Wellness Wednesday – “Focusing On The Positive”
Continuing last week’s Wellness Wednesday, I would like to share a few additional thoughts about improving your overall well-being through enhancing Positive Emotions (“P” in the PERMA Well-Being Model). The idea of the “pursuit of happiness” is enshrined as a national value in the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Trying to achieve happiness by optimizing every part of your life for goal achievement is a common habit in Western culture. Get the right job, house, car, etc. However, chasing these things can keep us so busy and distracted that we struggle to be present today.
Yet, we often find ourselves most happy by slowing down and being present. The meal we savor, walking in nature, relaxing with a coffee in the sun; these simple moments are where we commonly find ourselves at peace. And their joyous effects aren’t limited to the moments in which we experience them. They can shift our perspective for the whole day, sometimes longer. So, while pursuing meaningful goals is critical for our long-term happiness, putting everything aside and making space for these small moments every day is essential. Elenor Roosevelt once said, “Happiness isn’t a goal… it’s a by-product of a life well lived.”
Even Jesus emphasizes the importance of not only focusing on life here and now today but also making sure to look at life through a higher Kingdom perspective when He taught, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? . . . But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:25-27, 33)
One of the challenges we face in experiencing more Positive Emotions in our life, which in turn can enhance our overall well-being, is that our brains are wired 3:1 for negative thoughts than positive thoughts. Because humans have an inherent negativity bias, we tend to focus disproportionately on adverse events in our lives and overlook everyday positive experiences. Over time, this can significantly undermine our emotional state and well-being.
This week I’d like to share a helpful tool to help you focus on the good and the blessings in your life. The G.L.A.D. technique counters this tendency to focus on the negative by giving people a structured way to be more mindful of the positive they experience throughout the day. G.L.A.D. stands for Gratitude, Learning, Accomplishment, and Delight. This simple exercise also encourages people to be more present and reflective, contributing to more significant Positive Emotions in their life. Use the following link to check out this G.L.A.D. well-being tool [Link]. In closing, may we all head this encouragement of the Apostle Paul, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” (Phil 4:8)
