Positivity – it’s more than Smiley Faces and “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” slogans. And it is a lot more than encouraging people to put on a fake air of cheerfulness (“Shiny Happy People”).
During the past twenty years, Positive Psychology has advanced tremendously as a science and we have learned a lot about ourselves. Key among these findings – people who have more positivity in their lives:
*Perform better at work
*Have more fulfillment and satisfaction in life
*Have better health
These are pretty important goals for most of us.
This is the first of a three blog series about Positivity, mostly focusing on findings from a great book of that same name by Dr. Barbara Fredrickson.
Positivity does not mean being constantly happy or joyful. In fact, one of Dr. Fredrickson’s key research findings is that our RATIO of positive to negative emotional experiences is what puts us in that sweet spot of higher performance, better health, and satisfaction in life. Her research shows that a 3:1 ratio is the tipping point. You can go to her web site here to take a free assessment to score your ratio.
Once a person can get to this 3:1 ratio tipping point – and stay there – it creates a virtuous cycle of positivity which is reinforced. Among other things, this helps us to bounce back from adversity more effectively.
So how do you build your Positivity Ratio?
Two big steps include neutralizing the negativity in your life (you can’t eliminate negativity, and you really would not want to) and then building more positive experiences for yourself.
For more details on each step, stay tuned for the next two blog installments (or go out and buy the book if you can’t wait!).
