Does my butt look big in this? Applying strengths intelligently

This article on yesterday's Positive Psychology News Daily looks at some of the issues in applying character strengths (specifically VIA-IS) in a practical way in everyday life.

Measuring Happiness

You'll be interested to hear that the British government is now tracking the well-being of its citizens annually along with other social, economic and environmental indices. For further information see this DEFRA press release, and for a concise summary, see this excellent post on Positive Psychology News Daily by my MAPP colleague, Rosie Milner.

The Benefit of Positive Emotions at Work

Have you ever thought that emotion has no place in the world of business? Well here's some research that might cause you to stop and think. Do you want to see quickly and easily how positive or negative emotion impacts your current thinking style?

Take a look at these four groups of shapes - for each one do you think pattern A is more like B or C?

According to Barbara Fredrickson's "broaden and build" theory, in this visual processing task people in positive moods are more likely to choose B (global) every time. Fredrickson and Branigan's research* shows that positive moods facilitate more creative, flexible, big-picture thinking, in which positive people remain open to new information. As a result, the number of behavioural options open to them increases.

People in negative moods, on the other hand, are more focused on the detail of a situation, have a more rigid thinking style in which their thought-action repertoire is narrowed. These people are more likely to say pattern A is like C (local).

The good news is that while a positive emotional state is only momentary, there is evidence to suggest that the effect is cumulative, thus you can increase your flexibility and resourcefulness over time.

It's crucial for workplace success to remain as flexible and open to new ideas as possible, so the broaden and build theory has serious implications for business. Specifically you may want to consider how you can foster positive emotions before and during brainstorming sessions, when you want to create as many innovative ideas as possible. In problem-solving situations too, consider what action you can take to sustain a positive frame of mind while you're generating new solutions.

Next time you're in one of these business situations, notice the impact your mood has on your thinking style. In coaching we've noticed that clients who maintain a positive outlook are far more likely to generate ideas than those who allow a negative mood to dominate. Try it for yourself, and let us know how you get on.



* Fredrickson, B.L., & Branigan, C. (2005) "Positive emotions broaden the scope of attention and thought-action repertoires"

Using Your Strengths in New Ways - 5

This is our final post looking at new ways of applying VIA-IS character strengths; today we're covering Prudence, Self-Regulation, Humility/Modesty and Spirituality.

The reason for applying your signature strengths in new ways every day is because research shows it is an effective way to improve your well-being longer-term (See Seligman, Steen, Park & Peterson, 2005).

PRUDENCE:
i) When driving stay 5 miles per hour under the speed limit
ii) Think twice before saying anything other than "please" or "thank you"
iii) Before you decide to do something, reflect on its likely consequences 1 hour, 1 day or 1 year later


SELF-REGULATION:
i) Start an exercise programme and stick to it every day
ii) Tidy your desk or office every night before you go home
iii) When tempted to lose your cool, count to 10 (or until the emotion subsides)
iv) Resolve not to gossip. Stop yourself before you talk about someone behind their back.

HUMILITY / MODESTY
i) Don't talk about yourself for a full day
ii) Dress in a way that does not to draw attention to yourself
iii) Find a way in which a colleague is better than you. Compliment them for it

SPIRITUALITY:
i) Every day think about the purpose of your life
ii) Meditate or pray at the start of every day
iii) Attend a religious service of a faith unfamiliar to you
iv) For 5 minutes every day think about what you can do to improve the world or your community.

It's recommended that you try the same activity every day for a couple of weeks, although bear in mind that if it really isn't working for you after a few days, pick another one.

For more activities related to Integrity, Love, Humour, Appreciation of Beauty or Social Intelligence, click here.

For activities related to using Fairness, Kindness, Open-Mindedness, Curiosity, Love of Learning or Creativity, click here.

For activities related to Leadership, Gratitude, Perspective, Forgiveness, Teamwork (Citizenship) and Bravery, click here.

For activities related to Perseverance, Vitality and Hope, click here.

We'd also love to hear your own examples of activities that worked for you.

In future posts we'll be exploring the CIPD's model of well-being at work, as well as the benefits and downsides of other Strengths models, such as the Clifton StrengthsFinder.

Using Your Strengths in New Ways - 4

In this post we look at new ways of applying 3 more of the VIA character strengths, Perseverance, Vitality and Hope.

If you haven't already done the VIA-IS online strengths test, why not take some time out now to complete it, and when you've got your list of top 5 (or signature) strengths, come back to find out how you might use them differently.

Just to remind you, the purpose of using your strengths in a new way every day is because research (Seligman, Steen, Park & Peterson, 2005) shows that this has a long-term positive effect on your happiness.

PERSEVERANCE:
i) Finish an important task before the deadline
ii) Work for several hours straight without interruptions - divert your phone and don't check your email
iii) Make a list of things to do and do one thing on the list every day
iv) Notice your self-talk about stopping a task and ignore it. Focus on the task in hand.


VITALITY / ZEST:
i) Do something physically vigorous in the morning
ii) Volunteer for an activity at work
iii) Do something because you want to, not because you need to
iv) Get a good nights sleep, and eat a healthy breakfast to give yourself more energy during the day
v) Say 'why not?' three times more frequently than you say 'why?'

HOPE / OPTIMISM
i) Think of a past disappointment and the opportunities that it made possible
ii) Notice your negative thoughts. Counter them with positive thoughts.
iii) Write down your goals for the next week/month/year and make concrete plans for accomplishing them.
iv) Keep a journal and every night record a decision that you made that day which will impact your life in the long run

As mentioned before, if the activity doesn't work for you after a couple of days, try another one.

If you would like to find more activities related to using Fairness, Kindness, Open-Mindedness, Curiosity, Love of Learning or Creativity, click here.

For more activities related to the strengths of Integrity, Love, Humour, Appreciation of Beauty or Social Intelligence, click here.

For more activities related to the strengths of Leadership, Gratitude, Perspective, Forgiveness, Teamwork (Citizenship) and Bravery, click here.

In our next post we will be looking at the remaining 4 character strengths, Prudence Self-Regulation, Humility and Spirituality.

Please also remember to send us examples of activities that worked for you, we'd love to hear about them.



Thanks to Jonathan Haidt and Chris Peterson for many of the suggested activities.

Using Your Strengths in New Ways - 3

How to Use Your Top 5 Character Strengths in New Ways - Part 3. If you've just completed the VIA-IS online survey and are wondering what to do with your Top 5 Strengths, read on...

There's increasing research to show that focusing on your strengths at work rather than on your weaknesses brings huge benefits, not just to yourself but also to your organisation. As mentioned in one of our previous posts, companies like Norwich Union are using strengths-based approaches successfully in the business, for example in recruitment. Other organisations are focusing on strengths for personal development, using them as the basis for the Annual Appraisal, for example. It gives employees a boost of confidence and really helps them feel good about themselves, in a way that leads to further performance improvements.

In the last couple of posts we've looked at new ways of applying strengths (from the VIA-IS online survey, not from the Clifton StrengthsFinder, which actually measures talents). Today we continue on this theme with six more strengths. Try picking one activity from one of your Top 5, and stick with it for a couple of weeks. If you find it isn't working after a day or so, try something else.

LEADERSHIP:
i) Organise a social get-together for your team or department
ii) Go out of your way to make a new colleague feel welcome
iii) Take responsibility for an unpleasant task at work and make sure it gets done


GRATITUDE:
i) At the end of the day write down three things that went well
ii) Write and send a gratitude letter
iii) Keep track of how many times you say thank you during the day and increase the number every day for a week.

PERSPECTIVE / WISDOM:
i) Think of the wisest person you know and try to live one day as if you were them
ii) Resolve a dispute between two work colleagues, or two family members
iii) Don't give advice unless asked, and then do so as thoughtfully as possible

FORGIVENESS:
i) Let a grudge go every day
ii) Write a forgiveness letter, do not send it, but read it every day for a week.
iii) When someone does something you don't understand, stand in their shoes and try to work out their positive intention

TEAMWORK / CITIZENSHIP:
i) Pick up litter that you see on the ground
ii) Volunteer your time to a charity, community group, Parent-Teacher Association, Parish Council etc
iii) Organize a team / department dinner
iv) Act as a facilitator

BRAVERY:
i) Speak up for an unpopular idea in a group
ii) Stand up for someone even if you disagree with them
iii) Protest to the appropriate authorities about an injustice that you observe

These are just some examples of activities, you can of course adapt them to suit your circumstances.

We'd be delighted to hear your experience of using some of these activities in practice, or if you have any ideas for new ones, so please send us your comments.

We'll cover the remaining 7 Character Strengths in future posts.


Thanks to Professor Jonathan Haidt , author of The Happiness Hypothesis, and the students in his psychology class at the University of Virginia and Chris Peterson for many of the suggested activities.

Using Your Strengths in New Ways - 2

How to Use Your Character Strengths in New Ways - Part 2.

In your annual appraisal / personal development meeting, does your boss focus on how to use your strengths more effectively, or how to improve your weaknesses (or 'development areas' if you're being PC)?

According to Positive Psychologists Chris Peterson and Martin Seligman, using your strengths every day is one of the most effective ways to increase your level of satisfaction. And according to Marcus Buckingham and the late Donald Clifton , authors of 'Now Discover Your Strengths' it's a tried and tested way to increase staff engagement, moral and motivation, as well as improve productivity and profitability. Seems to good to be true doesn't it?

Well, hopefully you have found 30 minutes or so to fill in the VIA-IS online character strengths survey. This is a free strengths survey, from which you get immediate results in the form of a report listing the 24 character strengths in order. As we mentioned in previous posts, you can do the CliftonStrengthsFinder* survey online too, but it's not free. We'll discuss applications of the Clifton StrengthsFinder in other posts.

Having identified their strengths, many people think 'What do I do with them now?'. in Wednesday's post we looked at ways of applying Fairness, Kindness, Open-Mindedness, Curiosity, Love of Learning and Creativity day-to-day. In today's post we look 5 new strengths:

INTEGRITY:
i) Refrain from telling white lies to friends, including insincere compliments
ii) At the end of the day, identify something you did that was attempting to impress people, or put on a show. Resolve not to do it again
iii) Monitor yourself and make a list of every time you tell a lie. Try to make your list shorter everyday
iv) Think about your most important values and do something every day which is consistent with them
v) When explaining your motives to someone, do so in a genuine and honest way

LOVE:
i) Tell a boyfriend/girlfriend/sibling/parent that you love them
ii) Send a loved one a card/e-card to say you were thinking about them
iii) Give loved ones a big hug and a kiss
iv) Write a nice post-it to a colleague and leave it on their desk
v) Accept a compliment, just say "thank you"
vi) Do something with your kids that they really enjoy doing

HUMOUR:
i) Make someone laugh or smile every day
ii) Learn a joke and tell it to all your friends
iii) Watch a funny film
iv) Visit a Comedy Club
v) Learn a magic trick and perform it for all your friends
vi) Make fun of yourself, if only by saying, "there I go again"

APPRECIATION OF BEAUTY:
i) Keep a journal and record something you saw during the day that was beautiful
ii) Go outside and take time to notice something of beauty
iii) Go to a museum or art gallery and find something that inspires you or touches you because of its beauty
iv) Attend a concert and savour the sound

SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE:
i) Meet one new person every day at work - chat to the person next to you in the restaurant queue or at the coffee machine for example
ii) Encounter someone by themselves and by being friendly, include them in your group
iii) When someone at work annoys you, try to understand their motives and concerns
iv) Go into a new social situation and try to fit in - if you're the boss, for example, join a group of your staff for lunch and focus on making them feel at ease.
v) Notice when a colleague does something that is difficult for them, and compliment them

These are just some examples of activities, you can of course adapt them to suit your circumstances. Try picking one and stick with it for a couple of weeks. If you find it isn't working after a day or so, just try something else.

We'd love to hear your experience of using some of these activities in practice, so please send us your comments. We'll cover the remaining Character Strengths in future posts.

NB Despite the name, the Clifton StrengthsFinder doesn't actually tell you your strengths. It tells you your Top 5 categories of talent, which you can then develop into strengths by applying skill and knowledge.



Thanks to Professor Jonathan Haidt , author of The Happiness Hypothesis, and the students in his psychology class at the University of Virginia for many of the suggested activities.

Now Discover Your Strengths...Then What?

How to Use Your Character Strengths in New Ways - Part 1

Have you completed the VIA-IS online character strengths survey yet? We find it an excellent starting point for coaching conversations since many people are completely unaware of their strengths, so it can be an instant confidence boost, as well as providing insight into where to make changes to increase overall life/job satisfaction.

Having identified their strengths, many people think 'What now?' so in this post we look at new ways of applying strengths day-to-day. We start with the most common top strengths shown in the UK (Linley et al 2007):

Women: 1.Fairness 2.Kindness 3.Open-mindedness 4.Curiosity and 5. Love of Learning
Men: 1.Open-mindedness 2.Fairness 3.Curiosity & joint 4th Love of Learning and Creativity

FAIRNESS:
i) Act as a mediator - stay impartial in a disagreement between friends/colleagues despite your beliefs
ii) Allow someone to say their piece without interupting them
iii) Notice when you treat someone based on a stereotype or pre-conception: resolve not to do it again.
iv) At least once a day, admit a mistake and take responsibility for it
v) At least once a day, give due credit to a colleague you don't particularly like


OPEN-MINDEDNESS:
i) Every day, pick something you believe strongly, and think about how you might be wrong
ii) Play devil's advocate - discuss a work-related issue or business problem from the side opposite to your personal views
iii) Go to lunch with a colleague who is different to you in some way
iv) Go to a multi-cultural event or to a different church/religious event


KINDNESS / GENEROSITY:
i) Do a random act of kindness every day. Make it anonymous if possible.
ii) Send an e-card to a different friend each day
iii) Pick up the whole bill when you are out with friends
iv) Ring a friend/family member/colleague specifically to find out how they are. Ask them how their day was and actually listen to the answer before telling them about your own day.
v) When driving, give way to pedestrians; when walking, give way to cars


CURIOSITY / INTEREST IN THE WORLD:
i) At lunch, eat something new that you never otherwise would have tried
ii) Ask questions in a meeting (if you don't usually), or find a work-related online forum (such as the CIPDs) and ask questions there
iii) Travel to work by a different route
iv) Go to your local library and pick and interesting-looking book - spend 20 minutes skimming it
v) Read an interesting article in your professional/trade magazine
vi) Go to a meeting or lecture on a topic you know nothing about


LOVE OF LEARNING:
i) Read a different newspaper to the one you would usually read
ii) Find a mentor in a different department at work and set up a regular meeting
iii) Think of an area of the business where you know very little and find a colleague who is prepared to help you learn about it
iv) Take up a new hobby
v) Watch your children playing and reflect on how one learns through play
vi) Find a colleague at work who has a skill you want to learn and model them


CREATIVITY:
i) Keep a journal or work on a picture or a poem
ii) Find a new word everyday and use it creatively every day
iii) Pick one object in your office and think of new uses for it
iv) Wear a new combination of clothes/ shirt & tie to the ones you usually pick
v) Enrol in a pottery or painting class


These are just some examples of activities you can try, you don't have to do them all! In fact, it's recommended that you pick one activity and stick with it for a couple of weeks. And if you find after a couple of days that it's not working for you, switch to something else.

We'll cover the remaining 18 VIA strengths in subsequent posts. In the meantime, we're always looking for new ways to apply strengths in practice, so please send us your comments.

Thanks to Professor Jonathan Haidt, author of The Happiness Hypothesis, and the students in his psychology class at the University of Virginia for many of the suggested activities.