EPs, Are You Flourishing at Work?
Optional: you may want to begin with my ‘flourishing audit for EPs' to gain insights into your own flourishing at work.
'Flourishing’ is presented as a theory of well-being, which has 5 key elements: Positive emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning and Achievement (PERMA; Seligman, 2011; Figure 1).
Seligman (2011) argues that well-being is a construct (rather than a ‘real thing’), which is made up of several measurable elements. He uses the analogy of ‘the weather’, a construct that cannot be measured, but is made up of several measurable elements, such as precipitation, UV index, and wind speed.
The PERMA model (Figure 1) is originally intended as a holistic model of well-being. I consider it a helpful framework through which to reflect on our flourishing at work, and to consider how to live our best lives as EPs.
Figure 1: Graphic based on Seligman’s (2011) PERMA model
Below I have outlined some self-reflection questions (which link with my audit tool) for Educational Psychologists to consider how they are ‘flourishing’ in their careers:
Positive emotions
- Do you experience enjoyable, positive emotions at work, or when thinking about work?
- Do you experience pleasure and enjoyment in-the-moment whist at work?
- Is there a feel-good factor to your work?
Engagement
- Do you feel focused and ‘in flow' at work? (My blog on ‘flow’ is coming soon: Sign up to my mailing list here)
- Do you feel like you are applying your strengths to your work?
- Does your work align with your skillset and abilities?
- Do you have an appropriate level of challenge?
Relationships
- How do you get on with others at work? (Colleagues, team members, senior leaders, service users)
- Do you have a sense of belonging at work?
- Do you have positive connections with others in your wider network?
- Do you feel like you have ‘found your tribe’ in your EP career? (Like-minded people who share the same interests and values)
Meaning
- Do you feel like your work has meaning?
- Do you feel a sense of purpose in your work?
- Do you feel like you are making a difference? In what way? How do you know?
- How do you feel about the impact of your work?
Achievement
- Do you feel a sense of personal/professional growth in your work?
- Are you learning?
- Are you setting and achieving goals in your career?
- Which accomplishments are you most proud of?
- Are you ready for your next challenge in your career? Do you know what that might look like?
Are you interested to learn more about yourself and your flourishing at work? You can complete my ‘flourishing audit for EPs’ to gain further insights.
Would you like to improve your sense of flourishing at work? It’s my mission to support EPs to live their best EP-lives. I do this through 1:1 coaching, groups and workshops. Find out more about coaching and sign up to my (infrequent, but very interesting!) mailing list. You can also get in touch to explore how I can support you to live your best life and flourish at work.
NEW: Come join my Flourishing Workshop on Friday 6th October at 1-2pm. You'll get a FREE workbook download to make your own wheel (worth £10), the opportunity to reflect (in small groups) on your sense of flourishing and set yourself goals using a coaching framework...
Figure 2: Example of a personalised ‘snazzy’ wheel with ratings for 'now' and your 'preferred future'
References
Seligman, M. (2011) Flourish. London: Nicholas Brealey Publishing
NEW: Flourishing Workshop
Friday 6th October 1-2pm (online)
NEW 1-hour lunch-and-learn workshop...
You'll get:
- Teaching input from me on the PERMA model.
- A FREE coaching workbook download (worth £10), with a self-audit PERMA wheel and reflective coaching questions.
- Small group breakout rooms for deeper discussions, reflections and coaching to set goals, so you can flourish at work.
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