Welcome to the next episode of our vlog series “Happiness, a User Guide”. In our series, we use the PERMA model by prof Seligman to conceptualise happiness and well-being. We’re at episode four and arrived at the E of the PERMA model, which stands for Engagement.
Engagement – or flow – is one of the first manifestations of happiness I came across in my research; see this blog post from over six years ago. And it remains one of my favourites: flow is about the feeling you have when you’re so engaged in an activity that it feels as if time has stopped. Whatever you’re doing – like ice skating, tennis, or writing – is going automatically. Only after it ends, you realise you had an ‘optimal experience’. (The term is from prof Csikszentmihalyi, who studied flow).
To find out more on engagement – and maybe discover some ideas that can help you notice your optimal experience – watch the vlog below.
So many things have changed in the last few days: almost three weeks ago, we went to the theater to celebrate my birthday. Only two weeks ago, the Dutch government told us not to shake hands. Two days later (1,5 weeks ago), all events with 100 or more people where cancelled, and people were recommended to work from home.
Three days fast forward (just over a week ago), all cafes and restaurants closed, and trains ran only twice per hour. And today – after a sunny weekend with way too many people at the beach and DIY shops – the government announced that all events are cancelled until 1 June. #Covidiots will be fined €400 if they don’t keep a healthy 1.5 meter distance from others people. It’s such a different world than three weeks ago.
However the situation, Ania and I are lucky. We don’t suffer from corona or any symptoms (and don’t even know anybody who does). We don’t work in a place where we risk to be exposed to someone with symptoms. What we experience is a mild discomfort, working from home during the day only to exit to do groceries or get some movement. Now I still can, I still cycle, walk or run everyday – getting outside is important for mental and physical health. Though I can imagine that in a few weeks I’ll say: what was I thinking…
‘Social distancing’ is the term of the month. And as happiness vloggers, we don’t really feel good about that: social connections with other people are one of the key ingredients to maintain wellbeing. Therefore, in this extra episode of Happiness: A User Guide we propose an alternative: physical distancing, social connecting.
Stay safe and stay at home (no exceptions if you have even mild symptoms!). But also practice social connecting and pay attention to your wellbeing. Check our tips how to do this in the vlog!
We’re back with Happiness: A User Guide, our vlog about happiness. Last time we introduced the ‘PERMA‘ model to understand what brings happiness to our lives: Positive emotions, Engagement, positive Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment.
Today, in our second episode, we tackle the P from PERMA: positive emotions. Check the video below.
In the video, we talk about some of our favourite positive emotions, like flow, calm, and hope. What are yours, by the way?.
We also said that we think that people usually can name only about three to five positive emotions like joy, happiness, and love. (The both competitive and brilliant guests that played our 2020 Blue Monday quiz some weeks ago were an exception. All teams listed ten to twenty-five).
What are all these positive emotions, you say? Well, here’s a list put together by Courtney Ackerman at PositivePsychology.com as part of a fascinating article on positive emotions generally. (Thanks for sharing, Courtney! We feel grateful for the possibility to use your list, and hope you feel a sense of altruism.)
Joy – a sense of elation, happiness, and perhaps even exhilaration, often experienced as a sudden spike due to something good happening.
Gratitude – a feeling of thankfulness, for something specific or simply all-encompassing, often accompanied by humility and even reverence.
Serenity – a calm and peaceful feeling of acceptance of oneself.
Interest – a feeling of curiosity or fascination that demands and captures your attention.
Hope – a feeling of optimism and anticipation about a positive future.
Pride – a sense of approval of oneself and pleasure in an achievement, skill, or personal attribute.
Amusement – a feeling of lighthearted pleasure and enjoyment, often accompanied by smiles and easy laughter.
Inspiration – feeling engaged, uplifted, and motivated by something you witnessed.
Awe – an emotion that is evoked when you witness something grand, spectacular, or breathtaking, sparking a sense of overwhelming appreciation.
Elevation – the feeling you get when you see someone engaging in an act of kindness, generosity, or inner goodness, spurring you to aspire to similar action.
Altruism – usually referred to as an act of selflessness and generosity towards others, but can also describe the feeling you get from helping others.
Satisfaction – a sense of pleasure and contentment you get from accomplishing something or fulfilling a need.
Relief – the feeling of happiness you experience when an uncertain situation turns out for the best, or a negative outcome is avoided.
Affection – an emotional attachment to someone or something, accompanied by a liking for them and a sense of pleasure in their company.
Cheerfulness – a feeling of brightness, being upbeat and noticeably happy or chipper; feeling like everything is going your way.
Surprise (the good kind!) – a sense of delight when someone brings you unexpected happiness or a situation goes even better than you had hoped.
Confidence – emotion involving a strong sense of self-esteem and belief in yourself; can be specific to a situation or activity, or more universal.
Admiration – a feeling of warm approval, respect, and appreciation for someone or something.
Enthusiasm – a sense of excitement, accompanied by motivation and engagement.
Eagerness – like a less intense form of enthusiasm; a feeling of readiness and excitement for something.
Euphoria – intense and the all-encompassing sense of joy or happiness, often experienced when something extremely positive and exciting happens.
Enjoyment – a feeling of taking pleasure in what is going on around you, especially in situations like a leisure activity or social gathering.
Optimism – positive and hopeful emotion that encourages you to look forward to a bright future, one in which you believe that things will mostly work out.
Happiness – a feeling of pleasure and contentment in the way things are going; a general sense of enjoyment of and enthusiasm for life.
Love – perhaps the strongest of all positive emotions, love is a feeling of deep and enduring affection for someone, along with a willingness to put their needs ahead of your own; it can be directed towards an individual, a group of people, or even all humanity.
We proudly present: the very first ‘Happiness, a User Guide’ vlog!
In the first vlog, my wife and vlogger-in-chief Ania and I introduce you to our vlog. As you can imagine, the mission isn’t too different from the blog. We both believe that it is worth to better understand how happiness works and to pay attention to what makes us happy. As we say in the first edition, we will use the vlogs to explore the science of happiness, and introduce some exercises that can contribute to quality of life.
Like every vlogger tells you: if you like what you see, don’t forget to click the thumbs up & subscribe buttons. Enjoy the video!
