Monthly Archives: December 2013

14 Things to Make You Happier and More Productive in 2014

We wanted to give you something that would help make your life a little better next year.   Keep these things in mind when you are crafting your New Year’s Resolutions.   Give something away.  It makes you happier than buying something for yourself.  College students were given money to either give away or spend on themselves.  Guess which group was happier.  When we buy stuff, we always think it will make us happier, for a longer period of time, than it actually does.  Think – what did you give for the holidays versus what did you get? Give an experience.  If you are going to give something away, research shows that giving someone an experience versus a thing you can hold, makes people happier.  It also makes people happier to be with others (even if you are an introvert).  For example I gave…

10 Tried and True Methods for Increasing Well-Being

Since the dawn of late night television, everyone is working on their top 10 lists.  Here is one list that is here to stay.  Scientifically proven ways to make you happier. 1. Find Your Flow.  If you can get ‘in the zone’ during your work day, it will not only make you more productive…it will make you happier.  Think about your task and if it is a balance between challenge and your skill level.  Easy way to adjust – either increase the challenge (make a game of how fast and accurately you can write that memo) or increase your skill level (learn Prezi before creating your next presentation). 2. More Good Than Bad.   Research shows what we know instinctively to be true.  That ‘bad is stronger than good’.   When something bad happens we focus on it more.  It impacts us to a greater degree.  Good things…

Positive Business Conference

Positive Business Conference Set for May 2014 at U-M Ross   Yes, there is such a thing as positive business. Business can, and should, be a force for good. That’s the thinking behind the Ross mission of developing leaders who make a positive difference in the world.  U-M Ross has led the field of positive organizational studies for decades. Now the school is set to share that knowledge and showcase executives who are putting it to practice at the first-ever Positive Business Conference. The event will be held at Ross May 15-17, 2014, and will share the latest trends, research, and results in positive business, a burgeoning management field. Executives from Whole Foods Market, Procter & Gamble, and Ford Motor Company will outline how positive business strategies are impacting employees and profits—both for the better. Think this may sound a little on the soft…

Lessons From the Five of Us – The Business and Positive Psychology Panel

(This was originally published by Senia Maymin on www.profitfromthepositive.com.) Five of us were on a panel about business and positive psychology. This was at the Master of Applied Positive Psychology Summit a couple of weekends ago. Basically, we answered questions such as, “What approaches have you found effective in introducing businesses to positive psychology research, concepts, and tools?” Each of us wanted to share a few key pieces of advice with those who attended and with those who didn’t have a chance to attend.  Here is our advice: Senia Maymin, MAPP ’06 (senia@ProfitFromThePositive.com. Website: ProfitFromThePositive.com. Senia says, “If you’re moved to do so, we’d greatly appreciate an Amazon review.” On Amazon at http://tinyurl.com/profitpositive.): Take outward actions. We can always take inward actions (like updating our website, thinking about process, writing down an outline for a presentation), but you’ll get more…