Positive Psychology

Watching a Webinar on Positive Psychology - This ties in very nicely with my previous post about Growth Mindset.

Traditional Psychology has looked at what is wrong with someone and fix what is wrong.
New theories (Positive Psychology) look at what is right with us and what makes us strong ...this will then in turn help build resilience.
Traditional thinking has been success causes happiness.
Positive Psychology finds happiness causes success.

Mindset can have a positive impact on well being and prevent illness (flu)

Thoughts on the negative impact of stress has a bigger negative impact on physiological health than the stress itself.

5 pillars of well being PERMA Well being

1) Positive Emotions
- Finding joy, happiness.
- Build psychological tools for greater resilience, happiness and well-being.
- Different than "positive thinking"
- Results from things we do...can also be occurred by reliving (thinking of event)
Positive emotions build intellectual, physical, social resources which improves psychological resilience.
How much positive emotion?  More Positive emotion than negative emotions.

Increase your positive Emotion
Eat a healthy lunch, spend some time outside, exercise, talk with a friend, dance, listen to cool music, watch a funny youtube clip

Decrease Negative emotions
Reduce time spent on social media, stop watching negative reality TV, wake up earlier to avoid fights with parents, spend less time with crabby people.

Don't have to be positive all the time but you need to have more positive than negative.

2) Engagement
Truly engaged in a task experience flow - lose sense of time, no self conscious.
When experience flow more likely to experience well being.
Meet a level of challenge with appropriate skill level can meet FLOW.
- Too much level of challenge = anxiety
- Level of challenge too low = Boredom

3) Positive Relationships
-Most critical pillar of all
-research shows that the greatest predictor of happiness is meaningful relationships.
"Other People Matter" - Chris Peterson
Why? we are hard wired for social connection - Social pain shows same areas of brain affected as physical pain.
Focus on Building positive relationships. (Appreciation Circles, Random Acts of Kindness, Positive Notes)

4) Meaning (& Purpose)
Feeling that your life has purpose and contribute to something bigger than yourself.
A way to bring greater happiness to your life is by doing something kind for someone else.
Altruism vs. Pleasure - Study found those that do altruism vs pleasure activities are happier

5) Positive Accomplishment
- Mastering a skill, achieving an important goal, succeeding at work or school or in a competitive event.
- Building Confidence and self efficacy
Angela Duckworth - What if doing well in school and in life depends on much omre than your ability to learn quickly and easily.  Once characteristic emerged as a significant predictor of success it was GRIT.

Many Psychologist add a 6th pillar - Vitality
- Physical Activity, eating healthy, sleep