by Lisa Jones | April, 2025 | Lisa Jones
Knowing Your Values, Who You Are, And What You Want In my last blog I introduced the model Intentions and Preventions. I discussed how I had developed it to assist me in navigating my way into a new career in research. In this blog I want to go into more detail on the Intentions part of the model, which underpins all of the other parts. Here I will share some of the ways I developed my own intentions and the different tools and processes that are available for this part of the model. In my own PhD research, in which I have been exploring the alone experience, I found that imagination and inner awareness are very important for people to enjoy their alone space. Having that connection with yourself and your values is part of this stage in the process. You need to know who you are and what matters to you so that you can define your intentions with a strong sense of purpose. The Model Here is a reminder of the model that I am working with. I developed it from time studying positive psychology and other related areas of research, and also working with coachees on their objectives. The green area is the Intentions, which remains visible and acts as a compass or navigation when working with the other three areas. Knowing Your Values So much of the time we automatically do things without asking ourselves why. This autopilot behaviour can lead to burnout and doing things that we do not value. It can take a serious illness to wake up from autopilot. If we know...
by Lisa Jones | January, 2025 | Lisa Jones
In my last blog (December 2024) I shared with you my intentions for 2025; to journey from Ph.D. into working within research. It is both daunting and exciting to start a new stage in my career, and these blogs will chart my journey, which I hope will also be of help to others who might be on their own journey. Over the last month or so I have been working on a process that will help me shape my intentions and also manage the fears, self-criticism, and overwhelm. I call the model ‘Intentions and Preventions’. I want to share with you what I have learned from developing it, and maybe it will help you in your journey. Over the next few blogs I will present each part of the model. Firstly, I want to give you an overview and explain my thinking in developing it. Model: Intentions and Preventions The figure below sets out the four parts of the model. Its aim is to set out what the Intentions are for the goal or aspiration, with the Inner Vulnerability, Preventative Actions, and Emergency Actions in place so that the journey towards the intentions can be managed. Figure: Intentions and Preventions Model I split up the model into the four sections as it made sense to have a clear set of intentions that could inspire to action and keep me on my path, but to also acknowledge that I will wobble sometimes. I knew I could be doing things that help me keep well during the year, and also I knew my own inner demons would be shouting at me....
by Lisa Jones | December, 2024 | Lisa Jones
My journey into a career transition using positive psychology tools Listen to the audio version if you prefer. I am about to embark on a new chapter in my life. I’m reaching the end of my Ph.D. program and looking forward to a research career. But I’m anxious. I’m unsure of how, when, and what my initial steps are in a career transition. The quotation in the title, “All things are difficult before they are easy,” comes from the 17th-century historian Thomas Fuller. What I’ve learnt from this is that while a new enterprise may seem overwhelming at first, it will become simpler over time. I realise my expertise of how to be a full-time researcher is still limited, and the task of finding work is unknown, unpredictable, and ambiguous. How can positive psychology assist me get through this change and build expertise? I have an idea of what I want to do and a few possibilities in mind. You, my dear friends, hold me accountable for maintaining my spirits and perseverance! To help me navigate this ambiguous route, I will use my positive psychology knowledge to reflect and guide me. I hope that these blogs will serve as a beneficial reflection for you as you examine their own transitions and how positive psychology and related knowledge, tools, and approaches might help you succeed. My first steps As a creative person, I enjoy visualising things; therefore instead of setting SMART goals, I chose to build a visual representation of my future self. This is similar to the ‘Best Possible Self’ exercise, which has been shown to improve well-being...
by Lisa Jones | January, 2024 | Lisa Jones, Positive Psychology
Third wave positive psychology and positive communities For this blog post I want to deviate away from focusing on the individual to reflect on what it might mean to apply a positive psychology intervention at the community-level. As a researcher and practitioner embedded in third wave positive psychology I’m moving towards asking questions about the impact interventions have on whole communities and not just the individual. This post will cover individual and community-level interventions by sharing what these are, and considering whether third wave positive psychology should care about positive communities and not just the individual. Individual and community-level interventions When Marty Seligman first started talking about positive psychology over twenty years ago he included positive communities. Currently positive psychology is said to be in its ‘third wave’ meaning it is now concerned with systemic and environmental factors. Yet for the most part we are still focused on the individual. At an individual-level a positive psychology intervention (PPI) aims to promote positive life experiences, such as flourishing, in the individual. Definitions differ but overall the individual is invited to experience such interventions as gratitude, strengths development, resilience growth, compassion, and meaning. Often the end game is to improve psychological or subjective wellbeing. Some of these PPIs are likely to have a knock-on effect towards the people that surround the individual, and this ‘pay-it-forward’ outcome is an implicit expectation for PPI application. Yet recent criticism points out that PPIs are often undertaken by privileged members of the population, with little regard to whether a PPI might actually harm or disadvantage other people less fortunate. A personal vex of mine...
by Lisa Jones | August, 2023 | Lisa Jones, Uncategorized
The powerful self-question in midlife As a coach I used to think that powerful questions were ‘clever’ questions you learn by rote, but a powerful question emerges from the relationship, from being there with the coachee, curious and genuinely interested in their story from their perspective. A question is only powerful when it is used in the right context and has been formed from the unique moment between coach and coachee during their coaching partnership. This got me thinking about how someone in their mid-life could use this skill on themselves. In my previous posts I have suggested we spend more time reflecting and being mindful. This is not easy for everyone. We often do not listen to ourselves and like to be distracted from too much time alone with our thoughts, yet the powerful self-question in midlife might be just the wake up needed. So what might happen if we asked ourselves some powerful questions, and actually listened to the answer? Here I offer some reflective approaches to help you tune into your own powerful question. Why midlife? A powerful question can be profound at any stage in life but here I am thinking of those who are on their journey of discovery, have lived a life where they have (I hope) been successful but may now think that they want something different. Midlife has so much opportunity in it but we can be overcome by the changes we do not ask for- health, family dependency, or career dissatisfaction. When we ask ourselves what we do want we can push through the challenges and turn them into opportunities....
