companies looking to help.

Business Week ranked Portland, Ore. the unhappiest city in the U.S. due to the number of suicides, sales of antidepressants, high unemployment (still in the double digits) and 222 cloudy days. Likewise, MainStreet.com ranked Oregon dead last in its Happiness Index (although I'm suspicious because...

Think you're seeing a lot more glum faces in your neighborhood? That's likely the case if you live in one of four states with high home-foreclosure rates: Florida, Nevada, California and Arizona. Those normally majestic, carefree states ranked as the least happiest, at least when it comes to money...

A recent study found that citizens of the U.S. were the 16th happiest as a nation in the world, so to increase happiness, perhaps we should move to a country ahead of us on the list. This World Values Study also found that the developed world in general is experiencing a overall global happiness...