How to Thrive: Optimism and Creating Jolts of Joy

"When we feel a moment of hope, pride, love, serenity, gratitude, inspiration... we actually open up and quite literally. We broaden our peripheral vision and expand our brain."

In the 6th episode of our new weekly podcast series "How To Thrive," co-hosts Marie and Ellen explore the fifth "beam" of the BEACON model: Optimism.

To recap, the first four beams are: Belonging, Engagement, Accountability, and Compassion. They are discussed in detail in the past 4 episodes of season 11. In each episode, Marie and Ellen talk about the science behind each beam and key you in on how each of these can help you thrive as they share practical applications and real-life experiences.

In this exquisitely optimistic episode, Ellen and Marie talk about:

• How emotions impact our brain and therefore our behaviour
• Are some people more wired towards optimism than others?
• How we can rewire our brains for a more positive disposition
• How our brain is hardwired to broaden, build, and perform better with positive emotions
• The neurological benefits of optimism and why is it important to notice the moments that give us a jolt of joy
• Practical tips to increase your positive vs negative emotions ratio

Your quest for this week: Create a "joy jar" by putting in a list of things that can help uplift your mood. You can enlist the help of your family, friends, or co-workers in this quest. The more ideas there are, the more opportunities there are to experience and share positive moments.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Marie's website - needtoseesomeone.com and resources here.

Charles Richard Snyder's Hope Theory

Dr. Barbara Fredrickson's Broaden-and-Build Theory of Positive Emotions

Seligman's PERMA+ Model - a foundational model in positive psychology

Jimmy Rees' Meanwhile in Australia

Little Lessons for Leaders Masterclass: Creating Hard Stops on Meeting Creep and Zoom Gloom. Ellen's new online program for leaders grappling with hybrid teams in a post-COVID world is now open. Register here.

Feedback? We want to hear from you. Email podcast@potential.com.au

Want to hear more? It's all at potential.com.au/podcast

Check out our Potential Psychology YouTube Channel here