Nearly all of us have had the sudden awareness that while we have been driving along, sometimes for many miles, we have not been paying attention. How did I get here? It does not just happen on the interstate in the form of highway hypnosis but also when driving through our neighborhoods or on our …
Decision-Making
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AllBook ReviewCoachingDecision-MakingHabitsOptimismPositive FeelingsStrengths
The Rider, the Elephant, and the Send Button
If you have not read it, I highly recommend Jonathan Haidt’s The Happiness Hypothesis. One of Haidt’s metaphors, more thoroughly explained in the book, is the very accessible image of the rider (conscious reasoning self) and the elephant (automatic and unconscious self). Thinking v. Feeling The rider can see farther into the distance, plan and …
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AllDecision-MakingPathway 1 "Pleasure"Pathway 2 "Engagement / Flow"Pathway 3 "Meaning"_1 Positive Experiences
Poetry and Midlife
by Sean Doyleby Sean DoyleWhen, at 39, I was trying to decide whether to pursue training in positive psychology , I made for myself all the “practical” objections. I was already a successful lawyer, had a wife, kids, mortgage and typical routine. My wife, however, knew that deep down it was something I really wanted to do. Our conversation …
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Last summer, the journal Insulin published What people with diabetes want their caregivers to know: Development of the TCOYD patient concensus statement” based on the results of a workshop I ran at the 2004 Raleigh Taking Control of Your Diabetes conference. I’m going to look at three items from the patient consensus statement and show …
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AweDecision-MakingGoals
The Sydney Opera House – Positive Psychology in Organizations – Stretch Goals
by Dave Shearonby Dave ShearonThe design for the opera house was the result of a world-wide competition in 1955-56. Jørn Utzon, a Danish architect submitted the winning design, but it did not meet the criteria of the competition and had drawings described as “simple to the point of being diagrammatic.” One widely reported story about the selection process relates …
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AllDecision-MakingParenting & SchoolsPathway 3 "Meaning"Strengths_2 Positive Traits
Honor, Moral Intuition and The Rider on the Elephant – Teens Doing Right
by John Yeagerby John YeagerMorality is an essential part of human nature. Morality is also a central element of all classical conceptions of “the good life.” You can’t think intelligently about how you ought to live without thinking also about virtue, obligations to others, and why people so badly want to make a positive mark on the world before …
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AllBusinessDecision-MakingPathway 3 "Meaning"_3 Positive Organizations
Flourishing or Soulless Work?
According to Martin Seligman, the life satisfaction formula consists of Pleasure + Engagement + Meaning. Given this definition, if we are to live a flourishing life, one of the key questions that we have to address is “What is the meaning to me of choosing this career and devoting my time and hard work to …
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AllCoachingCommunicationDecision-MakingGoalsGratitudeHabitsHealthHopeLoveMoneyOptimismPositive FeelingsResilienceSavoring / In-the-MomentSpiritualityStrengths
Grandma Had It Right! Positive Psychology And Common Folk Wisdom
My unscientific finding, as I continue to delve into the world of well-being and quality of life research, is that there are countless phrases that I heard from my grandmother and other wise people throughout my life that are now backed up with relevant research. Consequently, I feel much more confident about using them with …
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AllBusinessDecision-MakingGoalsOptimismPathway 3 "Meaning"Positive FeelingsResilience_2 Positive Traits_3 Positive Organizations
Regrets, I’ve Had a Few: How finding the silver lining contributes to happiness and maturity
Make the most of your regrets: never smother your sorrow, but tend and cherish it till it comes to have a separate and integral interest. To regret deeply is to live afresh. ~Thoreau (1817-1862) This semester at the UEL MAPP program, I’m working in a small team on a consultancy project with the aim of applying …
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AllBook ReviewBusinessCommunicationDecision-MakingInterviewPathway 3 "Meaning"Positive FeelingsStrengths_2 Positive Traits_3 Positive Organizations
An Interview with Toyota University’s Mike Morrison
I had the pleasure of hearing Mike Morrison, VP and Dean of University of Toyota, speak at last month’s Global Well-Being Forum (formerly the International Positive Psychology Summit) at Gallup’s headquarters in Washington, DC. The room was jammed packed with both business and academic people interested in Mike’s talk “Personal Leadership: A Psychological & Philosophical …
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AllAppreciative InquiryDecision-MakingGlobal PoliciesHabitsPathway 3 "Meaning"_3 Positive Organizations
Sustainability: From denial or depression to hope and personal responsibility
Our time gives us the extraordinary challenge we call sustainability: to collectively change the way we live to be in balance with the planet. It is very easy to talk about sustainability in a way that drains the energy for change out of people. So how do we talk about sustainability in ways that lead …
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AllAweDecision-MakingMindfulnessPathway 2 "Engagement / Flow"_1 Positive Experiences
Let Your Subconscious Mind Go To Work for You – Part 2©
My Dad’s father understood the power of the subconscious. When I couldn’t figure something out when I was growing up, my grandfather used to say, “Take a walk. Clear your mind.” He believed that if you set aside your issue for a little while, you would allow your subconscious mind to bring forth new and …
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AllBusinessDecision-MakingPathway 3 "Meaning"Strengths_2 Positive Traits
When Is a Strength Not a Strength?
Last weekend my UEL MAPP class was fortunate enough to have presentations from several external speakers, amongst them Alex Linley, founder of the UK’s Centre of Applied Positive Psychology, Peter Flade from the Gallup Organization, and Debbie Whitaker, Head of Sustainability at the global bank, Standard Chartered. Strengths Focus Our focus for the two days …
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AllDecision-MakingGoalsHappiness ExercisesPathway 2 "Engagement / Flow"Positive Feelings_2 Positive Traits
On Transition and Change
by Dana Arakawaby Dana ArakawaOne change management tool that I have found helpful is the Inter Change Cycle™, from Interchange International Inc., which describes the different stages we go through to process changes big and small in our lives. When any change occurs, we go through the stages of loss, doubt, discomfort, discovery, understanding, and integration.
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AllDecision-MakingGratitudeMindfulnessOptimismPathway 3 "Meaning"_1 Positive Experiences
The Law of the Garbage Truck™
Special Note to Positive Psychology News Daily Friends This month I am posting a column that I wrote a number of years ago known as The Law of the Garbage Truck™. My column is now widely traveling the internet in mass emails and blogs. I want you to have it too. You can find my …
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AllDecision-MakingGlobal PoliciesGratitudeLovePathway 1 "Pleasure"_1 Positive Experiences
Mirror, mirror, on the wall…
by Rosie Milnerby Rosie MilnerA new report has found that being super-thin is bad for models’ health. But what effect do size zeros have on the rest of us?
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AllBusinessDecision-MakingOptimismParenting & SchoolsPositive Feelings
Educating People to be Emotionally Intelligent
by Dave Shearonby Dave ShearonThis is not a book review; it is a book note for Educating People to Be Emotionally Intelligent.
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AllDecision-MakingHappiness ExercisesMindfulnessParenting & SchoolsPathway 2 "Engagement / Flow"_2 Positive Traits
“Brainset” – Neuroscience Examines Carol Dweck’s Theory
Recently, Dr. Mangels and colleagues teamed up with Carol Dweck to study the differences in the brains of people with growth mindsets and fixed mindsets. This is exciting work because it is hard empirical science studying the underlying brain functions dealing with learning and internal self-concepts.
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AllDecision-MakingPositive Feelings_3 Positive Organizations
Leadership by and for rider/elephants
by Dave Shearonby Dave ShearonJon Haidt in The Happiness Hypothesis suggests the metaphor of a rider on an elephant for how we live life. The rider is our conscious thoughts (and emotions). The elephant is our unconscious emotions (and thoughts). Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman refers to these as System 1 and System 2, but I find rider and …
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AllBusinessCommunicationDecision-MakingPathway 2 "Engagement / Flow"_3 Positive Organizations
Positive Internal Communications in Change Management
by Sulynnby SulynnNo company is static. Change takes place everyday but some changes are more more visible and have greater wide-reaching implications on stakeholders. Indeed whether change is in the guise of CEOs and management, takeover bids and M&A, business process reeendineering or new technology, or even office re-location, managing change is fraught with challenges and concerns. …