UNIT 1: MARTIN SELIGMAN’S PERMA MODEL IN MANAGING THE SELF

Positive psychology is the study of happiness, flourishing, and what makes life worth living.
Positive psychology has spurred research in a variety of areas, such as happiness,
optimism, self- esteem, well-being, motivation, flow, strengths and virtues, hope,
resilience, mindfulness, and positive thinking.

Martin Seligman, one of the proponents of Positive Psychology, developed a five-core

element of psychological well-being and happiness, called the PERMA Model. Seligman
believes that these five elements can help people work towards a life of fulfillment,
happiness, and meaning. It is anchored on the Well-Being Theory which emphasizes the
goal of reaching well-being. The five factors of well-being are (P)ositive emotion,
(E)ngagement, (R)elationships, (M)eaning and purpose, and (A)ccomplishment (PERMA).
Here, character strengths are relevant in order to maximize well-being obtained from
each factor. Maximum well-being leads to a state of flourishing, which is described as a
state of thriving, of being full of vitality, and prospering as individuals and as a group.

Positive Emotion is about experiencing happiness, optimism, joy, zest, amusement, hope,
interest, love, gratitude, compassion, kindness, pride, and savoring good times. It does
not, however, only mean the ability to smile, but rather focuses more on the ability to be
optimistic.

Part of our capacity to experience positive emotions is genetic, and there are indeed
people who are what we term, “masayahin”, but all of us have the ability to purposefully
experience more positive emotion.

How can you build positive emotions? You may want to try some of these:

• Keep a gratitude journal: Everyday, write down 5 things you are grateful for. It may
be a person, object, pet, experience, event, your own physical characteristics,
talents, etc.
• Do random acts of kindness: It could be as simple as picking up litter and throwing
it in the right place, letting someone go ahead of you in a queue, sending a thank
you message, etc. A simple act of kindness goes a long way.
• Spend time with people who matter: Despite your busy schedule, set some time
to catch up with family, friends, people you have not spoken to for a while. Do this
without the distraction of your cellphone/gadget.
• Surround yourself with “real” friends: Doing so enables you to build a resilience
circle, where friends can energize and make you feel renewed during down times.
 • What else can you do?

ENGAGEMENT AND FLOW

Engagement refers to “being one” with a certain activity, that you lose track of time
because of being absorbed in it. It is about doing things you enjoy, things that make you
a better person, things that promote good. Being engaged in these activities leads us to
be so focused that time seems to stop – what is referred to as “flow”. According to
Professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the leading researcher in the field, flow is experienced
when our greatest strengths correspond to the challenges we face.

Do you want to achieve engagement and flow? Try these:

• Identify your strengths: What are you good at? Where do you excel? In what
instances do people compliment you?
• Be mindful: Practice mindfulness techniques that can help you be in the moment
and limit distractions so you can fully focus on what you are doing.
• Savor the moment: Be aware of your thoughts, notice how you are feeling, and
take note of your bodily sensations and reactions.
• Have a “buddy”: Sometimes, it helps to have someone who shares the same
interests as you. This can motivate you, as well as provide necessary feedback for
you to improve and develop in a particular skill or task.
• What activity engages you?

RELATIONSHIPS

As humans, we are “social beings”. We constantly build connections with others and
establish positive relationships with our family, friends, classmates, and others. This is
significant and relevant to be able to spread and receive love and joy. Building
relationships with others enable us to feel loved, supported, and valued. Our well-being
is positively affected when we have good relationships with people.

How can you build good relationships? Consider these:

• Re-establish relationships with people you have lost touch with: Think of those you
have not spoken to in a while, and find ways to reach out to them.
 • Give time: Create time to see (or call, text, message) friends to maintain your
current relationships.
• Show positivity: People enjoy being around those who are happy, optimistic, and
hopeful.
• Develop your listening skills: When talking to someone, make an effort to really
listen to, and not just hear, what the person is saying. Make it about them, and not
always about you.
• When was the last time you talked with your parents?

MEANING

Meaning is about belonging to and serving something you think is better than the self. It
is feeling and knowing the value of what we are doing, and is an intrinsic human quality.
This means that to find meaning, we need to be able to feel a sense of fulfillment and
satisfaction. Having meaning in life is also relevant to having and feeling a sense of
purpose. This experience is different for each and every person. It is dependent on what
we are passionate about. Meaningful experiences can be created each time you
choose to make an experience meaningful.

How can you build meaning in your life?

• Discover meaning: Go back to our discussion on Frankl’s ways to discover

meaning. Which of these have you already done?
• Find your passion: What interests you and makes you happy? What do you enjoy
doing that makes you a better person, and helps others as well?
• Reflect on your values: What do you value in life? How are these reflected in the
things you do?
• Do something for someone: Make it a habit to be selfless, and do something to
make someone feel good.

How do you make your experiences meaningful ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Accomplishment is a positive experience. It is the sense of satisfaction at the end of a

process. When we work towards our goals and are able to achieve them, the end result
would be the feeling of being “accomplished”. Accomplishments give meaning to all
performed tasks, as well as to all realistic goals set. When we experience a sense of
accomplishment, it means that we have worked towards and reached our goals. It
means we have overcome barriers and surpassed challenges. This contributes much to
our well-being, and we are able to say with confidence and pride, “I did it…I did it well!”.
How can you feel a sense of accomplishment? Let’s take a look at these:

• Set goals: Set goals that are SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic,
time bound) as these are more likely to be achieved.
• Celebrate success: No matter how “small” the achievement, celebrate it and
savor it. It is a positive experience which should not be taken for granted. Reward
yourself for all your successes.
• Be patient and persevere: Remember that there is a right time for everything, and
you will “get there” soon enough. In the meantime, keep going and keep trying.
• What was your most recent accomplishment?

UNIT 2: GRIT AND GROWTH MINDSET

GRIT: WHEN TOUGHNESS IS WELLNESS

WHAT IS GRIT?

• working strenuously toward challenges,

• maintaining effort and interest over years despite failure, adversity, and plateaus
in progress
• approaches achievement as a marathon
• advantage is STAMINA
• disappointment or boredom may lead most people to change trajectory
• the gritty individual stays the course (Duckworth et al, 2007).

What are the psychological assets of gritty people?

1. Interest: passion begins with intrinsically enjoying what you do

• Interests are not discovered through introspection. You have to find out what
you are interested in or develop an interest in an otherwise uninteresting task. What
is important is you find out the “why” in doing so.

2. Practice: daily discipline of trying to do things better than you did yesterday
Clearly defined stretch goal.

• Full concentration and effort

• Immediate and informative feedback
• Repetition with reflection and refinement
 3. Purpose: Have the conviction that your work matters.
4. Hope: learn to keep going even when things are difficult
“Fall seven, rise eight.” So the saying goes. If you cannot work on a textual lesson,
find another way of learning it by googling a related video clip tutorial. Sometimes,
engaging our other senses (if not visual, make it auditory, etc.) to learn a subject
matter can make us more hopeful because we find results in other venues of
learning.

THE GROWTH MINDSET

GRIT AND MEANTAL HEALTH Research findings show:

• Increased self-control, better mental well-being, life satisfaction, feelings of worth,

resilience and growth mindset and lower levels of perceived stress were associated with
higher levels of grit. In addition, grittier individuals believe that their skills and abilities will
improve with hard work. (Kannangara, et al., 2018)
• Lower grit levels were found among University students with self-reported anxiety and
depression. (Tuckwiller & Dardick, 2018)

• Gritty individuals: “life is meaningful” Maintain perseverance and passion in order to

achieve their long-term goals. (Masumari, et al., 2018)