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Four Ways Positive Psychology Can Make a Difference @ Work

One thought I have found myself thinking frequently since learning more about the concepts of positive psychology is “I wish I had known this 10 years ago”.

At least when I was working in Human Resources in the corporate world – and in large organisations known for their HR expertise – no-one ever mentioned positive psychology to me, or spoke about any of the ideas that are basic principles of this research area. I am sure there are HR teams out there who have embraced some of the concepts and tools – and I’d love to hear more about them – but Positive Psychology does not appear to be as widely spread as it could be in the corporate world. I think it is time to change this!

To name but a few of the advantages of a positive approach:

Problem solving: Research has shown that positive emotions enable us to become more creative problem solvers, broadening our outlook and allowing us to make more connections between topics (I can recommend this paper by Barbara Fredrickson). Conversely, negative emotions tend to cause us to have a much more narrow view of the world, reducing our problem-solving capabilities. Evolutionally, we appear to be programmed to have a negativity bias which enabled our ancestors to quickly identify danger and react very specifically (fight or flight!) to any threats. However in an age where many companies are seeking to innovate and think big, the negativity bias is really not conducive to these goals. The good news is, we can supplement our ancient instincts with more modern approaches!

Inspiring leaders: I have seen many employee engagement surveys where employees cite bad leadership as a frustration, often leading to retention issues. I believe there is an opportunity for leaders to adopt a positive leadership mindset to make them more effective at leading their teams and ultimately reaching their goals. When I have observed managers who seem to have a natural inclination to employ positivity as a leadership tool, I saw employees wanting to please the leader and deliver because they were inspired and energised by them, and did not want to let them down!

To quote Kim Cameron (2008):
“In sum, positive leadership refers to an emphasis on what elevates individuals and organizations (in addition to what challenges them), what goes right in organizations (in addition to what goes wrong), what is life-giving (in addition to what is problematic or life-depleting), what is experienced as good (in addition to what is objectionable), what is extraordinary (in addition to what is merely effective), and what is inspiring (in addition to what is difficult or arduous). 

Well-being: Stress at work is increasingly taking a toll on employees’ health, causing more anxiety, increased rates of absenteeism and generally a negative outlook on work. By injecting more positivity, and teaching certain techniques (such as re-framing; three blessings exercise) individuals can learn to deal with daily stresses more effectively and reduce the impact on their mental and physical health. Positive Psychology researchers also champion the idea of stress-related growth – that, given the right support, adversity can actually help us develop certain strengths and beliefs.

Encouraging diversity: The ability to overcome set-backs, put negative experiences into perspective, and continue to focus on goals – in other words: resilience – is one success factor that helps individuals build their career. From my observations, particularly women tend to fall in the trap of attributing successes to luck and circumstances, and failures to their own inability to perform. In fact there is even research that investigates this pattern which is known as the “Impostor Syndrome” (the original research article can be found here , and there is a more recent book by Dr. Valerie Young  that is a great read too). As a result, they can underestimate their ability to make a difference at the top, which I personally consider as one of the contributing factors to the lack of females in senior leadership roles. I believe there is a huge opportunity to teach women to recognise their unhelpful thoughts and how to reframe these in a positive way; to build resilience and encourage women to believe in themselves. And positive psychology provides the tools to do exactly that.

Positive psychology is a really motivating and energising approach to work life, and life in general. It’s hard to see the downside to understanding what provides meaning to you and experiencing increased well-being, and improving interactions with those around you. And focusing on strengths, and how to build on these, is such an encouraging way of thinking about development that it seems odd that you would do it any other way!

For those interested in learning more about how to inject more positivity into their work-lives, or just learning more about positive psychology in general, I can recommend the links from my reading list or the videos. And of course you can reach out to me, I will be happy to share what I know!

All the best,
Sarah

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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!