Category Archives: Positive Psychology

Bouncing Back: Myths and Characteristics of Resilience

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I have taught resilience to business execs and Army sergeants.  And the same myths come up every time when I ask about their definition of resilience. Resilient people are almost always positive & upbeat. Resilient people know how to go it alone. Resilient people almost never give up. Resilient people tend to be perfectionists.   The reality is that resilient people experience most of the problems that non-resilient people experience. The major difference between a resilient and a non-resilient person is how quickly resilient people recover from failures and setbacks in their life. If physical fitness is the speed with which you can recover from physical stress, resilience is the speed with which you can bounce back from psychological stress. Resilient and truly happy people understand the meaning of “good enough”. They know when to stop and enjoy what they… …

Virtuous Business Practices – an interview with Dr. Kim Cameron

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  Dr. Kim Cameron is the William Russell Professor of Management & Organizations at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and the co-founder of a field called Positive Organizational Scholarship (POS).  POS was separate in its origins from Positive Psychology (and pre-dates positive psychology).  I had the honor of having him as my advisor for my MAPP capstone at the University of Pennsylvania.  Louisa Jewell and I couldn’t ask for a fairer or tougher advisor.  I decided to interview him to see what he’s been working on. What subjects are businesses are most attracted to? Bottom line is the driver, of course.  All business executives say “If I don’t achieve profit, return to share, then I’m not doing my job and I will not last and nor will the organization.”  Their interest is:  ‘Is there any pay… …

Positive Psychology in Practice in the DC Metro Area

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Here at Positive Business DC we are always looking for organizations who are implementing positive psychology in the workplace.  As the nation’s capital we hope that we will set the trends for the entire nation.  We found one such company in the DC Metro area that needs a special mention. Freddie Mac has been implementing numerous projects in the area of positive psychology, from lectures by Shawn Achor that are available for internal viewing on their website, to more intimate workshops in resilience and strengths. I asked Michele Lockwood who is the Director of Talent Development what Freddie Mac interested in applying a specific approach to well-being that comes from research out the social sciences.  “We went to one company for change training and it wasn’t moving the needle.  To act as though change is a one-time thing is inaccurate.… …

Positive Practices Around the World

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Positive psychology training is being implemented in many countries around the world, and not only are we starting to see the positive effects but also which specific content is having the biggest impact.  Positive Matters, founded by Louisa Jewell in Toronto, Canada, and Plus Side Strategies have implemented various positive psychology tools and decided to test which ones were the most impactful on participants.  Five months after receiving a one-day training by Positive Matters and Plus Side Strategies, employees of Northern Lights Canada were surveyed.  It was discovered that the elements that partiipants found most useful were as follows: • StrengthsFinder (75% of respondents reported as either ‘very useful’ or ‘extremely useful’) • Appreciative Inquiry (62.5% of participants reported as either ‘very useful’ or ‘extremely useful’) • Specific solutions focused exercise (49.9% of participants reported as either ‘very useful’ or… …

Anticipatory Savoring: The IPPA World Congress

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I’m flying to Los Angeles tomorrow.  I’m leaving my 2 1/2 year old and my 7 month old (whom I’m still nursing, if that isn’t TMI) and I’m leaving them for four days with my mother-in-law.  And I’m spending a lot of money to go to the 3rd International Positive Psychology Association conference.  (Conferences are expensive!  This one is $740. Not to mention the added lectures and workshops that you can go to before and after the event.) But it will be worth it.  I’ve been to the first two and each time I’m learned as much as going to a graduate level course and made good connections (and gotten jobs) from/with the people I’ve met. The IPPA website as such press worthy quotes as:  ”Presentations, workshops, and poster sessions will feature leading-edge research, as well as applications of positive… …

Book review: The Essential Performance Review Handbook

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At times, here at Positive Business DC, we like to review books that can help cultivate positive business.  This one is by a local writer and consultant, Sharon Armstrong. “It’s not supposed to be this way,” writes HR specialist Sharon Armstrong in the introduction to her new book, “The Essential Performance Review Handbook: A Quick and Handy Resource for Any Manager or HR Professional,” (www.theessentialperformancereviewhandbook.com). Although performance reviews are actually less popular than a trip to the dentist for most supervisors (see that study below), the good news is that Sharon Armstrong — the woman who began her career in Human Resources in 1985 as a recruiter/trainer in a large Manhattan law firm and launched her own HR consulting business in the year 2000 — has found a way to take the pain out of the process. Her new book offers… …

Cognitive Bias: Confirmation Bias

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Part 3 in our “Cognitive Bias and Leadership” Series “Don’t believe everything you think.” On our January 16, 2013 blog, we 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 third of our series, I am going to talk about Confirmation Bias – the tendency to give more weight to information that confirms we already believe to be true. Fact is, we actually seek information or evidence to confirm our existing beliefs.  And as we hear information that confirms what we believe, we feel good – rewarded and validated. As it turns out, the confirmation bias is one of the most common cognitive biases.  And it’s not hard to see why.  We like to be right.  And having to… …

Can Appreciative Inquiry Transform Cincinnati into a Strengths-Based City?

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I didn’t think much about going to Cincinnati, to be honest with you.  I went because David Cooperrider (the creator of Appreciative Inquiry (AI) and a Zen-like figure in Organizational Development) is a vanguard in the organizational development world.  I went because I wanted to see Appreciative Inquiry on a large scale.  I did not go because I wanted to be moved to tears (or singing, as the case may be).  But Cincinnati moved me.  The AI process moved me…and I’ve been through it before. For those of you dictionary lovers here is a recap of what the name means: Appreciate: Recognize the quality, significance or magnitude of; To be fully aware of or sensitive to; To raise in value or price Inquiry: The process of gathering information for the purpose of learning and changing; A close examination in a quest for truth I’ve written… …

Join us on April 24th for Change is Not a Dirty Word by Shannon Polly

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On April 24, our own Shannon Polly, co-founder of Positive Business DC (PBDC), will be presenting Change is Not a Dirty Word, the 3rd in our speaker series Well-being in The Workplace.  Shannon (@ShannonPolly) is one of only approximately 300 people in world who has received a Master of Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania under Dr. Martin Seligman and has been an assistant instructor in the MAPP program at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a contributor to the book, Positive Psychology at Work, has developed curriculum for the higher education version of the movie, Happy and has been a facilitator for the Master Resiliency Training (MRT) program for the U.S. Army. Shannon will be sharing the methodology associated with positive organizational change known as Appreciative Inquiry (AI) as well as recent insights from AI Summits in Cleveland and Cincinnati.  Interestingly, for… …

Natural Artistry Photography Implements Positive Practices

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When we launched Positive Business DC, Donna, Shannon and I wanted to create a resource to help people raise their level of well-being by providing evidence-based research in positive psychology and neuroleadership. And so, we launched the Well-being in The Workplace speaker series. Last week, I featured Natural Artistry in my weekly column for Modern DC Business magazine. As Meetup members Andrew Murdock, Kimba Green, and Cindy Alderton shared their story, I realized that our Meetups are having a much more profound impact than perhaps we realized. Andrew is the owner of Natural Artistry Photography in Frederick, MD. His style strays from the conventional by focusing in on moments when people connect on a fundamentally human level. The vulnerability he’s able to capture and the stories his photos tell reach out and grab your attention. He took photos of the… …

Webinar for Coaches and Career Counselors

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Shannon Polly, one of our co-founders, and Louisa Jewell are hosting one of their most popular Webinar series starting next week. Both women, from Accentuate Consulting, are MAPPs, holding the Master of Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania.  This makes them two of only a few hundred people who hold this degree. The series, titled “Positive Psychology for Career Counselors and Coaches,” will offer Career Counselors and Coaches practical techniques to incorporate positive psychology into their practices and apply it to help their clients flourish.  If you haven’t met Shannon, as a friend and co-founder myself, I can tell you that Shannon is a very engaging facilitator.  That is often the takeaway from those who see her and Louisa in action. The Webinar will include the latest techniques including how to help your clients utilize what we know… …

Cognitive Bias: Negativity Bias

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On our December 10, 2012 blog, we 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 leadership is about good decision making so we really wanted to expand on different biases. In the second of our series, I am going to talk about Negativity Bias – the tendency to give more weight to negative information than positive information. Continue reading →

It’s already February. Do you know where your New Year’s Resolutions are?

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Shannon Polly, MAPP, asks us where are goals are now that we are 6 weeks past our New Year’s resolution. She also recaps our recent Meetup with our Speaker, Caroline Miller, on Creating Your Best LIfe. Continue reading →

Inspired to Set Unrealistic Goals

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The people who attended the January 31 Positive Business DC Meetup at Teqcorner understand why unrealistic goals produce far greater fulfillment than the goals we typically set. Caroline Adams Miller gave several very powerful examples of how unrealistic goals are not only attainable—they also set the stage for achieving remarkable things that change a person’s life in unexpected and ultra rewarding ways. Surprisingly, only 20% of people set challenging goals. How does Caroline approach goal setting differently from other life coaches? For one thing, she holds a MAPP (Master’s in Applied Positive Psychology) from the University of Pennsylvania. Caroline was one of the first people to go through the program. In doing so, she conducted the foundational research on the intersection of goals and happiness. Caroline discovered that a lot of what we’ve previously been led to believe about goals… …

Cognitive Bias and Leadership Introduction and Overview

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Part 1 of our “Cognitive Bias and Leadership” Series What is cognitive bias and what the heck does it have to do with leadership? A cognitive bias is our tendency to filter information through our own past experiences, likes, and dislikes. This means we have a tendency to make judgments that are faulty…and faulty in predictable ways. Of course anything that affects our judgments and decision making will ultimately affect our ability to effectively lead. In this blog, I am going to give a quick definition of some of the cognitive biases to be aware of in the workplace. The following could significantly impact on your organization: Negativity Bias – the tendency to give more weight to negative information than positive information. Confirmation Bias – the tendency to search for or interpret information that confirms what we already think or… …

Procrastinating on Happiness

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“Never do today what you can put off ’til tomorrow.” —Aaron Burr, Jr. I know a bunch of procrastinators that seem to live by Burr’s words. And yet, why would anyone want to delay leading a happy, fulfilling life? It turns out we don’t put off achieving happiness intentionally, but it is a by-product of the all too common ‘I’ll be happy when’  mindset. You know, when people think that they’ll achieve a greater level of satisfaction when they: Get married Find a boyfriend/girlfriend Receive a much anticipated promotion Lose weight… The list goes on. Also known as the arrival fallacy, this mindset actually produces much less satisfaction than expected because people have primed themselves for the achievement and it is already factored into their general state of happiness. When a person hits the longed-for target, they realize there’s something else… …

Attitude Drives Self-fulfilling Prophesies

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A recent article by Harvard Business Review gives advice about how to keep one’s preconceptions from skewing decisions. According to the article, six behaviors bias a person’s worldview. In particular, confirmation bias reaffirms snap judgments to create self-fulfilling prophesies. If you have a positive outlook on life, then you see endless possibilities and very likely exhibit the drive to achieve incredible accomplishments. You make up your mind and go for things that seem beyond the reach of other people. In contrast, the Eyeores of the world fence themselves in behind self-imposed limitations—and therefore severely limit their potential. They say you can’t teach old dogs new tricks. But, the science shows that we can actually improve our positivity factor by adjusting how we react to situations. Over time, you can train yourself to have a more positive emotional response when something… …

Using Strengths to The Point of Weakness

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Because people tend to hire others like themselves, the recruitment process leads to organizational imbalance unless the hiring manager acknowledges and curbs this natural, human bias. A company that has too many people with the same strengths unintentionally creates a blind side (or two) and lacks the strength needed to become successful in the marketplace, much less a market leader Continue reading →

Positively Profitable– Be Happy, Work Better

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If you want to increase profits, you might want to check out the field of positive psychology. Continue reading →