| Achieving Personal Fulfillment Ezine (sm) "Positive Psychology to the Rescue" (sm) June 2007 |
| Published by Maurine D. Patten, Ed.D., CMC Founder & CEO, Patten Coaching & Consulting www.pattencoaching.com |
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| In This Issue: 1. Preview 2. Unlocking the Secrets of Happiness 3. Getting into Acrtion 4. Looking Ahead |
| 1. Preview Achieving Personal Fulfillment Ezine explores how to progress rapidly from dreams to action. It is a free monthly email newsletter written by Maurine D. Patten, life/business coach and clinical psychologist. Using Positive Psychology, topics are presented from the perspective of Maurine Patten and are provided to help you get the results you want. It will help you manage change, improve your Emotional Intelligence and make better decisions with less effort. Over the last several years, Positive Psychology research has made significant progress in learning more about what contributes to happiness and specific things that are known to increase happiness levels. This issue reviews some of the things that have been discovered about the pursuit of happiness as well as choices you can make to improve your sense of well-being and level of happiness. Back to Index |
| 2. Unlocking the Secrets of Happiness Do you want to increase your happiness set point and avoid the hedonic treadmill? Happiness is subjective. It can be defined as your personal opinion as to how pleasurable, satisfying or gratifying your life is. Positive Psychology (founded by Martin Seligman, Ph.D. at the University of Pennsylvania) has been actively pursuing research to discover more about the state of happiness for over a decade. Several things have been discovered about the pursuit of happiness:
In the past, researchers believed your level of happiness was 50-80% inherited. According to this view, you have a set point or range for happiness similar to weight. After a happy or sad experience, you will return to your set point of happiness. For instance, if you win the lottery or get the promotion you wanted, about 1 year later, you will be as happy as you were before your good fortune. Another belief that supports the set point theory is what is called the "hedonic treadmill." It views both negative and positive events as only temporarily decreasing or increasing your level of happiness. It believes that you will adjust to the new situations over time. This holds true if you get a new house, job, car, or become disabled. It is also believed that happiness may be somewhat dependent on your personality preference, i.e. introversion/extraversion. Some definitions of happiness are highly associated with socializing and what is typically thought of as more extraverted behavior. Sonya Lyubomirsky, Ph.D., has been doing research on happiness over the last eighteen years at the University of California, Riverside. Her latest work is more optimistic about being able to increase levels of happiness. She has discovered three factors that determine happiness:
It is known that exceptionally happy people think of themselves, their peers, and life events in ways that seem to maintain their happiness. They react to life circumstances in adaptive ways and more optimistically. In contrast, unhappy people think of their situation in ways that tend to reinforce unhappiness. They believe a situation cannot change and tend to generalize their pessimism to other areas of their life. Back to Index |
| 3. Getting into Action Specific things that are known to increase levels of happiness and show promise of moving your set point higher over time are:
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| 4. Looking Ahead Aristotle said "happiness depends on ourselves." New research indicates that with commitment and effort, you can influence 40% of your happiness. It is necessary to take time to make choices that will enhance your level of happiness starting today. The choice is up to you. Have a great summer. What specific things will you choose to do to increase your level of happiness? Let me know how you benefit from the choices you make. I look forward to hearing from you, mdpcoach@pattencoaching.com. Maurine Patten mdpcoach@pattencoaching.com Back to Index |
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| Contact Information Patten Coaching & Consulting Voice: 630-584-8936 Fax: 630-584-8868 Web: http://www.pattencoaching.com E-Mail: mdpcoach@pattencoaching.com (c) Copyright 2002 Patten Coaching & Consulting All rights reserved. |
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| Mission Achieving Personal Fulfillment Ezine is dedicated to inspiring and expanding your perspective in order for you to move forward in your personal and professional life. Achieving Personal Fulfillment Ezine is a publication of Patten Coaching & Consulting; CEO, Maurine D. Patten, Ed.D.; mdpcoach@pattencoaching.com We would like Achieving Personal Fulfillment Ezine to be as interactive as possible. If you have feedback, comments, topics you would like addressed, or can suggest additional resources to benefit us all, please email us at any time. Send your e-mail to ezinefeedback@pattencoaching.com. Please forward this issue to anyone you think would find Achieving Personal Fulfillment Ezine interesting and beneficial. Your recommendations help us keep growing, and ensure an excellent exchange of information and techniques. Archives You can read previous issues of Achieving Personal Fulfillment Ezine in our archives on our archives page. |
| About Maurine D. Patten, Ed.D., CMC Maurine Patten is a clinical psychologist and certified life/business coach. Her professional career includes: independent business owner (26 years), Assistant Professor at Chicago State University and consultant for education and business. She is a graduate of the MentorCoach program and a member of the International Coach Federation. She is experienced in training and management development for large national and international firms. She has a strong background in working with individuals and couples on clarifying and achieving goals. Dr. Patten has training in coaching, Emotional Intelligence, retirement assessment and planning, cognitive therapy and health psychology. She has published articles, made presentations, and conducted workshops about:
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