(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)
You might not have paid attention but right in the heart Dubai's financial hub, in the Financial Centre area, is a street named Al-Sa'ada street.
Literally the "happiness or happy street", just around the corner of it is a hotel where we met a passionate hotelier from Zimbabwe who not only lives up to the street's name but also matches it with his winning smile.
Meet Happyness Chipote, the reservation-cum-Happiness Ambassador at the Rove Downtown Dubai. Yes, Happyness is his real name, a fact he confirmed by flashing his Emirates ID and licence to us.
In order to mark the International Day of Happiness, his employer - Rove Hotels - appointed Happyness as their Happiness Ambassador, not merely by virtue of his name but also for his infectious laugh and enthusiasm.
His mission: To make people smile, laugh and make good memories. "In my country, we have names like these - "Love", "Joy" but in this part of the world I guess it isn't usual. That's why the reactions I get from people, especially at the hotel's reservation counter, is just beautiful. People are very surprised when they see my name badge and I suddenly hear things like 'Wow, Really?, Seriously?, I love it, What a name! Oh my, Is that your real name?' and so on," the happy guy says.
Happyness' parents also named him so for one more reason: he was born on January 1, New Year's day. But why the unique spelling, he says: "Have you seen the movie Pursuit Of Happyness? See how 'happiness' is spelled in it? Same as mine. It's just to show that I am an individual with a different and special name."
Happyness has been given the mission of making people smile, and in the run up to International Happiness Day, has been leading rounds of high-fives with "Rovesters" (the Rove hotels team) alongside "Rovers" (hotel guests) across the city, at various metro stations.
The initiative is being undertaken in association with Road and Transport Authority (RTA) to make commuters smile on the Dubai Metro.
Explaining the high-five initiative, Happyness said: "I absolutely loved our High Five sessions at the metro stations. Although I was apprehensive about it, we just did not want to stop once we started. The reactions of the Metro riders was a lifetime experience; it is going to stay with me forever. We had a team standing at the stations holding different placards pointing towards me, saying "Happyness wants to give you a high-five; the second said, 'Are you ready'; the last one said "This is Happyness".
"People looked a little puzzled initially but by the time they reached me, they realised it was a happy initiative to uplift their mood. Different nationalities, different age groups, all came and left in just one mood - a happy one."
The next round of Happy High Fives is being held at Deira City Center today, with the Rove teams arriving at peak footfall times.
In addition, Rove Hotels has also created a 'Happiness Hotline' that is also being manned by Happyness, to bring an extra dose of happiness to anyone who calls him on the dedicated line 045619111.
Happyness Chipote believes that happiness is an inside job. "It may not come to you easily, but you have work on it. When I get into office, I start meeting colleagues from one end of the hallway, asking them how they are doing, joking and laughing with them. So by the time I reach my seat, I am already in a good mood and all geared up to start my day, the happy way."
"Happiness is the only thing worth fighting for in life. It's often the little things that bring great joy. Making an effort every day to explore what's possible is the very thing that makes our life meaningful and happy. Smiling at others generates a positive reaction, so I always wear a smile on my face," he concluded.
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