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small bits of happiness: how two teen sisters are helping others find happiness and connection

finding "small bits of happiness" is easier than you think, and two teen entrepreneurs are showing you just how simple it can be to find more joy in life.

by karen hawthorne

jul 16 2024

6 minute read

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mercedes and anastasia korngut are passionate about helping others find small joys in an ever-evolving and stressful world. supplied

after surveying 8,500 teenagers, auckland university researchers found that what made teens happy had nothing to do with money, peers or the number of followers they had on instagram.

the secret to happiness is having a healthy relationship with their parents. a solid family unit with open communication, loving discipline, and bottomless encouragement and acceptance results in happy, confident young people.

mercedes and anastasia korngut, two entrepreneurial sisters and best friends, have the science of happiness figured out—and they’re still in high school! the calgary, ab teens, 16 and 14, are sharing their know-how for being happy with moms, dads, and their kids around the globe.

ambitious? yes—and they’re incredibly passionate about helping families live healthy, happy lives through their website and resources at small bits of happiness . it couldn’t come at a better time, with mental health disorders on the rise and teens spending endless hours on digital media only to experience higher levels of loneliness.

“during the pandemic, i was about 13, anastasia was about 11, so we were on the brink of teenage hood and between hormones and friendship issues and all the things going on in the world, like climate change and the pandemic, we were feeling quite sad and stressed. so, we started to look for ways to feel happier,” mercedes explains. “as a family, we would go on walks and watch the sunset or maybe cuddle with our dog (coco the chocolate labrador) or share some chocolate. and all those things really helped us feel happier. we realized, ‘hey, if they’re helping us feel happier, they might help other people and other teens feel happier, too.’ so, we really wanted to share that.”

an idea for massive outreach started to take shape. the two sisters love talking on camera and speaking to people. when they were younger, they created a barbie youtube channel with videos of them playing with their barbies hanging out, shopping, going on road trips and having adventures. “it went quite well. we got millions of views, and it was like our first business in a sense.”

the natural next step was getting the word out on social media so that others could create their own fun moments in the everyday and cultivate happiness. it’s the little things, like taking a walk in nature with your mom or savouring something yummy like a juicy peach, that can go a long way to boosting mood, says mercedes.

the sisters, mercedes and anastasia korngut, say they love the job of running their business, including meeting customers at pop-up events where parents say a tearful thank you for helping connect them with their kids. supplied

“we started by posting quotes and funny videos and fun facts and what we call ‘happiness hacks,’ which are things you can do every day to feel happier. and from there, we began to realize, like, there’s so many different ways to grow, and we wanted to make it into more of a business than just a social media account.” that was in 2021. then, in between schoolwork and piano practice, they launched their website in spring 2022 with blogs where they wrote about the science of happiness and shared their inspirations and advice for teenagers and families.

next came their podcast, hack your happiness, where they interview notable personalities, including psychologist angela duckworth, olympic swimmer penny oleksiak, f1 academy driver jessica edgar and others. (anastasia is a huge fan of f1 races.)

the two dove into the study of health and happiness, reading books and online articles on harvard health and other credible sources and soaking up the wisdom of their podcast guests.

“researching happiness has made us realize that good quality time really does matter. it’s not just how much time—it’s also about when you’re spending time with your family. is half of it on your phone, or are you having in-depth conversations and just being unplugged and in the moment? it’s so important and really helps you connect,” mercedes says.

while they like fashion and makeup videos on tiktok, they’re savvy about the pitfalls of social media where you think you’re connecting with people to see what your friends are up to, “but it’s not as genuine, and it doesn’t bring us those benefits to our happiness that in-person conversations and activities bring,” she says, adding that teens can get tripped up by the perfect life people post online that doesn’t reflect their struggles. talking in person is a lot more real and relatable.

how did they get so smart? with learning and all the encouragement from their neurologist dad and devoted mom, the sisters have become happiness coaches and shining examples of what creating happiness in your life can do for you as a teen because being a teen isn’t easy for anyone.

“you have hormones changing, you have the friendship problems because everyone’s having those hormone changes and stuff going on in their lives,” mercedes says. “but i think also now in 2024, it feels like there’s a loss of control as well because there is so much other stuff going on, like war and climate change, and it’s unpredictable. on top of that, you have social media, and there’s so many opinions and news about what’s going in the world. knowing that the future is unpredictable makes it hard to feel stable and in control.”

finding those moments of happiness builds resilience and confidence to manage uncertainty. science backs this up, with research showing how happiness and stress relief are connected, and doing little things to lift your mood can have a lasting impact on your resilience toward stress. this upward spiral of managing stress in positive ways, like taking a netflix break with your mom, leads to great health outcomes of increased immunity and longevity.

an 85-year harvard study that followed 724 men since they were teenagers in 1938 found that positive relationships are the number one thing that makes people happy and live longer.

now, the sisters have expanded their offerings to clothing with happy faces (their cozy pullovers also have practical zippered pouches so you won’t lose your phone or earbuds), jewellery and games. they have a retail footprint in stores in alberta, nova scotia and recently california, and a digital learning platform designed for schools, prompted by interest from school principals in alberta.

the most popular product is unique on the market. mission: small bit of happiness is a game of 100 cards with simple, fun activities to do to feel happier, build happy habits and connect with loved ones. there are happiness superfood cards that prompt you to eat something mood-elevating like bananas or kiwis, conversation-starter cards about favourite memories, and activity cards to do things like a puzzle with your family (a go-to during the summer for the kornguts).

“teenagers feel like they don’t have control over their lives, but they do have so much control over what they do to feel happy,” mercedes says. “the game is about learning what brings you happiness and also learning to do it every day and doing it with loved ones.”

sisters mercedes and anastasia korngut enjoying a bike ride together. supplied

one of mercedes’ happiness hacks is drinking chamomile tea with her mom because of its calming properties. for anastasia, it’s a good sleep-in.

“whenever i have time, especially during the summer, i love to sleep in. just a couple days ago, i slept until like 11 a.m. it’s a great way to feel better because you don’t have that cloud fog in your mind when you wake up. you’re able to think better, have more stable emotions, and you’re definitely able to feel happier because of that. it’s like the day has already started, and you’re a part of something.”

the sisters say they love the job of running their business, including meeting customers at pop-up events where parents say a tearful thank you for helping connect them with their kids. they’ve learned a lot about themselves, too, and plan to keep learning and growing the business after high school. mercedes has just completed writing a book about the 12 habits of happiness and how to achieve those every day through the parent-teen connection.

and there’s something to be said for being young and going for your dreams: “i think that on the business side, it doesn’t matter how old you are or how large your team is,” says anastasia. “there’s only two of us, yet we’ve made such a huge impact. if you’re passionate and you have a vision, you can make a difference. and on the happiness side as well, it’s just realizing that you have that control to be happy.”

karen hawthorne

karen hawthorne worked for six years as a digital editor for the national post, contributing articles on health, business, culture and travel for affiliated newspapers across canada. she now writes from her home office in toronto as a freelancer, and takes breaks to bounce with her son on the backyard trampoline and walk bingo, her bull terrier.

small bits of happiness: how two teen sisters are helping others find happiness and connection

finding "small bits of happiness" is easier than you think, and two teen entrepreneurs are showing you just how simple it can be to find more joy in life.

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small bits of happiness: how two teen sisters are helping others find happiness and connection

finding "small bits of happiness" is easier than you think, and two teen entrepreneurs are showing you just how simple it can be to find more joy in life.

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