We all need a little boost to make life more bearable or even more fun sometimes! So today let’s look at 4 principles of psychology that will help you boost your life and satisfaction.
Principles of psychology for motivation:
Motivation is something that we all struggle with gaining sometimes. Many of us put off starting that task because we think “if only I had the motivation for it.”
There are three types of motivation that affect our lives and the things we do.
Biological motivation such as hunger. These are detailed in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, it explains that unless we have satisfied our moth basic needs such as hunger, comfort and safety we cannot reach self-actualisation.
Self-actualisation is a fancy word to mean being all that we can be.
So, if you want to perform your best in that assignment, or get the house tidy the best you can. Make sure you fulfil those basic needs first.
Before you throw your toys out of the pram and meltdown, think. Have I eaten today? Do I feel safe and healthy today? Have I given myself enough recognition for the work I have done?
Principles of psychology for resillience:
Resilience has been one of the most important skills during COVID-19. Things are tough for most people.
Hard times are inevitable but they are not the problem. The problem is the way you respond to challenges and difficulties.
The principle of a growth mindset has been applied to schools, workplaces and individuals ruthlessly in the last couple of years.
Those with a growth mindset tend to achieve more in life than people who have a fixed mindset.
“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t – you‘re right,” – Henry Ford.
Having a growth mindset isn’t just about being positive. It’s about the methods you choose to apply to overcome the problems instead of giving up.
Growth mindset + control.
Focus on the things you can control, when we lack resilience we tend to think in black and white. “Everything is going wrong” or “ There is no way to sort this out.”
If we focus on what is out of our control we will always lack resilience, but in most cases, there are at least a couple of things in our hands.
Gerber et al found that adolescents with high levels of mental toughness were less likely to experience depressive symptoms as their resilience acted as a buffer between stress and depression.
Psychology for relationships:
Social learning theory explains that when behaviours are reinforced, they will be repeated. Although this is very simplified, it speaks a lot about the role of encouragement in our relationships.
Whether it is romantic or platonic, encourage those around you when they do great things or anything!
The more you reward ‘good behaviour’ the more it will happen.
In addition to that, it goes back to the idea of extrinsic motivation, people like it when you tell them they are doing a good job!
Gratitude also plays a role, the more you show gratitude towards those around you, the more you will notice good qualities in them!
Both of these work together to strengthen your relationships with others.
Principles of psychology to improve your mental health:
We know that mental health needs looking after just as much as physical health does.
Physical exercise has shown to be an incredibly effective way of improving mental health through the principles of biopsychology. Exercise releases Endorphins, a hormone that acts as a sedative and analgesic. This can reduce the perception of pain!
Also, character strengths such as gratitude, hope, kindness, and bravery have been shown to help us adapt and cope with adversity such as physical and mental illness. (Fletcher & Sarkar, 2013).
So the next time you feel your mental health needs looking after, put on those running shoes and do something nice for someone!
I have practised gratitude every morning for the last few months and it helps to put everything into perspective!
I hope these principles will give you a new way to look at challenging situations and will improve a few areas in your life even just a bit.
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