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Hi everyone,
Todays blog looks at an in-depth study of Character Strengths and Traits
carried out by 55 distinguished social scientists, available at
www.viacharacter.org. The study identifies 24 Character Strengths which we all
possess to a greater or lesser degree. They are universal across all aspects of life
including work, school, family, friends, and community. Some examples of these
traits are kindness, perseverance, hope, gratitude, teamwork, and all of them
can be improved with practise. Click on the link:
http://www.viacharacter.org/www/Portals/0/Poster.pdf to see a poster of all
24 positive traits.
This study is based on Positive Psychology which focuses on whats right with
you, your positive traits rather than focus on whats wrong with you, your
negative traits. If you have ten minutes to spare take a look at these two
excellent videos explaining Positive Psychology and The Science of Character:
Now that you have a better understanding of positive psychology and the
science of character, lets look at a number of ways in which you can develop
your positive traits and virtues.
The website provides a number of Suggested Actions in which you can try to
exercise a particular character strength. Click on the link:
http://www.viacharacter.org/resources/ways-to-use-via-character-strengths/
and you will also see a list of some songs and movies that illustrate each trait.
Try to implement one or two of the suggested actions to help build your chosen
character strength.
THE 7 GAME CHANGERS OF SUCCESS IN WORK, SCHOOL, RELATIONSHIPS AND LIFE IN GENERAL
If you watched Video 2 you will have seen the 7 character strengths which have been highlighted
as key to success in academia, work, school and your profession. In addition to the character
strengths below are similar words or synonyms that describe the same concept.
KEY CHARACTER STRENGTH
1. ZEST
SYNONYMS
ENTHUSIASM / EXCITEMENT / ZEAL / VITALITY / ACTIVATED / ENERGISED
2. PERSEVERANCE
3. SELF-REGULATION
4. HOPE
5. GRATITUDE
6. SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE
7. CURIOSITY
Another two concepts which do not get a mention are relaxation and focus. Here at Gateway we
believe these are very important to maintain and improve your physical and mental well-being.
8. RELAX
9. FOCUS
Words have creative power. Whether talking to yourself or others you can
create negative thinking and feelings or positive thinking and feelings. The selftalk you use consistently throughout the day, week and month will become a
habit and alter your attitude for better or worse. Use your words to help you
and not hinder you, below are some guidelines for the use of your positive selftalk.
(Although this blog deals specifically with words, your thoughts can be such
things as an image, a sound, a physical sensation, a future vision, a memory, or
just an intuition or gut instinct about something.)
1. Mean it
When you use positive self-talk its important, when you say it, you mean it! If
you are going through the motions and not applying your self-talk with
meaning and conviction then it will be much less effective. Its essential to
really believe what you say to yourself and MEAN IT!
Emphasizing what you say is another good way to describe how to apply your
positive thoughts. When you emphasize something you add extra intensity (high
or low) of feeling, acting, and expression. Emphasizing your levels of confidence,
enthusiasm, determination and even relaxation will make these traits more
powerful.
In general positive self-talk is best kept short, simple, and effective. A word,
short phrase, or few sentences can be all thats needed to activate a character
strength and achieve the desired outcome. While there are many things that
can inspire people to show more leadership or perseverance such as a speech or
a movie these lengthy mediums are impractical amidst the daily challenges of
school, work, errands, relationships etc
All the examples of positive self-talk given below are designed to be as short,
simple and effective as possible. Also self-talk is very personal and what works
for one person may not work for another. The aim is to find the words that
resonate with you, words that hit the sweet spot and create a very powerful
effect. Other advantages of keeping it short and sweet include making it easier
to memorise and quicker to recall in times of need.
1. MEAN IT
2. KEEP IT SHORT AND SWEET
3. PRACTISE PRACTISE PRACTISE
SYNONYMS
ENTHUSIASM / EXCITEMENT / ZEAL / VITALITY / ACTIVATED / ENERGISED
Use your zest cues when you want to be more activated, energised and
enthusiastic in work and play.
Enthusiasm is key to success, rise up and attack the day with enthusiasm
Develop a habit of vigour and vitality
Approach situations as an exciting challenge
Release the past and pursue your victory with enthusiasm
I am excited
I am buzzing
I am bubbling
I am bursting with energy
2. PERSERVERANCE
Use your perseverance cues when you want to be more persistent, determined
and gritty to overcome a stubborn challenge.
I am driven
I am assertive
I am persistent
I am full of steely determination
3. SELF-REGULATION
Use your self-regulation cues when you want to be more disciplined, composed,
and in control of your urges, impulses and emotions.
I am cool
I am calm
I am ice cold
I am in total control of my impulses and emotions
4. HOPE
Use your hope cues when you want to be more hopeful about the future,
confident in your ability, and optimistic that things will work out for the better.
According to your faith be it done unto you
Act confident, put your head up, chest out and shoulders back
Maintain a Can Do attitude and believe in your ability to succeedI can
do it.I can do it.I can do it.
Be expectant, hopeful and optimistic. Expectancy keeps a spring in your
step and helps you to see a brighter future. Train your mind to expect the
best and live with expectancy.
I am hopeful
I am optimistic
I am confident
I am a can do person
I am proud of who I am
I am good enough
I am talented
I am valuable
To show you how you might apply your positive self-talk we will look at an
example of someone failing an exam. If the outcome of an exam (or any task,
project, or relationship) is not as expected this can be the source of a lot of
negative voices which may be very distressing for the individual.
1. Pay attention to what you are saying and feeling
First, the person needs to notice what they are saying to themselves and the
consequent feelings of low self-esteem and uncertainty this may be causing.
Examples include:
X
X
X
X
Im useless
Ill never pass that exam
I cant do it
Ill never be any good at anything
A lot of the time a bad result or negative situation can spark unwanted selftalk and feelings which the person is not fully aware of. As he or she
continues to berate themselves, this way of thinking becomes a habit and
the person ends up being stuck in a mental rut.
2. Replace negative thoughts with positive thoughts of confidence and high
self-esteem
Second, the person needs to change the script and respond with positive
thoughts like:
Use your gratitude cues when you want to be more grateful and thankful for the
blessings and people that you already have in your life.
I am fit
I am strong
I am healthy
I am lucky
6. SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE
Use your social intelligence cues when you want to be more socially savvy and
understand others.
I will pay more attention to what others are saying and feeling
Understanding what motivates people is important
I will try to find out what makes other tick
The more sociable I am, the more I will develop my skill of understanding
others
I am socially intelligent
I am capable of fitting in
I am aware of the feelings of others
I am empathetic
7. CURIOSITY
Use your curiosity cues when you want to be more engaged in different
projects, subjects, and places.
New experiences, learning and adventures broaden my horizons
Staying interested about all the different aspects of my favourite topics
will improve my knowledge and understanding
I am eager to try new activities, methods and designs that are different
from the norm
I like to explore subjects and discover different ways of doing things
I am curious
I am interested
I am fascinated
I am on an adventure
8. RELAX
Use your relaxation cues when you want to be more relaxed during your down
time so you can fully recover and recuperate.
I am relaxed
I am taking it easy
I am doing nothing
I am resting and recovering
9. FOCUS
Use your focus cues when you want to be more focused on what you have to do
and on your thoughts and feelings. A better awareness of what you are thinking,
feeling and doing will allow you to be more pro-active about where changes
need to be made to become more positive. Also it is useful to be aware of how
your thoughts and feelings affect your physical sensations and consequent
actions.
I am focused
I am paying attention
I am mindful of my thoughts, feelings, and behaviours
I am re-focusing on the positive
The above list is just a small sample of the unlimited range of phrases and
affirmations you can integrate into your daily life. You can choose one, adapt it,
combine it with another, or make up your own affirmation which means more
to you. Your self-talk does not have to represent a particular trait, it can be
anything and everything that will help you think, feel, and act more positively.
Creating affirmations about a particular situation can help you to positively reframe what has happened or is about to happen so that you maintain a much
healthier cycle of thinking and feeling. Re-framing (finding the silver lining) or
viewing situations from a different perspective can be a very effective CBT
technique which can prevent you from being stuck in the same old mental
ruts.
To finish the blog is a concise and holistic approach to happiness and well-being
by Dr Alan Carr, lecturer in psychology at University College Dublin. His
summary can be found in his book: POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, The Science of
Happiness and Human Strengths, 2nd Edition:
The results of scientific research point to three reliable ways to find happiness:
1.
2.
3.