Are u Happy?
PERMA is an acronym for a model of well-being put forth by a pioneer in the field of positive psychology, Martin Seligman. According to Seligman, PERMA makes up five important building blocks of well-being and happiness:
Positive emotions – feeling good
Engagement – being completely absorbed in activities
Relationships – being authentically connected to others
Meaning – purposeful existence
Achievement – a sense of accomplishment and success.
Engagement – being completely absorbed in activities
Relationships – being authentically connected to others
Meaning – purposeful existence
Achievement – a sense of accomplishment and success.
P E R M A stands for ..
• P for positive emotions
Firstly, positive emotions refer to pleasant feelings like love, joy, gratitude, serenity, interest, hope, pride, amusement, inspiration, and awe. Positive emotions do not only feel good but also have some instrumental value: According to Barbara Fredrickson’s broaden-and-build theory, positive emotions both BROADEN our awareness (and thereby encourage creative thinking and divergent problem solving) and BUILD our social and psychological resources over time, making us more resilient in the process.
• E for engagement
When you do a challenging task that you enjoy and really care about, you can become fully engaged and enter a so-called ‘flow’ state. When you are in flow, you are completely absorbed in the task at hand and lose all sense of time and space. Flow states often occur during activities like climbing, dancing, or crafting, but they can also be triggered by engaging tasks at work.
• R for relationships
It probably won’t surprise you that positive relationships form a core building block of wellbeing. I think we can all agree that everybody needs someone. Research has long confirmed that enriching, energizing relationships are important in all areas of life, be it at home, at work, or in your free time. They have been found to increase not only your happiness and life satisfaction, but even your physical health.
• M for meaning
According to Seligman, we are at our best when we use our strengths “to belong to and serve something you believe is larger than the self”. In other words, a meaningful life has a purpose beyond that of the individual, be it in the form of abstract values, a long-term goal, a charity, a religion, a political party, or one’s family.
• A for accomplishment
Finally, we all need a sense of accomplishment in our lives. Wellbeing seems to be most promoted by goals that you have set for yourself and that are meaningful to you. Furthermore, research has found that the pursuit of intrinsic aspirations (e.g. personal growth or affiliation) is much more predictive of wellbeing than that of extrinsic aspirations (e.g. material goods, wealth, fame or appearance). Lastly and perhaps surprisingly, the link between achievement and wellbeing goes both ways: success does not only spark momentary happiness, but higher wellbeing also seems to lead to more success in areas such as school, work, and relationships.
