After visiting 150 countries, he says there’s one thing the U.S. does differently — and it's a boon

Imagine standing in the silent shadows of King Tut's tomb or watching the sunrise from the jagged peaks of Mount Sinai. For most, these experiences are distant dreams found only in history books, but for one intrepid traveler, it's a reality, as he's already stamped his passport in 150 countries. Having seen more of the world than the average person could fit in dozens of lifetimes, he decided to take a moment to reveal some of his learnings to the world, especially one big difference between the U.S. and the other countries. Unilad reported the story on May 1.

One 'boon' Americans don't realize

It all started with the traveler being asked about the least pleasant populations to interact with, such as being rude, isolating, and openly hostile. "Ethiopia, hands down," he said. After which, the conversation shifted to any surprising similarities and differences he's noticed between countries. While the similarity was that everyone across the globe wants to be happy, he stated the one key difference between the U.S.A. and the rest of the world is how fortunate its people are, and they don't even know it. 

The man wrote, "The biggest difference I’ve seen between the U.S.A. and the rest of the world is how truly fortunate we are and don’t often realize it." Well, there's no doubt that everyone's entitled to have an opinion, especially a man with so much travel experience. However, when it comes to the happiness index, the country ranks 23rd out of the top 25 countries according to the 2026 World Happiness Report. Meanwhile, Nordic countries dominated the list, with Iceland and Denmark taking second and third place, respectively. 

Meanwhile, it was Finland, which took the crown for being the world's happiest country for the ninth consecutive year. Additionally, the United Kingdom has dropped out of the top 25, having previously been listed as the 20th-happiest country in the world in 2024. Nonetheless, this isn't the only factor that proves the man's statement was indeed flawed, with several other studies also further proving that the U.S.A. isn't the happiest place in the world.

The U.S. is amongst the most stressed countries

Another great indicator is that the USA is among the most stressed countries in the world. Around 75% of U.S. adults experience stress, according to Stress Statistics 2026. Moreover, at least two-thirds of Americans say their stress manifests as physical symptoms, the most common of which are nervous or anxious feelings, fatigue, and headaches. Most of this stress comes from work, the study further reveals, with nearly 83% of U.S. workers reporting having stress in their jobs. 

At the same time, about 23% of American adults say they experienced a mental health condition in the past year. These stats should give a clear idea of why the U.S. ranks so low on the chart of happiness, despite being a world leader across several categories. Nonetheless, as far as the man's experience in Ethiopia, it doesn't come even close to the list of the most narcissistic countries, with Germany, Iraq, China, Nepal, and South Korea being the top five narcissistic countries. 

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