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Today we’re talking about the discipline of Positive Psychology, what it is, and how it can help us as we struggle with grief and coming back to a place of well-being and happiness.

In today’s episode I mentioned Abraham Maslow and Dr. Martin Seligman, both of whom are considered two of the five founding fathers of positive psychology.

Maslow gave us the hierarchy of need and Dr. Seligman developed the PERMA model, representing the five elements of well-being, which are Positive Emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, Accomplishments. Dr. Seligman’s books include Authentic Happiness and Flourish: a Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being.

The most accessible presentation I’ve seen of positive psychology is Shawn Acher’s hilarious and informative Ted Talk entitled “The Happy Secret to Better Work” which can be found here.

Don’t let the title fool you. His presentation is applicable to how we can thrive in every aspect of life not just at work.  His books, The Happiness Advantage and Before Happiness are great too. They also outline strategies for building happiness into our life, but they do tend to be more work related.

Also, mentioned in this episode is the free mobile app, Insight Timer, which is a meditation app with thousands of guided meditations and music selections. This might be a good place to get started in applying one of the 5 practices mentioned for increasing happiness.

Consider adopting some of the strategies presented in this episode to start creating more happiness in your life today.

With Love, Julie