Making Positive Psychology Work

Dr. Suzy Green is a Clinical and Coaching Psychologist – and Founder & CEO of The Positivity Institute, a positively deviant organization dedicated to the research and application of Positive Psychology for life, school, and work. She is a leader in the complementary fields of Coaching Psychology and Positive Psychology, was the recipient of an International Positive Psychology Fellowship Award, has lectured on Applied Positive Psychology as a Senior Adjunct Lecturer in the Coaching Psychology Unit, at the University of Sydney for ten years, and is an Honorary Vice President of the International Society for Coaching Psychology. On top of all of that, Suzy has just released her brand new book called – The Positivity Prescription.

In this week's podcast, we explore what 'wellbeing coaching' is and how we can make this more accessible in workplaces.

Connect with Suzy Green:

• http://www.thepositivityinstitute.com.au/

• [02:42] - Suzy shares what wellbeing coaching is and how it differs from other types of coaching.
• [04:39] - Suzy paints a picture of what a wellbeing coaching experience might be like.
• [06:33] - Suzy explains what makes coaching particularly effective when it comes to improving people's wellbeing.
• [08:50] - Suzy highlights what might be holding back workplaces from engaging wellbeing coaching.
• [11:10] - Suzy how we might make coaching more accessible to workplaces.
• [13:19] - Suzy discusses the questions and cautions we should be considering when it comes to offering group coaching.
• [16:05] - Suzy shares the three Ms for building positivity.
• [18:04] - Suzy shares practical ways to enhance our mindfulness, mindset, and mood.
• [21:12] - Suzy enters the lightning round.

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor
• The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris & Steven C. Hayes PhD

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Suzy!

Al Comeaux is a former executive at Travelocity, GE, American airlines. As a senior leader, Al has championed change across a range of workplaces and undertaken a 20-year journey researching why so many change efforts fail and what's needed for success. Al is the founder of Primed For Change, a disruptive project to prepare leaders to take organizations successfully through change, and this week he has released a new book called Change Management.

In this episode, we explore how senior leaders think about change in workplaces and how they can balance being SMART with taking an approach that wins people's HEARTS.

Connect with Al Comeaux:

• https://alcomeaux.com/

• [02:58] - Al explains what most often takes leaders by surprise when it comes to trying to successfully create change in workplaces.
• [06:23] - Al helps us explore if leaders should be more focused on understanding the problems or the opportunities for change in their organization.
• [07:44] - Al offers tips for helping leaders to consistently explain the opportunity for change across their workplace, whilst allowing teams to make the change personally meaningful.
• [09:43] - Al offers guidance on when leaders should try a top-down versus open source approach to leading change.
• [14:52] - Al provides examples of how leaders can be SMART and have HEART when it comes to leading change.
• [18:24] - Al offers examples leaders model the change consistently.
• [22:31] - Al offers some tips for turning around the change cynics.

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Al!

Mandy O'Neill, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Management at the George Mason University School of Business and a Senior Scientist at the University Center for the Advancement of Wellbeing. Mandy holds a doctorate in Organizational Behavior from Stanford University Graduate School of Business where she was a National Science Foundation graduate fellow and is an expert on organizational culture, immersions in the workplace, and women's careers.

Mandy consults and conducts academic research across a wide range of organizations, including Fortune 500 corporations, global technology firms, major medical centers, and emergency response teams. Her work has been published in a variety of scholarly and practitioner journals, including Administrative Science Quarterly, Academy of Management Journal, Fast Company, Wall Street Journal, Business Insider, and the Harvard Business Review.

In this episode, we look at the headlines of the Wellbeing Lab research from the US and the importance of a culture of companionate love in workplaces.

Connect with Mandy O'Neill:

• https://mason.gmu.edu/~ooneill/#/

• [03:50] - Mandy shares an overview of the most recent Wellbeing Lab research results from the US.
• [11:23] - Mandy explains what companionate love is and the impact it has on workplaces.
• [14:28] - Mandy explains the difference between cognitive and emotional culture.
• [17:28] - Mandy shares the impact that leaders demonstrating companionate love has in workplaces.
• [21:22] - Mandy suggests ways leaders can build a culture of companionate love.
• [26:08] - Mandy enters the lightning round.

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• https://hbr.org/

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Mandy!

In this week's podcast we explore relational agency, and the four simple skills you can build in your teams to listen deeply, lift each other, and turn challenges around.

Connect with Arne Carlsen:

• https://www.bi.edu/

• [03:25] - Arne explains what relational agency is and why it matters when it comes to our wellbeing and performance at work.
• [07:08] - Arne outlines how we can build more respectful engagement in our relationships at work.
• [10:30] - Arne shares how we can practice generative resistance and healthy conflict with each other at work.
• [13:08] - Arne outlines how liberating laughter compliments generative resistance and how we can create more of it in workplaces.
• [16:27] - Arne offers tips for cultivating psychological safety within ourselves and our relationships.
• [18:46] - Arne explains how the Best Reflected Self exercise can help us discover our strengths and improve our relationships.
• [23:35] - Arne shares how leaders have introduced these relational agency skills successfully to their teams...
• [25:10] - Arne enters the lightning round.

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• Adam Grant's 'Granted' Newsletter
• BJ Miller TED Talk - What Really Matters at the End of Life?
• The Spell of the Sensous by David Abram

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Arne!

In this week's episode, Scott Barry Kaufman talks about his new book, "Transcend: The New Science of Self Actualization" in which he unearths some of Dr. Abraham Maslow's unfinished work. He shares common misconceptions on the hierarchy of needs, how workplaces can support collective actualization, and why it is important to stay positive at this time of COVID 19—even amidst uncertainty or suffering. Scott brings in familiar psychology research to create a case for how leaders can be more enlightened in their approaches.

Connect with Dr. Scott Kaufman:

• https://scottbarrykaufman.com/

• [03:41] - Scott explains Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs theory and why there is a misconception in using the pyramid metaphor.
• [07:09] - Scott explains how we can use the ideas and resources in his book at a time of global pandemic.
• [12:52] - Scott explains how values play a part in creating transcendent workers and workplaces.
• [17:59] - Scott shares how workplaces can help team members create more moments for integration and actualization.
• [22:35] - Scott enters the lightning round.

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• Grit by Angela Duckworth
• Toward a Psychology of Being by Abraham H. Maslow

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Scott!

Warren Nilsson is an associate professor of social innovation at the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business and the faculty associate of the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation. He's also the co-founder of Organisation Unbounded, an international community of inquiry and experimentation, exploring how social purpose organizations can more closely align their internal practices and cultures with their external social change goals. Warren has worked with social purpose organizations in North America, Africa, and South Asia connecting his academic research with practitioner-driven social initiatives.

In this week's podcast, we explore what any workplace can learn from social change organizations about the two unique steps they take to create positive change inside and outside of their workplaces.

Connect with Warren Nilsson:

• https://organizationunbound.org/

• [03:08] - Warren explains how learning to successfully create social change can help to transform any organization.
• [05:22] - Warren shares what his research has been finding to help any workplace create more positive change in the world.
• [07:42] - Warren outlines why workplaces need to work more in the social field if they want to have a positive impact on the world.
• [12:53] - Warren shares how psychological safety and high-quality connections offer practical insights and tools to help us create social fields that help to create social change.
• [15:33] - Warren offers some tips on what the best social purpose organizations do to align their external purpose with the internal ways they bring out the best in their staff.
• [22:54] - Warren explains how workplaces can create cultures of listening and connecting people to what they are feeling.
• [29:17] - Warren explains why scaling questions rather than scaling solutions often offers a more effective pathway for creating social change.
• [35:01] - Warren enters the lightning round.

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• Reinventing Organizations by Frederic Laloux
• I & Thou by Martin Buber
• Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Warren!

Anne is a Change Professional who has managed change programs across multiple industries, from large scale systems implementations through to workplace transformations, with a focus on changing cultures and building internal business change capability. For the last seven years, Anne has been bringing wellbeing into her change programs with fabulous results and has been referred to as "the Magic Maker".

In this week's episode, we explore the practical actions workplaces can be taking to care for their people's wellbeing during a time of disruption and rapid change.

Connect with Anne Lomax:

• Anne Lomax

• [01:50] - Anne shares how the CoVID-19 pandemic impacted Qantas as a workplace.
• [02:24] - Anne's essential first step to supporting people during a disruption.
• [03:23] - Anne's number one priority for worker wellbeing during the CoVID-19 disruption.
• [03:54] - Simple, practical ways to support wellbeing during a disruption.
• [05:51] - What goes into a daily calm session?
• [08:22] - Anne's biggest learning on wellbeing during change.
• [09:19] - The 'new normal' of workplace wellbeing
• [10:19] - Anne enters the lightning round

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• The Pianist of Yarmouk by Aeham Ahmad

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Anna!

Bruce Daisley was previously Twitter's most senior employee outside of the United States in his role as Vice President across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Bruce's passion for improving work led him to create the podcast Eat Sleep Work Repeat on using evidence-based approaches to make work better and he's recently released a book of the same name.

In today's podcast, we explore how leaders can help bring out the best in their teams as more workers suddenly find themselves working remotely.

Connect with Bruce Daisley:

• https://eatsleepworkrepeat.com/

• [02:48] - Bruce shares some of the evidence-based practices that helped him to bring out the best in himself and his teams at Twitter.
• [07:20] - Bruce shares Twitter's invitation to #lovewhereyouwork and why as a leader this became his priority.
• [11:33] - Bruce offers some practical tips for staying physically distanced but socially connected with each other at work.
• [14:54] - Bruce explains how we can manage the stress that comes with working more remotely.
• [18:07] - Bruce offers some examples of how teams can build and maintain psychological safety with each other.
• [22:55] - Bruce shares why positive effect and laughter helps teams to be in sync with each other and what we can do to create more laughter our workplaces.
• [24:32] - Bruce enters the lightning round

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• Johann Hari Depression TED Talk
• Lost Connections by Johann Hari

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Bruce!

Dr. Adam Fraser is a human performance researcher and consultant who studies how organizations adopt a high-performance culture to thrive in this challenging and evolving business landscape. Adam has worked with elite athletes, the armed forces and business professionals of all levels. In the last eight years, he has delivered more than 1200 presentations to over 300,000 people in Australia, New Zealand, and Asia. Adam is also the author of four best-selling books, including his latest one, Strive, which I'm looking forward to delving into today.

In this episode, we explore the benefits of struggle when it comes to our learning and growth and the four practical steps we can take to get more comfortable with struggle.

Connect with Adam Fraser:

• dradamfraser.com

• [02:35] - Adam shares what enables us to strive
• [06:46] - Adam talks about why we need to make struggle our friend
• [07:55] - Adam explains about the value of negative emotions
• [12:26] - Adam introduces foreground and background behaviors that support striving.
• [13:24] - Adam outlines the SAFE foreground behaviors and how we can learn to sit with discomfort.
• [18:13] - Adam offers tips for accepting our struggle without judgment.
• [23:29] - Adam shares how the focus of our struggle can be development, learning, and growth.
• [26:53] - Adam explains how we can engage in the most constructive behaviors even in the midst of struggle.
• [34:11] - Adam enters the lightning round

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• Switch by Dan & Chip Heath

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Adam!

Dr. Peggy Kern is an associate professor at the Centre for Positive Psychology at the University of Melbourne's graduate school of education. Peggy's research is collaborative in nature and draws on a variety of methodologies to examine questions around who thrives in life and why. Including understanding and measuring healthy functioning, identifying individual and social factors impacting life trajectories and systems informed approaches to wellbeing. She's published three books and over 85 peer-reviewed articles and chapters.

In this week's podcast, we explore the impact COVID-19 and the economic downturn is having on workers' wellbeing and performance, and what leaders and workplaces can be doing to support them.

Connect with Peggy Kern:

• The Wellbeing Lab

• [02:45] - Peggy shares her latest research findings on how workplaces can help workers to care for their wellbeing.
• [11:03] - Peggy explains what research over the last two weeks has found about the impact of COVID-19 and the sudden economic downturn is having on workers' wellbeing and performance.
• [15:28] - Peggy provides insights into why some workers are thriving even though they are experiencing high levels of worry and anxiety at the moment.
• [18:19] - Peggy offers tips to help workers thrive even in the face of struggle and how this may shift over time.
• [22:28] - Peggy explains why as workers grieve through the changes that are happening that workplaces and leaders can make it ok to talk about the struggles they are experiencing.
• [24:04] - Peggy offers guidance for HR teams are why to focus their resources and efforts during this unpredictable time to support workers' wellbeing.
• [27:25] - Peggy enters the lightning round

• MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group
• All the Wiser Podcast

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It's free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Peggy!