THE POWER of POSITIVITY!

 We live in stressful times. The pace of change is accelerating driven by technology and domestic and global political upheaval. Ai is accelerating at a rapid pace and being implemented in different ways by different organizations, different people, and different governments.

 That is creating more stress and more uncertainty for many people. Jobs are being changed or eliminated. That will continue for years!

People are having to learn Ai skills.

Organizations are struggling how to adapt to the speed of change when their people are not adapting fast enough. I have had conversations with some very smart leaders who have embraced these realities, and most have said we are in a new age - an "AGE Of FAST ADAPTATION" which requires new organizational ways of working and new human ways of being.

All of us will have to rewire ourselves cognitively, emotionally, and behaviorally to adapt to the pace of continuous change and technological advancement. That is how we will have the chance to be happy by having meaningful work and a meaningful life.

To do that we must "REWIRE" ourselves – take ownership of your ego, your mind, your emotions, your behaviors and create your new story of who you are behaviorally as human beings in the Ai Age.

Humility, Mindfulness, Positivity, and Otherness are key skills that we will all have to embrace and use daily. 

 In a prior LinkedIn Posts, I discussed:

“Human Excellence in the Ai Age: Tame Your Mind”.

“The Power of Humility and A Quiet Ego in the Ai Age”; and

“Excelling in the Ai Age: Soft Skills Excellence”.

 In this Post, I want to focus on “The Power of Positivity”.

Let’s start with some honest self-reflection: How do you feel now?

Please take 15 minutes and think back 2-3 years ago. How did you feel then?

How often were you stressed at work? How often were you calm and feeling good?

What did work feel like to you? How did it impact your behavior in your personal life?

How often did you feel happy at work – feeling good at work? How often did you feel unhappy at work?

Now - jump forward to today:

How have you felt at work over the last 5 months? How often are you stressed at work?

How often are you calm and feeling good? What does work now feel like to you?

How does work impact your behavior in your personal life?

How often have you felt happy at work – feeling good about your work?

How often have you felt unhappy or really stressed about your work?

 What is Positivity?

 For years I have followed the great work of Professor Barbara L. Fredrickson (Kenan Distinguished Professor, University of North Carolina). Professor Fredrickson is the author of “POSITIVITY: Discover the Upward Spiral That Will Change Your Life”. I love this book! 

Positivity is the science of Positive Emotions - learning how to generate positive emotions in your body which enables positive behaviors, positive thoughts, inner peace, happiness, love, joy, gratitude, etc.

Positivity is the opposite of Negativity.

Without the disciplined training of your mind by meditation, your mind is always “talking to you” or “critiquing” you; or “critiquing others”, or “telling you what to do”; and “telling you how to respond to others”, etc. Negative feelings can lead to negative behaviors, negative words, fear, anger, hate, depression, or physical violence. Negativity is the opposite of Positivity!

Taking ownership of your ego, mind, and emotions is mission critical to optimizing your ability to learn – unlearn and relearn at the pace of technological change. Taking ownership of your ego, mind, and emotions will empower your Positivity!!!!

We all will need to embrace Positivity! Taking ownership of your emotions and learning how to generate Positivity will be a key determiner of your success and happiness in the Ai Age!

As Professor Fredrickson states:

“We’re either on a positive trajectory or a negative one. Either we’re growing in goodness, becoming more creative and resilient, or we’re solidifying our bad habits, becoming more stagnant and rigid”.p.17

 “People who flourish function at extraordinary high levels - both psychologically and socially….True, people who flourish are happy…. Beyond feeling good, they’re also doing good – adding value to the world’’. p.18

 “With each experiment, I learn more about how positivity fundamentally changes the way we humans see the world, how we think, and what we do.” p.18

 “Positivity transforms us for the better. This is the second core truth about positive emotions. By opening our hearts and minds, positive emotions allow us to discover and build new skills, ties, new knowledge, and new ways of being” p.24

 “Positivity Builds Psychological Strengths.”    “Positivity Builds Good Mental Habits.” “Positivity Builds Social Connections.”  “Positivity Builds Physical Health.” pp.91-93.

 In Chapter 11 of her book, she introduces “A New Toolkit” that you can use to “build” your Positivity and in Chapter 12, she shares with you “the six most important facts about positivity”.

The Science of Positivity demonstrates that you can change you all for the better! You can change how you feel, how you think, how you listen, how you behave, how you learn, and how you relate to other people. You can rewire yourself and your brain!

Positivity can help you: be calmer, more open-minded, a kinder person, a better listener, a more caring, compassionate person, a happier person, and a better you!

Our minds wander a lot- according to research about 50% of the time. Our mind is a constant chatterbox, a constant self-talker, self-evaluator, and self commentator. Our mind is constantly worrying about what other people think of us. This type of mind is commonly called a “monkey mind”.

Positivity can help you minimize your “monkey mind”. In fact, Positivity can help you achieve inner calmness and stillness which leads to Inner Peace.

Positive emotions- feelings – behaviors will help you be calm, be kind, be caring, be compassionate, feel good, do good, be happy, be fully in the now, be grateful, and bring your best self to your world every day!

 I invite you to embrace POSITIVITY!!!!!!!

 All the best!!!!!!