This presentation was made for a Fortune 500 company who is focused on creating a culture for happy, healthy, and high performing leaders. It features positive psychology, leadership, and tips from The Happiness Advantage.

1. 7 Principles
for
Healthy, Happy
High Performing Leaders
with
Dr. Aymee Coget

2. True or False
vThere is a science of happiness

3. True
Positive Psychology was started by
Martin Seligman, Ph.D. at University of
Pennsylvania
Adopted into the American
Psychological Association in 1998
Taught at Harvard (most popular class,
Yale, Stanford, UC Berkeley, University
of Pennsylvania
Broaden and Build Theory of Positive
Emotions by Dr Barbara Frederickson at
UNC Chapel Hill

4. Shawn Achor, Ph.D.
Harvard’s Happiness Professor
“When we are happy —when our
mindset and mood are positive — we
are smarter, more motivated, and thus
more successful. Happiness is the
center, and success revolves around
it.”—Shawn Achor, author of The
Happiness Advantage: The Seven
Principles of Positive Psychology that
Fuel Success and Performance at Work

5. The Happiness Advantage:
How a Positive Brain fuels success in work and life
Principle #1: The Happiness Advantage Positive Psychology fuels success
Principle #2: The Fulcrum & the Lever Create a positive mindset to achieve goals
Principle #3: The Tetris Effect Focus on positive experiences
Principle #4: Falling up Use positive coping mechanisms for stress
Principle #5: The Zorro Circle Small successes lead to big achievements
Principle #6: The 20-Second Rule Build positive habits
Principle #7: Social Investment Expand positivity to those around you

6. Positive Psychology fuels success
Principle #1: The Happiness Advantage
v 37% greater sales
v 3x more creative
v 31% more productive
v 40% more likely to receive a promotion
v 23% fewer fatigue symptoms
v Up to 10x more engaged
v 39% more likely to live to age 94

7. Definition of happiness
v The experience of positive emotion
v Relative to the person experiencing it

8. There are activities you can
do that have been
scientifically proven to boost
your mood
TRUE OR FALSE

9. True
Sonja Lyubomirsky, Ph.D. at University
of California, Riverside is the top
happiness increase researcher in the
world. Her background started in
Russia and took her to Harvard and
Stanford and now she teaches at UC.

10. Happiness Boosters
Meditation
5 minutes is
enough
Look forward
to something
Do acts of
kindness
Infuse positivity
into your
surroundings
Exercise
Spend money
on
experiences
Use your
strengths

11. “More than any other, fun is the secret to Virgin’s success”
Sir Richard Branson

12. Real world examples
v In house massage practitioners at Yahoo!
v Bringing your pets to work at Google
v Allowing people to go surfing when the mood strikes at Patagonia
v Game tables in the employee lounge Meta
“When employees experience a small burst of happiness, they get primed
for creativity and innovation.” Shawn Achor, Ph.D.

13. True or False
Happy people outperform their peers.

14. True
“We become more successful when we are happier
and more positive. Our brains are literally hardwired to
perform at their best when they are positive.”
― Shawn Achor, Ph.D
v Doctors put in a positive mood before making a
diagnosis show almost 3x more intelligence and
creativity than doctors in a neutral state, and they
make accurate diagnoses 19% faster
v Optimistic salespeople outsell their pessimistic
counterparts by 56%
v Students primed to feel happy before taking tests
far outperform their neutral peers

15. Create a positive mindset to achieve goals
Principle #2: The Fulcrum & the Lever
Power of Possibilities
Mindset
Change performance by changing mindset
Maximize Potential by
1. The length of the lever (power of possibilities)
2. The position of the fulcrum (mindset)

16. Mindset
defined
v the established set of attitudes held by someone
v a fixed mental attitude or disposition
that predetermines a person’s responses to and
interpretations of situations
v an inclination or habit

17. “Forget about your current job
title. What would our customers
call your job title if they
described it by the impact you
have on their lives."
Chip Conely
Founder, Joie de Vivre Hotel Collection, Air B&B Hospitality, & the Elder Academy
Find your
meaning and purpose

18. Breakout
Group
Discuss the fulcrum and lever philosophy
and how it applies to you at work

19. Breakout questions
1. Focus on the reasons you will succeed
2. Remind yourself of the skills you bring to the table, rather than what you lack
3. Recall a time you faced a challenging circumstances in the past & things turned out well
4. When we focus on our strengths, successes, what we’ve done, we improve our current
performance & influence the outcome of our situation in the right direction
5. Share about how your job, career, or calling helps contribute to a sense of meaning &
purpose in your life
6. What would your customers call your job title?

20. Share

21. Our brains can
change
TRUE OR FALSE

22. True
Neuroplasticity : the ability of the
brain to form and reorganize
synaptic connections, especially
in response to learning or
experience or following injury.

23. Create a positive mindset to achieve goals
Principle #3: The Tetris Effect
š Our brains get stuck in patterns
š These patterns can be broken through
new activities
š New patterns in the brain can be formed
Goal for a positive Tetris Effect
1. Build on positive experiences
2. Seek out new possibilities

24. Build a Positive Mindset
EACH NIGHT WRITE DOWN THREE
GOOD THINGS THAT HAPPENED
ESTABLISH A GRATITUDE PRACTICE
EVERYDAY
TRAIN YOUR INNER COLLEAGUE
Optimism Gratitude Happiness

25. Real world example
American Express employees set
an alarm to go off at the same
time during the day to express
gratitude to each other

26. 1. I am grateful for _____ because it adds ____ to my life
2. Share 3 good things in the chat
3. Recognize a colleague in the chat

27. Use positive coping mechanisms for stress
Principle #4: Falling up

28. Acknowledge & Commit
Figure out your stress response
v Do you fight or flight?
v Do you binge eat?
v Do you withdraw?
1. Find a new way
2. Make a commitment

29. Real world example
v Hired salespeople with a positive view of adversity
and an optimistic mindset
v These salespeople outperformed their peers by 37%
v The most positive salespeople outsold by 88%

30. Discuss reactionary stress relief
vs what you are willing to
modify toward the positive
Breakout group

31. Share

32. CREATE SMALL GOALS TO WORK TOWARD –
USE YOUR LOCUS OF CONTROL
BELIEVE YOUR ACTIONS MATTER AND
WILL DRIVE YOUR SUCCESS
Small successes lead to big achievements
Principle #5: The Zorro Circle

33. Breakout Group
What are 3 goals you can tackle right now
to achieve your bigger goal?

34. Share

35. Build positive habits
Principle #6: The 20-Second Rule
v Your actions are based on habits
v Use your ‘activation energy’ to make or break habits

36. How to create positive habits at work
1. Eliminate Distractions
(close email when you want to focus, turn your phone off, etc)
2. Reduce choices to maintain stamina
3. Control your internet browsing
4. Set a time to make decisions
5. Insert < 20 seconds before acting

37. Share your new chosen habit in the chat

38. Expand positivity to those around you
Principle #7: Social Investment
Power of Possibilities
Mindset
“Social relationships are the single greatest investment in the Happiness Advantage”
Shawn Achor, Ph.D.

39. Real World Examples
v Have events to introduce employees to each other at IBM
v Extend café hours to encourage socialization at Google
v Encourage employee lunches at UPS
v Charitable support to colleagues in need at Southwest Airlines
“Social connections motivate and are the greatest predictor of a team’s achievement”
Shawn Achor, Ph.D

40. Social support leads to Success
During challenges and stress at work, nothing is more critical
to our success than holding on to the people around us.
During stress, happier people who turn to relationships for support gain more
1. productivity
2. engagement
3. energy
4. resilience

41. Benefits of Positive Social Connections
1. Social connections motivate
2. Employees at good to great companies loved what they did because of their team
3. The greatest prediction of a team’s achievement was how the members felt about one
another
4. Social cohesion increased through openness, interaction and rapport
5. High quality encounters can be brief yet workers in rapport think more creatively and
efficiently, solve complex problems and perform at higher levels
6. Remember eye contact

42. Methods of spreading
positivity
1. Commit to frequent & positive encounters
2. Manage using the walk around strategy
3. Make eye contact
4. Schedule face to face meetings
5. Have conversations about more than the task
6. Smile
7. Gratitude: Offer an AA to your colleagues
I admire…., I appreciate….
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY

43. Healthy Happy High Performing Leaders
Choose 1-3 of the
principles to focus on
for the next 30 days
Choose an
accountability buddy
and offer your plan
Schedule a check in in
30 days to see if you
met your goal

44. Questions?

45. Dr. Aymee Coget
ac@liveonpurposetoday.com
www.liveonpurposetoday.com

46. Live on Purpose
http://www.liveonpurposetoday.com/

47. Citations
Slide 3
Achor, S. (2010). The happiness advantage: The seven principles of positive psychology that fuel success and
performance at work.
Achor, Shawn. (2012). Positive intelligence. Harvard business review. 90. 100-2, 153.
Fredrickson B. L. (2001). The role of positive emotions in positive psychology. The broaden-and-build theory of
positive emotions. The American psychologist, 56(3), 218–226.
Fredrickson, B. (2009). Positivity: Groundbreaking research reveals how to embrace the hidden strength of positive
emotions, overcome negativity, and thrive. Crown Publishers/Random House.
Lyubomirsky, S., King, L., & Diener, E. (2005). The Benefits of Frequent Positive Affect: Does Happiness Lead to
Success? Psychological Bulletin, 131(6), 803–855.
Lyubomirsky, S. (2007). The how of happiness: A scientific approach to getting the life you want. Penguin Press.

48. Citations
Lyubomirsky, S. (2007). The how of happiness: A scientific approach to getting the life you want. Penguin Press.
Peterson, C. & Seligman, M.E.P. (2004). Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification.
Washington DC: American Psychological Association.
Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press.
Slide 4
Lyubomirsky, S. (2013). The myths of happiness: what should make you happy but doesn't, what shouldn't make
you happy but does. New York: Penguin Press.
Slide 5
Deci, E.L., Ryan, R.M. Hedonia, eudaimonia, and well-being: an introduction. J Happiness Stud 9, 1–11 (2008).
Fowler, James H. and Nicholas A. Christakis. 2008. Dynamic spread of happiness in a large social network:
longitudinal analysis over 20 years in the Framingham Heart Study. British Medical Journal 337, no. a2338: 1-9