Are Happy Workers Productive Workers?

You may have heard about positive psychology, maybe on TV, in a journal or read about it in a magazine. Origionally introduced by Maslow (who wrote extensively about peak experiences) and popularised by Seligman (who developed strength based psychology), it is a science of positive aspects of our life, such as happiness and well-being. So why you might ask yourself is this important to our work lives? Remember the saying "happy workers are productive workers"? Well, evidence indicates that positive emotions such as happiness are very relevant to our work performance. For example, when we feel positive we are better able to make decisions and complete tasks more thorougly. Boehm & Lyubormirsky (2008) reported that happiness or well-being predispose employees to be productive and successful! On the flip side we also need to be aware that when we feel positive we also tend to avoid unpleasant or difficult tasks - hence why I am writing this blog at 3pm on a Friday afternoon!
I think that sometimes we can become preoccupied with focusing on negative emotions, particulalry in the current economic climate. Yet at the same time focusing on our strengths and positivity can be incredably motivating. Simply asking ourselves "whats going right" can help us to refocus on what we are good at and harness that strength to achieve our goals. In a coaching context this can be particulalry useful.
If you are interested in learning more about positive psychology and coaching Aspire are running a workshop on 9th June 2009 at Booths Hall Knutsford. Visit www.aspirepod.com/positivepsychology for more information.