This is one of my favorite videos by Professor Todd Kashdan about “Uncharted Territory” in Positive Psychology research today. Professor Kashdan goes on to talk about our dynamic world and the unstudied spillover effects of positive experiences into other domains. He even poses the question: Could having a meaningful and fulfilling sexual experience help someone be more productive at work the next day? Pretty interesting stuff. Enjoy.
November 11, 2009 – Philadelphia, PA – happier.com, a personal trainer for your happiness, now offers gift certificates. With the holidays fast-approaching, this gift could change even Scrooge’s mood! Gift certificates provide the recipient with unlimited use of the psychological tests and happiness-boosting tools available at happier.com. Gift certificates are available for $14.99 for three months; $24.99 for six months; and $99.99 for unlimited lifetime use, at www.happier.com/giftCertificate.htm.
Gift certificate recipients have access to more than a dozen research-backed tools customized to increase happiness, resilience, optimism, engagement, and meaning through the science of positive psychology. After responding to a simple online questionnaire, the customer begins a happiness-boosting plan with specific activities, each day, designed to scientifically boost happiness and reduce stress and anxiety.
Gift certificate recipients can also access the happier.com blog at http://blog.happier.com with innovative ideas and tips from the experts on how happiness applies to all aspects of life. A recent post included suggestions on how to increase happiness in the workplace: Make a place smell like lemons; the scent of lemon improves mental performance. Diffuse this odor into a space for creative thought, or serve lemonade, lemon drops, or lemon frosted sponge cake. happier.com also offers more than 100 exclusive videos from the world’s leading happiness researchers and practitioners.
Give the gift that can actually lift one’s spirits after just a few minutes of use. And decades of research show that happier people are less likely to get colds, are less likely to feel down as the days get shorter, and are likely to make those around them happy.
About happier.com
Doug Hensch and Andrew J. Rosenthal co-founded happier.com to inspire people to be happier and more resilient based on the field of positive psychology. They worked closely with Martin E.P. Seligman, Ph.D, an exclusive consultant for happier.com, who is the “father of positive psychology” and a noted professor from the University of Pennsylvania.
happier.com is the first set of easy-to-use and engaging online happiness-boosting tools backed by the science of positive psychology. To date, the online tools, videos, blog and iPhone application have been used by more than 40,000 beta-testers.
For media inquiries or for additional information please contact Christa Guidi, Cashman & Associates at 215.627.1060 or cguidi@cashmanandassociates.com.
Last Saturday was my son’s last tee ball game, this season. As is the case in tee ball, young kids make lots of mistakes and young, well-meaning parents like to give lots of advice to their 5-year old sons and daughters. At one point in the game, a ground ball rolled through one little boy’s legs, and several parents shouted, “Come on – you have to catch the ball.”
“Well,” I thought to myself, “That’s exactly what he wanted to do!” This little boy needed to be told:
Keep your glove down
Put your free hand on top of your glove
Spread your feet
Bend your knees
And, by the way, nice try!
I feel the same way when someone tells me to just “stay positive.” Being optimistic does not come naturally for a great deal of people (including me!). I’m a born pessimist. For the last couple of years, I have practiced several specific techniques to beat back my natural inclination to be pessimistic. The following three exercises have helped me develop what Dr. Martin Seligman refers to as a “flexible optimism” to help me cope with life’s adversities.
Put It In Perspective: This is a simple exercise that I learned from Dr. Karen Reivich and Dr. Andrew Shatte, authors of The Resilience Factor. If you are the type of person who overreacts to adversity, this exercise is for you. When something bad happens and you are feeling overwhelmed, take a minute to write down the following. First, articulate the worst case scenario – indulge your pessimism, for a moment. Then, jot down the best case scenario. Be a little silly. For instance, if you find out that you did not get the job that you really wanted, you might write down that you start your own company, become independently wealthy, and give lectures about your successful career for a living! This is not meant to be seen as a realistic scenario. Introducing a little humor opens your mind to other possibilities. Next, write down the most realistic outcomes of the adversity and try to problem solve for the most likely outcomes.
An Optimism Journal: Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky, author of The How of Happiness, shares that people who write about an optimistic future for 20 minutes a day for four consecutive days were “more likely to show immediate increases in positive moods, to be happier several weeks later, and even to report fewer physical ailments several months hence.”
So, the next time someone close to you is having a bad day, try to avoid saying, “Just be positive” and give some specific advice. You just might be talking to a pessimist.
Angie LeVan is a resilience coach, positive psychology consultant and an associate of Positive Psychology Services, LLC. Angie has studied the science of well-being in the Masters of Applied Positive Psychology program at University of Pennsylvania, and she is a blogger on the topic of resilience for psychologytoday.com. See her profile in our practitioner directory.
Can Comfort and Convenience Undermine Your Well-being?
Most of us will do anything to avoid challenge, discomfort or even the slightest bit of inconvenience (hence, the Clapper, remote controls and Velcro). But by doing so, are we doing more harm than good when it comes to our well-being?
I’ll be the first to admit, there are some conveniences I just can’t live without. After all, who doesn’t love the iPhone?! But let’s face it — modern-day conveniences have made it easier than ever to do less, to spend endless hours on our derrières and to just be ‘comfortable’ — perhaps too comfortable?
Think about it. We’re living during a time when everything we want is right at our fingertips (thanks to the Internet and credit cards). Yet, we’re less happy today than our ancestors were when food was sparse, career paths were non-existent and before 18 year-olds drove sports cars. According to researchers, less than 20% of people (1 in 5) are actually ‘flourishing’ – living the ‘good life’. Worse yet, about the same number of people report symptoms of depression and anxiety! Through comfort and convenience have we lost opportunities to have an engaging and meaningful life? Have we sacrificed opportunities to develop the resources that truly enable us to thrive in life?
3 Ways Comfort and Convenience May be Short-changing Your Well-being:
1) An Epidemic of Inactivity: Not surprisingly, physical inactivity has reached epidemic proportion. Heart disease, obesity, diabetes and a number of other physical and mental disorders are on the rise – a result of modern conveniences?
2) Less Opportunity for Growth: When we’re exposed to minor stressors or challenges, we have an opportunity to build the mental resources necessary to actively cope with future hardship. Less challenge equals less opportunity to build the precious, mental resources that, leveraged appropriately, can enable a person to thrive.
3) False Hopes for an Easy Ride: In a technology-driven world, it’s easy to fall prey to expectations for an easy ride in life. But that’s just not how it works — and perhaps that’s not how it should! Happiness takes work. It takes real effort and persistence to achieve the life you most desire.
Adopt a different mindset. Learn to love challenge and effort, and step out of your ‘comfort zone’ by finding safe ways to challenge yourself!
Stay tuned for more on how use challenge as pathway to a thriving life!
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