The Positive Leader

Research within the field of Psychology often takes the form of gaining a deeper knowledge of atypical behaviour, various disorders and how early interventions can be identified.

In the late nineties, a famous psychologist by the name of Martin Seligman introduced a new concept which he labelled as Positive Psychology.  This in his view was a shift of focus from weaknesses to uncovering people’s strengths and promoting their positive functioning.

Positive Psychology can be applied within the everyday world but also within the corporate world.  Leaders in all businesses can develop and demonstrate behaviours that are inherent within positive psychology theory.  The benefits of exhibiting these behaviours are immense not only with regards to the physical and mental well-being of the leader but also the impact that this has on the well being of all employees.

Muhlfeit et al (2017) have written an excellent book that strikes a fine balance between academic theory, examples from the corporate environment and various tools that can be applied easily in any setting.

There were a number of themes within the book that really resonated with me.  Firstly, the UK is one of the hardest working nations in terms of average number of working hours per week but it is also one of the lowest in terms of quality of output and productivity.  It raises a question as to whether we spend too much time in our roles focusing on the wrong things.  Is there a need to re-evaluate our job roles and strive to work smarter as opposed to simply working harder?

The second theme that resonated with me was the concept of Hedonic Adaptation.  Most of us can relate to a time during their life when they have spent months or years striving to obtain a new job, promotion, pay rise or another accomplishment.  The high level of happiness that is obtained as a result of achieving the goal quickly wears off and within a short period of time a new goal is introduced by the individual and a base level of happiness is restored.  This also raises the question of whether our happiness is an effect of the successes we achieve in life or whether happiness is the cause of success.

Staw et al (1994) undertook a research study that measured the initial positive emotions of 272 employees and then followed their job performance over the next 18 months.  They found that those employees who were happier at the outset went on to receive better performance evaluations and pay rises.

Contrary to what some might think, the level of happiness that an individual demonstrates is not simply due to genetics.  Lyubomirsky (2010) developed a model which outlined that only 50% of our happiness was due to genetics and 40% could be attributed to intentional activities.  This suggests that there is a lot that we can control in order to be happy.  This could range from seeking a job that plays to your strengths, contributing to a higher purpose and being optimistic about the future.

Increasingly we are seeing that young adults who are entering the corporate world want to work for businesses that have a moral and ethical conscience that is aligned with their values.

Current & Future leaders need to create a culture that has a deeper level of meaning and purpose that transcends monetary value or status.  The ‘carrot’ of pay rises and promotions from employers to their employees simply isn’t sufficient to retain staff in the long term.  

As an industry, we are unfortunately guilty of prescribing to a long working hours culture.  The dangers of over working are candidly explained by the author who outlines his experiences with mental illness which was very much a result of the pressures and demands of his high-flying role when working for Microsoft.

It shouldn’t require anyone to be diagnosed with a mental illness to realise that they were working too many hours and this raises a very important question.  Are employers doing enough to encourage a good level of work/life balance amongst its employees?  Early interventions are necessary to prevent mental illness so it is thus vital that the mental well-being of employees is considered to be of paramount importance and is embodied within the culture of the organisation.  There are simple techniques outlined in the book which we can all apply to maximize our mental well-being.

As the world we live in continues to operate at a faster pace than ever before with unrelenting demands and deadlines to meet, the book was a good reminder to me that it is always valuable to find some quiet time to reflect on some of the themes that the author has outlined.  Some of the questions that the book prompted me to ask myself were - what makes me happy?  How do I remain positive when experiencing setbacks? Am I currently at an optimal state of mental well-being? How can I be more mindful of the mental well-being of my work colleagues and how can I support them when they are not at an optimal level?

I would highly recommend reading The Positive Leader as it provides useful insights into the field of Positive Psychology which is a relatively new discipline and it covers some themes that are of relevance to everyone.

Lloyd Emeka reviews Jan Muhlfeit and Melina Costi's book. Follow him @nathan78