Making Positive Psychology Work

Sarah Lewis is the founder and managing director of Appreciating Change in the UK. Sarah consults for organizations around the world on how to effectively create sustainable change. In this conversation, you will hear Sarah talk about her philosophies on change and how she helps organizations through the change process. We discuss the questions that must be asked to unleash change. Often, the ques...

Chris White is the managing director of the Center for Positive Organizations and the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business . Chris developed and co-teaches the MBA class on social intrapreneurship. In this conversation, Chris explains social intrapreneurship - leading positive change without authority - and compares this with social movement activists.   Chris talks about how organizat...

Jason Wilburn is the Vice President and General Manager for the Industrial Services Division of Conco Services Corporation. Conco was a finalist in the 2016 Positive Business Project competition, presented by The Center for Positive Organizations at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business. Conco has a lot of remote employees that only see each other face-to-face twice a year, yet are...

Neil Garrett is a cognitive neuroscientist at the University College London. His research investigates the mechanisms by which individuals learn information about the world and the factors that influence learning processes. Neil Garrett's website: http://neilgarrett.org/ In this conversation, Neil shares that research suggests that our brains may be wired for optimism. People tend to over-estimate...

James Pawelski is the director of education and senior scholar in the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as the author of the book The Dynamic Individualism of William James .   He serves as the founding director of the Masters of Applied Positive Psychology program for more than 10 years, where he teaches courses on positive interventions, the humanities, and hu...

Sue Langley, is a speaker, master trainer, global business consultant and leading advisor, and founder and CEO of the Langley Group of Companies. Sue has taught thousands of business leaders how to create positive work-places. Sue Langley's website: http://suelangley.com/ In this discussion, you will learn about creativity and innovation and how they benefit us as individuals, but also how organiz...

Felicia Huppert is the founding director of the Well-Being Institute at Cambridge University and a leading researcher on the science of well-being and promotion of human flourishing. Felicia Huppert's website: http://www.wellbeing.group.cam.ac.uk/who-we-are/founder/ In this interview, you will hear Felicia share her definition and understanding of "wellbeing", which is "our ability to feel good an...

Louis Alloro is the co-founder and director of the Certificate in Positive Psychology program. He consults on culture change initiatives all over the world. Louis Alloro's website: https://certificateinpositivepsychology.com/capp-faculty/louis-alloro/ In this interview, you will hear Louis describe the Certificate in Positive Psychology program.  He talks about the technical content of this six-mo...

Maureen McKenna,is a partner at Innovation Works and author of " Pink Steel-Toed Shoes ," a story about her experience as the first female manager in manufacturing at Xerox. She talks with us about her speech at the Canadian Conference about Positive Psychology, on creating a healthy organizational climate, and increasing return on energy. Maureen's Blog: https://momentsbymoment.com/ You'll Learn:...

Ilona Boniwell is the program leader for the first Master's Degree in Applied Positive Psychology in Europe at Angila Ruskin University. She is also the CEO of Positran. In this interview, you will hear Ilona share her insights on making Positive Psychology real and tangible, and practical for people to integrate into their lives. She also talks about the role of Positive Psychology in the workpla...

Gretchen Spreitzer is the faculty director for the Center of Positive Organizations at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. In this interview, you will hear Gretchen talk about enabling sustainable performance. There are several factors that make it quite easy to get burned out at work and organizations need to implement certain things to promote sustainable performance and a...

Emiliya Zhivotovskaya is the founder of The Flourishing Center of Benefit Corporation.   She is the creator of the Certification in Applied Positive Psychology. Emiliya talks about the connection of mind and body, specifically in regards to vitality. Our bodies affect our thoughts and vice versa. So how do we bring that vitality into our lives?   It's not through major interventions, but rather th...

Wayne Baker is a professor of management at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business. Wayne is also the first director of the Center for Positive Organizations. Wayne talks about the idea of a giving culture at work. People are inherently generous and often, the biggest barrier is getting people to ask for what they need. Wayne talks about the ROI that a giving culture brings to organi...

Jessica Amortegui is a leading expert in positive psychology and positive organizational scholarship in organizations. Jessica is the Senior Director of Learning and Development at Logitech, where she has developed a two-day workshop on positive psychology practices for her team members. Jessica shares how she organized this workshop, including her strategy to gain management support and team buy-...

Ryan Niemiec is a leading expert in mindfulness based strengths practices. Ryan recently spoke at the Canadian Conference on Positive Psychology and in this conversation, he shares his thoughts and findings on mindfulness. In this interview, you will hear Ryan's insight into mindfulness. He shares how mindfulness based strength practice can have positive changes in people's lives. Individuals can...

Bob Vallerand is a leading scholar in motivational processes and optimal functioning. Bob spoke on his theory on passion at Canadian Conference on Positive Psychology and he shares his insights with us in this conversation. The passions we have as individuals bring satisfaction to our lives. They also help form our identities.   So today, I talk with Bob Vallerand about his research on passion.  I...

Robert Quinn is a world leading expert on positive organizations, and how to introduce and implement positive practices into workplaces. He shares examples of handling situations through conventional strategy and positive practices. While many organizations experience success with introducing and implementing positive practices, this is a transition that can be difficult to accomplish. We have a n...

David Cooperrider is renowned for his research in appreciative inquiry, a strength-based approach to creating change. David shares how appreciative inquiry is being used to build a better world. David explains how organizations can align strengths in ways that make the system's weaknesses irrelevant. He also shares how individuals and organizations can use this life-centric approach to go through...

Caroline Adams Miller is one of the world's leading positive psychology experts on goal-setting, accomplishment, grit, happiness, and success. It seems everywhere you turn lately somebody is talking about grit. Is it really the key to success? Can you have too much? How do you cultivate it? So today, I turned to Caroline who is one of the world's leading practitioners in grit to see what all the f...

Kim Cameron is one of the top 10 scholars in organizational sciences. Kim recently spoke at the Canadian Conference on Positive Psychology and he talks with us about positive and relational energy. Positive energy and relational energy has a tremendous positive impact on individuals and organizations. So today, I talk with Kim Cameron, a leading scholar on these topics and positive psychology. In...

Thank you for joining me for the very first episode of Making Positive Psychology Work. Every week, I'll be interviewing the world's leading researchers and practitioners who applying the evidence-based practices of positive psychology and neuroscience in workplaces to bring out the best in people. You see I believe that by uncovering tested, practical ways to help people move from functioning to...