Workplace Positivity? What’s the Right Amount? And Why?

(Originally published on Positive Psychology News Daily, PPND, in February 2016) Did you know the right amount of positive emotion can lead to more innovation, less absenteeism, and better problem solving? What are Emotions For? Early research regarding the purpose of negative emotion has been generally accepted. Negative emotion alerts us to danger and focuses attention on self-preservation and problem solving. However, understanding the survival benefits of positive emotion has been less clear, even dismissed, until recently. Researchers, including Martin Seligman, Barbara Fredrickson, and Christopher Peterson, have shown biological reasons for positive emotions and how they relate to human survival and well-being. In my experience as a leader, I have witnessed the results of positive emotion and its effect on well-being in the workplace. Emotions at the Workplace Positive emotion affects our workforce in the most basic way: our health.…

Connecting for Success Webinar Recording

Did you miss our webinar on Connecting for Success? No worries…scroll down and watch it. A message from Robert Rosales From Languishing to Flourishing at Work Whether organizations and their employees languish or flourish largely depends on the quality of the social connections they nurture. We spend most of our waking hours at work and thus improving social connections will impact productivity, engagement as well as community, organizational and individual wellbeing. The bottom line is that focusing on enabling high-quality relationships at work changes everything, for the better. Is it that simple? Yes. Is it easy? No. It takes persistence and hard work. But it’s worth it. Learn critical skills to develop better relationships at work by watching the following webinar. Connecting for Success with Robert Rosales.    

Improv in Business Webinar – follow up

Kat Koppett Thank you to everyone who attended Improv for Business, our very first Positive Business DC Webinar!  We had a great turnout so be sure to join our Meetup so you don’t miss any announcements. If you missed it, our guest speaker was Kat Koppett, founder of Koppett & Company and author. Kat and Shannon Polly had a riveting discussion about the principals of  Improv and how applying to business can be transformative.  If you missed it, you can check out this Modern DC Business article and also the recording of the webinar itself. If you did not get enough, and I know we didn’t, Kat has graciously offered to do an online “on-the-fly” sample instruction.  So, if you want to participate, just post a message here on our Facebook page.  Here is the question to answer:  ”What’s a part of your business you want to improv? Finally, we…

How do we live a life of well-being? Through pleasure seeking? According to Aristotle, we live a life of well-being through eudaimonic life. Indeed, putting more focus on the process of living well (eudaimonic approach) over the outcomes of happiness (hedonic approach) is associated with increased well-being. An eudaimonic lifestyle is marked by investment of energy on values and goals that are intrinsic to the individual (done for the interest and enjoyment that the activity provides) to that individual (Ryan, Huta, & Deci, 2008). Furthermore, individuals who have intrinsic goals are more likely to persevere in accomplishing them, thus enjoying greater well-being. Intrinsic activities are autonomous by, 2008). Furthermore, extrinsic motivation can actually weaken intrinsic motivation because it fosters the perception that the cause of the behavior is external to that individual (Brown & Ryan, 2004). The relative autonomy of goals is not only predictive of performance but well-being in general (Ryan etal, 2008). Those with intrinsic goals, 2008). Perseverance and passion for long-term goals, coined grit by Angela Duckworth, is predictive of…

Performing Your Way to Growth by Author Cathy Salit

Did you miss our webinar on May 10, 2016? No worries, we have it for you here. In this webinar, Author Cathy Salit will show us how leveraging our inborn ability to perform and pretend can help us grow in our work. Whether you are navigating your way on a new team, expanding your leadership role, or just trying to get heard in a meeting, you’re facing the kind of workplace challenge we all run into sooner or later: you need a new performance. And the good news, Cathy Salit says, is that even though you might not have been onstage since you played a tree in third grade, you — and all humans — have an innate ability to perform, pretend, and improvise. Tapping into this ability is key to learning and growing in new, exciting and profound ways.…

Stand Up for Happiness at Work: It’s Time to Move!

(Originally published on Delivering Happiness) We often think of happiness as a state of mind, but our physical bodies have a large impact on our well-being that goes beyond our physical health. Our bodies can either help or hinder our performance and well-being, on the job or at home, in more ways than are readily obvious. Our well-being is tied to our bodies in more ways than one. Our physical fitness can affect our moods, our energy levels, and our mental performance. Consider the following: Research has shown that just 15 minutes of exercise a day can help increase energy levels. According to the American Council on Exercise, if a sedentary individual begins an exercise program it will enhance the blood flow carrying oxygen and nutrients to muscle tissue improving their ability to produce more energy [the chemical adenosine triphosphate]. Physical…

How Learning your ABCs at Work Can Decrease Stress

One of my all-time favorite bumper stickers asserts, “Don’t believe everything you think.” The first time I saw it, fifteen years ago, it took me a second to even make sense of it. Since that time, I have increasingly used that quote to remind myself that just because I have had a thought, it doesn’t necessarily make it true. This seems to apply especially when I find myself angry. We play a role in our own stress and angst, sometimes causing it where none really needs to exist. We bring our histories, good and bad, to our daily interactions and this affects our perceptions. Albert Ellis (1962), the father of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), identified that much of the stress experienced in life comes not from the stressful events in our lives, but from our interpretation of the event. This makes sense – if the activating event were causal, then everyone’s responses would be…

Why the Office “Good Guy” Enjoys his Work More than You

The office good guy… you know him… he’s John, the administrative assistant who is always ready to enthusiastically serve on a new voluntary committee at work. She’s Nancy, a customer service representative who is not only genuinely happy to help customers solve problems, but will cover a co-workers’ shift almost anytime she is asked. They are unusual and everyone sees it.  They clearly care about the company and the people within. These “good guys” are good organizational citizens.  They are the people who do things beyond the formal duties of their role – like lending a helping hand to a co-worker, being an evangelist for their company, or organizing a team lunch. They are strong team players, keep the spirits of others high, maintain goodwill around them, and are actively involved in company activities… you get the idea.  And, as…

Webinar Recording: Strengths with Michelle McQuaid

Did you miss our webinar today? No fear – you can see it here. Quick Recap: We had a very interesting webinar with Michelle McQuaid today, where she shared results from her survey of over 1000 companies and their views on strengths in the workplace. She shared statistics such as in 2015, 5 out of 10 people are building on their strengths. She also how shared how effective managers help their employees make changes as well as the benefits these companies are reaping. Who is Michelle McQuaid? Michelle McQuaid is a best-selling author, workplace wellbeing teacher and playful change activator. With more than a decade of senior leadership experience in large organizations around the world, she’s passionate about translating cutting-edge research from positive psychology and neuroscience, into practical strategies for health, happiness, and business success. An honorary fellow at Melbourne University’s Graduate School of Education,…

The Paradox of Choice

Rational-choice theory attempts to explain human choice by assuming we are rational choosers, have well ordered preferences, and have information on costs and benefits. It also assumes we compare options on the basis of preference, value or utility. Additionally, the theory says that rational choosers should always be able to express their preferences. A rational decision maker, therefore, will look at all the options, choose the one that brings the most utility, and understand why the choice was made. But in economic theory, there hasn’t been enough study understanding from where our preferences come. Preferences are complicated because it includes human biases as well as culture. Barry Schwarz explores this shortcoming as well as gives us evidence-based advice on how we can make wiser decisions in his book The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less. He lays out a compelling case for becoming a Satisfier (one who makes a decision when their criteria is met) over a…

Setting Boundaries Webinar by Mark Sachs

Did you miss Successfully Setting Boundaries by Mark Sachs? No worries!  We have you covered.  Check out our recording below. Mark give some very specific and usable advice including – Why it might be difficult for you to set a boundary – What you need to tell yourself that can help you set a boundary – The essential steps to being successful in setting them Mark Sachs, an executive coach for over 15 years, works with many leaders in the DC area. Past clients include NASA, National Institutes of Health, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and dozens of others. He has presented similar boundaries workshops in many organizations, where he gives real-life examples of boundary setting.

Workplace Positivity? What’s the Right Amount? And Why?

Did you know the right amount of positive emotion can lead to more innovation, less absenteeism and better problem solving? Early research regarding negative emotion has been generally agreed upon – negative emotion alerts us to danger, problems and focuses attention on self-preservation and problem solving. However, understanding the reasoning for positive emotion has been less clear, even dismissed, until recently. Martin E.P. Seligman, Barbara Fredrickson, and Christopher Peterson, for example, have shown biological reasons for positive emotions and how they relate to human survival and well-being. In my experience as a leader, I have witnessed the results of positive emotion and its effect on wellbeing in the workplace. Positive emotion affects our workforce is the most basic way – our health.  Research studies conducted by Ellen Langer and Alia Crum showed that simple changes in mindset can have dynamic and self-fulfilling effects on health. And this can be seen even at the cellular level. Steven Cole and Barbara Fredrickson’s joint…

Cognitive Bias: Mere-Exposure Effect

Part 7 of our “Cognitive Bias and Leadership” Series – See more here. On our January 16, 2013 blog, I gave an overview of cognitive bias (our tendency to filter information through our own past experiences, likes, and dislikes) and surmised that it can lead to judgments that are faulty.  So much of positive leadership is about good decision making so we really wanted to expand on different biases. In the 7th of our series, I am going to talk about the Mere-Exposure Effect – the tendency to prefer things because we are familiar with them.  What this means is that if you have been exposed to something prior, you will tend to favor it over something to which you have never been exposed…this could be a person, a product, a place, an event – you name it.  In fact, if you have ever been to a concert, I am sure you saw this phenomenon in action.…

Leaders who Thrive by Martin Best

by Martin Best, The Corporate Theatre See Webinar Recording from Martin Best’ recent PBDC presentation Technology has transformed old structures into a lattice of interactions that is as vibrant as a Kandinsky painting. The industrial and service ages have passed, and we’re now in a creative age where more and more of us are accountable for leading. Three essentials will help leaders thrive in this ‘new now.’ First, Authenticity: we must know our real selves. We are authentic when we are true to our purposes, beliefs and values. When we demonstrate them in actions and words, great changes can happen. In 1608 Galileo told the truth about the universe. Authority punished him for it, but he made it possible for Newton to shift our understanding from myth to mechanics. A new economics, and enlightenment, followed. We are their heirs. In 1794, Immanuel Kant wrote that Authenticity is maturity: leaders drive change when they have courage to use…

WinCo Challenges Walmart with Profits and Employee Programs

Positive Business DC loves to hear about great companies treating their employees well and increasing engagement.  Recently, Just Thought You Should Know recently wrote about WinCo. The flier is below, but you can check it out here. In Time’s recent article, they called WinCo ‘Walmart’s Worst Nightmare’ – their prices are lower than Walmart’s, yet they have better pay, and benefits.  Way to #workwell, WinCo!

entheos Interview: What Appreciative Inquiry Has Taught Me

An Interview with Shannon Polly, MAPP and Kathryn Britton, editor of Positive Psychology News Daily en*theos International Day of Happiness Virtual Conference Kathryn: Getting back to the personal of this, what’s the most interesting thing that you learned about yourself in the course of doing AI summits? Shannon: Oh that’s a great question. A number of things, I think one of the things I learned is that even though I’ve had all of this training in positive psychology I still too have a negativity bias and I have not been cured of that. I was doing an AI summit leading into strategic plan for an organization recently and the AI summit was great because the positivity principle is built in and really started to design the strategic plan and I started to slip into “well the lease is up in 2017 and what if we lose it” and then I had to jolt myself out of it and…

entheos Interview: The “Four D” Process of Appreciative Inquiry

An Interview with Shannon Polly, MAPP and Kathryn Britton, editor of Positive Psychology News Daily. en*theos International Day of Happiness Virtual Conference Kathryn: Tell us a little bit more about the process; you said the process is very organized so that makes it kind of keep things on track. So maybe you could lead us through what happened with the Cincinnati Summit. Shannon: Sure. So first you know there is a maybe 25 minutes of what is this principle, what’s the process of Appreciate Inquiry, what are we taking people through just to orient them, you don’t want to have more than about 30 minutes of it because then peoples energy tends to wane. What you want to do is immediately get them into one-on-one interviews. So you have people in tables of eight usually and you have them find a partner and you asked them they have a program guide in front of them and generally they are asking…

entheos Interview: Introduction to Appreciative Inquiry

An Interview with Shannon Polly, MAPP and Kathryn Britton, editor of Positive Psychology News Daily en*theos International Day of Happiness Virtual Conference Kathryn: Good morning Shannon, thank you for joining me here we are in celebration of world happiness day. Before we jump into your topic, Appreciative Inquiry, could you tell us a bit about yourself? Martin Seligman with Shannon Polly Shannon: Sure, thanks for having me Catherine. I am a positive psychology practitioner, I’m a coach, a facilitator, trainer, speaker and I live in Washington DC. I have my own consulting company call Shannon Polly and Associates and I also found an organization called Positive Business DC and our mission is to increase the tonnage of happiness starting in the nation’s Capitol, but not limited to the nation’s Capitol, so my passion is around helping individuals and organizations learn how to flourish by using training and positive psychology practices. Kathryn: Alright thank you, so tell us a little bit about…

Cognitive Bias: Bandwidth Bias

Part 6 in our “Cognitive Bias and Leadership” On our January 16, 2013 blog, I gave an overview of cognitive bias (our tendency to filter information through our own past experiences, likes, and dislikes) and surmised that it can lead to judgments that are faulty.  We have been exploring how these biases affect the ability to lead and make good decisions. In the 6th in our series, I wanted to talk about Bandwidth Bias.  This is the tendency to go with the crowd.  It can also be called “groupthink” and when it turns negative, it can be a “mob mentality.”   And this can happen in groups large and small.  It can happen in your family, in your department or team at work, or across an entire culture. Why does this happen? We like to conform.  We like to fit in.  Consider the famous experiments by Solomon Asch, psychologist from the 1950s, who conducted experiments where participants were part of vision exercise where they had…