With significant upheavals, like the one we are currently experiencing, comes the need for reflection and an attempt to look for silver linings.
In such times, I turn to my long-standing private interests for inspiration. No, not the gardening :-). In this case, positive psychology. To start, I’d like to look at the framework of happiness developed by Martin Seligman, a former president of the Americal Psychological Association (APA), widely regarded as the father of positive psychology.
Building on the work of Confucius, Aristotle, Maslow and many others as well as his own empirical research, Seligman concluded that happiness has three dimensions: the pleasant life, the good life, and the meaningful life. With deliberate effort, these three dimensions could be crafted to improve one’s wellbeing. Seligman’s happiness dimensions work in a manner of Russian dolls. “Just as the good life is something beyond the pleasant life, the meaningful life is beyond the good life", states Seligman. The beauty of this view of happiness is in its simplicity and its ability to reconcile the two paradoxical frames – the focus on individual comfort, strengths and achievements with altruism and contribution to the greater good.
The pleasant life
We realise a pleasant life by savouring the beauty of the world, enjoying positive relationships with and companionship of others and keeping our body and mind happy. One way of achieving this in the time of social distancing involves keeping fit and active, practising self-care, staying connected with our loved ones, our wider family and community online and appreciating the natural world around us. Going for walks, runs and cycles, while observing social distancing rules is highly recommended. Plus, we might chance on some wildlife scurrying about their business or a pretty meadow full of flowers.
Perhaps more than ever, now would be the time to stay in more regular contact with our family and friends and reach out to the people that we might have lost touch with but who may have been a meaningful part of our life at some point in the past.
The good life
The good life aspect of happiness relates to engagement, to leveraging our unique strengths and deploying them creatively for the benefit of ourselves and others. This type of happiness is most often associated with another popular view of happiness, namely, achieving a state of flow. This concept was developed by Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, a prominent scholar of happiness and creativity and the Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Management at Claremont Graduate University. The state of flow refers to being fully immersed into and energised by a particular activity and doing something for the sake of doing it rather than for the end result. Let’s unpack this concept. Remember that time when you met up with a friend for a coffee and ended up chatting about “life, the universe and everything” for hours and hours? Or that time when you were tinkering with a tricky piece of code or a spreadsheet till deep into the night? Or working on that painting just for the pure joy of it? That kind of thing. It creates a deep sense of satisfaction and enjoyment. It also helps us deal with adversity. Indeed, in one of his interviews, Mihály Csíkszentmihályi described how he discovered that he could get lost in a game of chess which offered a welcome respite from dealing with the aftermath of hardship and loss he experienced in a prison camp during the World War II. This discovery served as one of the early inspirations for his subsequent work on the link between happiness and productivity.
The good life also relates to knowing what you stand for, what you want to achieve and being able to allocate your time according to your values and priorities. So feel free to spend some time on your favourite hobby, lose yourself in a book you never found time to read or look into developing a new skill you always wanted to master. Or simply get on with what has been holding you back, be it decluttering your physical or mental space, or stepping outside of your comfort zone to build your presence and skillset. Now is a good time to strengthen the foundations for our future success. Seeing our efforts bear fruit enhances our sense of self-belief and self-efficacy and makes us happier.
However, to see the greater meaning in what we do, our efforts need to contribute to a cause that transcends ourselves. Such causes can be very diverse and range from being a good parent or a positive role model to creating a lasting legacy for your family firm or working towards Sustainable Development goals, or whatever your cause may be. And this is where the importance of creating a meaningful life comes into play.
The Meaningful Life
Meaningful life describes a deep sense of self-actualisation and fulfilment we experience when we apply ourselves to a purpose greater than ourselves. Being a good neighbour, literally and figuratively, volunteering, donating (if we can) to a cause we believe in, helping others stay grounded and feel supported are all things that would provide meaning to our life.
Yes, the physical distancing rules get tighter and tighter. But with technology, creativity and generosity of spirit, we can all make a difference. There have been many inspiring examples. Some people have been drawing rainbows on their windows to cheer up little tots on their walks around local neighbourhoods. Others have been creating virtual sing-along choirs and music bands over Zoom. Yet others have been offering their presence and expertise through free online sessions ranging from PE, English and Maths for school children to fully-fledged theatre performances. Neighbours have been picking up prescriptions and groceries for each other and offering books and magazines to those in isolation. We have seen countless examples of companies and other organisations, large and small, doing their part too.
No doubt, the next few weeks will be challenging. But we humans are incredibly resilient (more on that later). We will emerge stronger as individuals and as a society. For now, let’s seize the day to do well and above all, to do good. In a throwback to the 18/19 MSc in Management and Entrepreneurship cohort - Carpe Diem! Stay well and stay safe, everyone.
About the Author
Dr Oksana Koryak is a Lecturer in Entrepreneurship and Programme Director for the MSc in Management and Entrepreneurship at Cranfield School of Management. Oksana’s research interests centre on decision making and cognition in the field of entrepreneurship as well as on growth, leadership and capability development in SMEs. Her work has been published in the International Small Business Journal, Journal of Private Equity and Journal of Enterprise Information Management. Oksana has presented her research at the leading academic conferences including the Academy of Management and the Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference.
