Maintaining positive psychological wellbeing is important for everyone. Our sense of wellbeing affects our self-esteem, health, productivity, quality of our relationships and our sense of fulfilment in life.
Wellbeing is more than a simple, instantaneous moment of experiencing pleasure or joy; it is finding fulfilment, meaning and satisfaction in one's life.
These short and simple activities have been developed by researchers to improve wellbeing. You can combine the exercises, as they target different aspects of wellbeing.
Gratitude list
- At the end of each day, write down three good things that happened and that you are thankful for, as well as why you think each of these three good things happened.
- Continue this exercise each day for at least one week. You can continue doing this for longer, as the longer you do this, the more habitual it will become.
- Research has shown that doing this for just one week can improve self-esteem.
'Best possible self'
- Try spending 20 minutes writing about your 'best possible self' in the future, once a day, for four consecutive days.
- This specifically targets optimism and encourages positive thinking. This exercise has been shown to improve positive mood.
Identifying your strengths and virtues
- Firstly, complete the VIA-Strengths Inventory.
- Once you have identified what your unique set of strengths and values are, you can then look for examples of where you have used these previously - and where and when you could use them more frequently in your life.
- This has been shown to improve life satisfaction.
Volunteering and philanthropic actions
Consider the opportunities that are available to donate any time and expertise to help others. This could be 'random acts of kindness', where one is challenged to do five 'good deeds' for others over the course of a week for six weeks, or more long-term charity commitments. Research has shown that volunteering, giving, and being kind to others improves mood, particularly if it is aligned with one's perceived strengths.
