Reflecting on the last year and wondering what the rest of this year holds, I began thinking about what makes our life more joyous, purposeful, and fulfilled. Did you know that the science of wellbeing is an area of research?
Dr Martin Seligman is a leading American psychologist who developed five simple and fundamental pillars for our wellbeing. According to him, we can gain greater happiness, wellbeing, and accomplishment through conscious choices and actions.
“When we take time to notice the things that go right – it means we are getting a lot of little rewards throughout the day.” – Dr Martin Seligman
The five ways to flourish using the science of wellbeing can be remembered with the acronym ‘PERMA’ – Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Achievement. Watch my video about the PERMA model here. Let’s take a look at what each of the pillars mean.
1) Positive emotion: Being aware of our positive and negative emotions
Our actions and behaviours create emotions like love, excitement, joy and peace. These positive emotions help us reduce what’s known in psychology as the ‘negativity bias’ – they help us change our focus from what’s going wrong in our lives to what’s going right.
2) Engagement: Being mindful or being in the zone without judgement
We have all been ‘in the zone’ – when playing a game or musical instrument, watching a film, working on a passion project, or attending a concert for example. We are totally immersed in an activity and nothing else around us matters. Research has shown that when we are in the zone or in a flow state, completing a task with full engagement, we release endorphins and dopamine. These happy chemicals lead to positive emotions and optimism.
3) Relationships: Nurturing healthy and supportive relationships
Cultivating and nurturing healthy and supportive relationships in our life gives us a support network. Humans are social creatures, we are meant to support, nurture, interact, and engage with each other. Research indicates that human suffering can be reduced through meaningful and supportive relationships because fundamentally, relationships increase our sense of belonging, genuine connection, and purpose in life. For the good of our wellbeing, we need to be mindful that we cultivate authentic relationships and we let go of those that are not nurturing or supportive.
4) Meaning: Adding meaning to our life
Meaning is often talked about in terms of having a higher purpose. We think of achieving something big or substantial, like changing the world. But that’s not what meaning is. Having a meaningful life can be anything from making someone smile, running a marathon for a charity, to volunteering. Meaning is very personal to each of us.
“Psychology should be just as concerned with building strength as with repairing damage.” – Dr Martin Seligman
5) Achievement: Knowing our personal values
Having goals to achieve, make us aware of our personal aspirations and values. When we work consistently towards our goals we achieve our full human potential and feel a sense of authentic achievement leading to improved wellbeing.
Finally, as the phrase goes, happiness is not absence of problems but our ability to deal with them. It’s about our mindset and about our response to problems. And if we are able to cultivate positive emotions and manage negative emotions, have genuine relationships, have meaningful goals, purpose, and take sustained action toward achieving them, we can function well, improve our overall wellbeing, and even flourish.
If you found this blog on five ways to flourish using the science of wellbeing helpful please share it with anyone who would also find it useful. If you are in need of private therapy sessions, contact me to find out more.
Sources:
Kabat-Zinn, J., 2004. Wherever You Go, There You Are. 6th ed.
Dr. Martin Seligman – Psychology in a Pandemic
