Resources for a Teenager – SoundCloud

The seventh in a series of posts detailing those resources I’m finding useful on my own particular (life) journey.

Meta

Living in the sticks, I drive quite a lot. Given that we live in a digital time, I'm therefore fortunate to be able to 'make my own radio'.
In fact, I think I've been doing it since I had a mini-disc player, which was aeons ago! I either connect my device via bluetooth to the car radio, or else I plug the source into the audio-in socket. That source these days is most likely to be my Kindle Keyboard, which means I can listen to books read out loud by its text-to-speech feature.

The List

This list is from SoundCloud, which means that it's a series of interviews, thought pieces, and excerpts from longer recordings.

The rationale

1. This is what a good life is: Jonathan Fields interviews Brené Brown in long form - ~50mins. We're the better for it.
2. The Creative Life: I read Elizabeth Gilbert's book "Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear". This is Jonathan's interview of Elizabeth.
3. Hoping Others Fail Is Not A Strategy: I have enjoyed many of Jonathan's interviews and GLP Riffs, and this shorter piece asks - "What if you could go about it differently? What if you could reframe winning on both a deeper and larger scale?"
4. The Killer App Is You: this seems pretty much eponymous, and is asking us to believe more in ourselves.
5. Hacking Stereotypes: this is a tremendous story about a female founder moving heaven and earth to assist other women find a life path by giving them opportunities to write software - 'Talento tech femenino de Latinoamérica para el mundo'.
6. Hearts Broken Open: how do we find the strength and the courage to heal when our hearts have been broken open? How do we let the love fall inside? A tall recounted by Parker Palmer.
7. Hope: this is a lovely poem, and a resonant reading by Parker.
8. Courtney Martin and Parker Palmer: the previous poem is read at the end of this illuminating interview by Krista Tippett. Krista and team are a gift to our world. Courtney articles something really powerful: "So I think even just to feel like you’re showing up as your whole self in different settings is a pretty rebellious act."
9. Ray Chetty: I've included this as it was a privilege listening to someone who has intense attention to detail, who is a rounded and decent human being. Tyler is a great interviewer...
10. Cass Sunstein: being a huge fan of behaviour economics, this was (and is) an enjoyable discourse through Cass's domain.
11. The Woodcarver: fantastic that a Quaker should be relating a story from Chinese lore
12. The Divided Life and the Quest for True Self: "Parker Palmer reflects on the consequences of living a divided life and the quest for wholeness".
13. Standing In The Tragic Gap: a challenge for us to to stand in the place of uncertainty between how we'd like things to be, and how they really are. How do we stay there, but keep being vulnerable and open?

The Task

Too much of what we're told seems not to stand up to scrutiny, if we're able to find our own sacred place to stand.

How do we outgrow the needs of others, and loop back to them once we have learned to become that which resonates to our deepest selves. This is my snapshot as I posted this, but the challenge is the activity of a lifetime.

Feedback

Any thoughts, additions, amendments – whatever – please add in respectful and constructive comments below. Thank you!

“What are the skills that build positive emotion, gratitude, optimism, purpose, engagement in life?”

Intro

Since last June, I've been working with a start-up called http://happie.st. Our tagline is 'get rewarded for doing the things that make you happy".

I've come across some awesome personal development materials since then, and have got stuck into a lot of podcasts, DVDs, books, articles etc. ;-). For the eagle-eyed, you probably already know that! lol

This post records some of my recent discoveries, and the inspiration they provide:

• Some reflections by Martin Seligman, arguably the moving spirit behind Positive Psychology, and someone I first learned about on my Psychology undergraduate degree – as he had convincingly put forward the theory of ‘learned helplessness’.
• A summary from Time magazine about Positive Psychology
• Links to some courses on Positive Psychology I have found (in the UK)
• Widget showing some of my Goodreads books and account

Marty Seligman

I find listening to a podcast of someone gives a fantastic flavour of the person, and whether I’m going to enjoy / like / benefit from their writings.

Marty at the RSA

Martin Seligman at the RSA in London: I've listened to his podcast, and it’s highly insightful and enjoyable. Full disclosure: I used to be a Fellow of the RSA.

MAPP programme promotion podcast

Having searched iTunes for ‘Martin Seligman’, I was also listening to another podcast, and found the early proceedings highly meaningful.

I’ve listened to a particular section a number of times, and I've (roughly) typed up a couple of minutes the proceedings of the Virtual Information Session (http://www.sas.upenn.edu/lps/graduate/mapp) from about 4mins 30secs - involving Marty Seligman:

• "Back 8 years ago, when I found myself president of 160k psychologists, I asked myself the question "what do psychologists do well?", "what don't we do well?"
• I thought what we did pretty well was suffering: depression, trauma, anxiety, anger, victims and the like
• But, what psychologists didn't do well, what there was no science, no practice of, was what makes life worth living: positive energy, positive emotion, engagement
• So, as I looked around, I decided that my initiative as president of that Association would be to cheer-lead for, raise money, do some of the science, or the possibility of a science of practice, on what makes life what worth living, the positive side of life
• I should say that what was behind that was some of my experience as a clinical psychologist, as a therapist for many years
• And initially, I had believed that all you needed to work on was suffering; if you got rid of suffering, you automatically got happy
• We were astonished to find out in clinical practice that occasionally when things went really well and you were able to alleviate anxiety, depression, anger: you didn't get a happy person, you got an empty person
• So the question was, so what are the skills that build purpose and meaning in life, they're different from relieving depression? What are the skills that build positive emotion, gratitude, optimism, purpose, engagement in life? And so that became my mission
• [...]
• Starting about 4 / 3 years ago, as the science was beginning to develop along, I began to become concerned about application; that is, how can we take the things we're learning about gratitude, about pleasure, about strength and virtue, about creating purpose, and bring them into the real world"

I feel the point about an 'Empty person' is incredibly powerful, certainly for my own life. I'd actually bought 'Learned Optimism' (http://amzn.to/J6djq7) a couple of weeks back, and I'm also reading 'Happier' (http://amzn.to/Jrve7w).

I feel that this will be a rich vein for investigation and learning for me. I find the description of ‘empty’ a trigger to do practical things to build my own levels of positive emotion, gratitude, optimism, purpose, and engagement in life :-D

I'd be fascinated to hear any thoughts and feedback you may have. By the way, MAPP stands for ‘Master of Applied Positive Psychology’.

Courses

For now, studying at the University of Pennsylvania, at Martin’s knee, is a bit of a long shot, so here are some closer to home:

• Eight Week Programme in Positive Living at Northumbria Unversity – in Newcastle
• Applied Positive Psychology MSc at the University of East London, similar to UoP course
• Positive Psychology (Short Courses) at my (other) Alma Mater, City Uni in London

Time document

Useful summary of Positive Psychology which puts things into a nutshell:
The New Science of Happiness

Goodreads widget

I’m whacking this in here, as it’s a useful place for me to share what I’m reading :-)

Justin's bookshelf: to-read

The Genius In All Of Us: Why Everything You've Been Told About Genes, Talent And Intelligence Is Wrong

by David Shenk

Succeed: How We Can Reach Our Goals

by Heidi Grant Halvorson

Bounce: The Myth of Talent and the Power of Practice

by Matthew Syed

Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rule-breakers, and Changemakers

by Dave Gray

What Should I Do with My Life?: The True Story of People Who Answered the Ultimate Question

by Po Bronson

Wash up

I hope you find these materials useful and insightful. I’d love to get your feedback, and what else you’d suggest. Thanks for reading!

Join us for the North East Premiere of 'HAPPY' on World HAPPY Day

Background

You may be aware that I’ve been working at happiest Limited since last June. I feel very fortunate to have learnt a great deal, and discover a treasure trove of resources around the practice of happiness. I.e. that one’s level of happiness and well-being is something that one can grown, through regular practice and habitual behaviour.
This post provides the context to a happiness-related event I’m involved in organising in Newcastle upon Tyne, and invites you to attend and bring your friends!

Happiness at Work event

I was thrilled to attend the recent Happiness at Work event, organised by Codeworks:

This month we’re taking a different approach to our Think and a Drink event with the topic of Positive Psychology and its effects in the workplace.  We’ve got speakers and discussions and even a chance of taking part in some of the very first research studies on the subject with our friends at Northumbria University.  Here’s a little taster of what you can expect.
Positive Psychology is a new branch of Psychology which focuses on enabling people to grow and fulfil themselves. Professor Martin Seligman, who is generally credited with igniting the interest in positive psychology when he was appointed President of the American Psychological Association in 1998, describes it as enabling people to ‘flourish’. A positive psychological state in which we feel positive emotions, engagement, achievement, positive relationships and a sense of meaning in our lives.
Research also demonstrates that a positive psychological state seems to protect against illness and prolong longevity. It also enhances resilience, very important given the challenging and unpredictable economic climate we are experiencing.

At that event, the seeds of local action were sown, so please read on for details of the event in February.

We’re showing a movie, and you’re invited!

We’re showing a movie on 11th February in Newcastle upon Tyne. Once in the afternoon, and for the second time in the evening. Please use these links to book online.
The following is the descriptive blurb:

Happy People = Happy World

On World HAPPY Day, February 11, 2012, thousands of people will join together in communities across the globe to watch the film HAPPY and begin their journeys toward healthier, and happier lives. We want everyone in the North East and Cumbria to be part of this amazing, worldwide event so we are screening the film twice, at 2.00pm and 6.30pm, at The Centre for Life in Newcastle.

World HAPPY Day inspires action for increasing happiness in our own lives and in the world. Research suggests that happy people are healthier and live longer, they are more likely to care for the environment and less likely to commit crimes or go to war. Happy people help others more often and are more optimistic and creative. Increasing happiness benefits us as individuals and communities in infinite ways – it is a goal worth sharing.
Roko Belic, director of the Academy Award® nominated “Genghis Blues” now brings us HAPPY, a film that takes us from the bayous of Louisiana to the deserts of Namibia, from the beaches of Brazil to the villages of Okinawa to explore the secrets behind our most valued emotion.

---

Screening Programme

Afternoon

2.00pm ‘Happy Networking’ – an opportunity to relax over a drink, catch up with friends and meet lots of new, like minded people
3.00pm ‘HAPPY’ – be one of the first in the North to experience the inspiring new film by Roko Belic
4.30pm ‘Happy talk’ – share your feelings about the film, learn more about the psychology and growth of happiness and find out more about forthcoming Happiness events, including the foundation of a Happiness group in the region.
5.30pm Event draws to a close

« Click here to book the matinee »

Evening

6.30pm ‘Happy Networking’ – an opportunity to relax over a drink, catch up with friends and meet lots of new, like minded people
7.30pm ‘HAPPY’ – be one of the first in the North to experience the inspiring new film by Roko Belic
9.00pm ‘Happy talk’ – share your feelings about the film, learn more about the psychology and growth of happiness and find out more about forthcoming Happiness events, including the foundation of a Happiness group in the region.
10.00pm Event draws to a close

« Click here to book the evening showing »

The Film

Happy - A Documentary Trailer from Wadi Rum Films on Vimeo.
For more information about ‘HAPPY’ go to - http://www.thehappymovie.com

How you can get involved

Please come and join us – the links again: afternoon and evening. Come to both if you like ;-). Key activities:

• share your feelings about the film,
• learn more about the psychology and growth of happiness and
• find out more about forthcoming Happiness events, including the foundation of a Happiness group in the region.

My Identity being spoofed on YouTube

If you follow my Twitterstream, you will have seen this on Friday:

"Reporting some geezer to YouTube who is spoofing my id & posting humourous videos. Lately however, they are such I must disassociate myself"
http://twitter.com/justingsouter/status/1038229468

By way of explanation, as a result of drafting an experiment with video sites , I came across this user on YouTube.
Having skim-viewed the content, I submitted this text to the YouTube customer complaint web page:

"I would like to complain about someone who is spoofing my ID and my videos. Initially this was amusing, but I find videos which refer to terrorist beheadings (albeit with a toy dog). I deem this to be a completely inappropriate use of my identity. It seems like an open and shut case, and I'd like to know what you are going to do about it."

Although it seemed rather funny, if not painfully embarrassing, I became uncomfortable with how this was developing, and felt I should do something about it. Hence this post on my personal site, as I believe it relates to my personal identity.
This was the clip that got me worried - I haven't watched this all the way through because of being slightly spooked by it all (also, check out the comments):

I would be very grateful for feedback from you:

• What you think
• Should I be worried - or is it a back-handed compliment[!]?
• Whether to contact the YouTube account concerned and how to play it...
• How to deal with this in a sensible way without over-reacting.

Technorati Tags: identity theft,concerning,youtube,lessons learned

Free Trade Pop Star

I'm thinking of becoming a pop star. I thought about becoming a musician, but then you don't need to play an instrument or sing to be a pop star. ;-)

It's because I want to become the first Free Trade Pop Star, who reads The Economist and is centre-right on Economic matters. Social matters don't matter in this scenario.

I'll try to avoid looking like a Young Conservative [heaven forfend], but I'm going to right on in a kind of non-political way.

I'm thinking of all those agitators who think they know something about business / international Economics because people like their music.

Ok, I *think* I do because I've subscribed (and read) The Economist for over ten years. [god, how boring ;-)]. Oh, and I got a C grade for Economics A Level (back when they were difficult).

Please may I have suggestions on what other Pop Stars / Musicians are unlikely to say, the following are examples:

• Bono - would he say "get rid of the Common Agricultural Policy"?
• Sir Bob - would he say "I want vouchers in Schools and the NHS?
• Chris Martin - "I know what the Non-Accelerating Inflation rate of Unemployment is - nah nah na na nah"
• Cheryl Cole - "don't talk to me about the Laffer curve"
• Paris Hilton - "Oooh, I've been using my knowledge of Econometrics to figure out who's going to win and lose in this brilliant 10p re-working by my friends Alastair and Gordon" [or something like that]
  

You get the gist.

Would my credibility be sky-high because I'm counter-cultural? Or would the institutionalised "we know know how Economies work, stupid" from the musical fraternity mean I was frozen out of gigs and recording contracts?

Mmm, perhaps the business folk are capitalists. But then again, they probably don't like mp3 and get confused by the Pirate's Dilemma. Bah, you can't win.