How can Positive Psychology change YOUR life?

I first came across the idea of Positive Psychology when a colleague introduced me to the book “StrengthsFinder 2.0” (by Tom Rath, Gallup Press, 2007), which she was using for a team building workshop. While the concept of identifying strengths sounded interesting, it wasn’t until I took the assessment myself a couple of years later that I really had my “aha” moment. In fact, reading the summary of my strengths opened my eyes to the reasons that I was feeling out of place in my current role as HR Manager. While I don’t want to bore you with the details of my StrengthsFinder profile at this point, it was essentially telling me that I was someone who thrived on bringing people together and understanding individuals’ thought processes. This would explain why, as I was becoming increasingly senior and more involved in strategic and organisational HR issues, I was becoming less interested in the work. I was essentially being promoted out of my area of talent, and indeed, area of interest. I was being told to “Think Big”, when actually I was best at thinking about people.

“Positive Psychology” has been around for many years, although it has really started to gain momentum in the past decade. The name most closely associated with the rise of Positive Psychology is Martin Seligman, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, who has published many insightful books on his research and findings in this area. His most recent book, “Flourish”, (2011) teaches the elements of well-being and how to increase wellbeing. He is also know for his studies in Learned Optimism (2006) and Authentic Happiness (2003).

Positive Psychology, as defined by the Positive Psychology Center (PPC) at the University of Pennsylvania, “is the scientific study of the strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive. The field is founded on the belief that people want to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, to cultivate what is best within themselves, and to enhance their experiences of love, work, and play.”

To my mind, the most important piece of this definition is that we don’t want to lead different kinds of lives at home and at work. We don’t want to spend our working days working on personal development areas that we don’t really want to (or can’t sufficiently improve on), and return home to be who we really are. We want to find meaning and be able to flourish in all aspects of our lives. That’s why I decided to reevaluate my career, and choose a direction that allows me to do what I do best and enjoy most, every day, while developing and growing my talents.

There are many more aspects of Positive Psychology I’d like to share with you, but for new I’ll leave you with this video of Martin Seligman discussing the topic on ted.com.

Enjoy!