+1 #280: How To Flourish

Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another Optimize plus one. Martin Seligman is basically the godfather of the positive psychology movement. He's written a number of seminal books on the science of well being. When Seligman first kicked off the positive psychology party, he wrote a book called Authentic Happiness. A decade later, he updated his thinking with a book called Flourish. Here's a short story. A good life isn't just about maintaining a positive emotional state, but represented by that big yellow smiley face. A good life is about moving toward your highest potential flourishing. And that doesn't always feel like sunshine and rainbows. Of course, the ancient Greeks made a similar distinction with their two different types of hedonia and eudaimonia. We'll save that for another discussion. So Seligman tells us there are five key facets to to the science of flourishing. He captures them in a handy dandy acronym. PERMA P E R M A. Here's a quick look. P is for positive emotion. Although experiencing a permanent never ending positive state isn't necessary or possible, having a consistent level of positive emotional affect is a key aspect of well being. So smile. Enjoy your life. E is for engagement. You want to feel great as you flourish. Engage with your life. Create more and more moments of flow as you stretch toward goals that matter and give your best self to the moment. Want to feel really good? Engage your core virtues. The whole science of well being is grounded on the universal virtues of all major religious and and philosophical traditions. The R is for relationships. Science is unequivocal. Healthy relationships are a core component to a healthy flourishing life. Invest your time here. Give someone a hug today and tell them how much they mean to you. The M is for meaning. We need to have a connection to a deep sense of purpose in our lives. So what deeply inspires you? Bring that to mind each day and make your life an expression of those values. A is for achievement. You want to flourish. Then we've got to stretch ourselves with goals that challenge us and experience that joy of achievement. So what's firing you up these days? Are you creating micro wins and celebrating the process? Positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning and achievement. Where are you strong? Celebrate that. And what can use a little work? Plus wanted here's to flourishing. Isn't it a bit odd that we went from math to science to history but somehow missed the class on how to live? For some wacky reason, optimal living 101 never made the schedule. Of course it's too late to go back and change that and you're too busy to read full time to catch up. But if you're like us, you're all about optimizing your life so you can actualize your potential. So imagine this. Imagine having someone read the best books on how to optimize your life and pull out the big ideas that can really change your life. You know those sections? You underline an asterisk and mark all up. Then imagine that guy me connecting those awesome ideas to other great books and helping you actually apply the wisdom to your life today. Well, that's what I do with something we call Philosopher's Notes where I've distilled hundreds of great books into 20 minute super practical summaries. Then imagine me taking the absolute best big ideas from those great books and sharing them with you in hour long Optimal Living 101 classes on everything from productivity, purpose and confidence to nutrition, goal setting and conquering procrastination. Helping you optimize every facet of your life so you can actualize your potential. You've got a personal trainer. I'm kind of like your personal philosopher. Ancient wisdom, modern science and practical tools. That's what our optimized membership program is all about. If you're feeling it, we'd love to have you join us.