The Good Life and Spiritual Formation
In this assignment, we introduce you to a concept referred to as “the good life.” What is “the good life,” you ask? If you randomly posed that question to 100 strangers you would likely get 100 different and probably very diverse answers. It is a subjective question, of course, that is based on a person’s interpretation of “good.” For some, “the good life” means financial security. For others, it could involve robust health, abundant friendships, living in safety, harmonious family relationships, or living in a geographic area that fits their dream.
When asking that question from the perspective of positive psychology, it is focused on the idea of what contributes to a person’s happiness and it is closely aligned with a person’s core values. In other words, how you define your core values will greatly influence your conception of what a “good” life, or one that promotes well-being, entails. The research behind positive psychology has identified five core components that lead to a state of well-being in most people using an acronym called PERMA. PERMA stands for:
· Positive emotion
· Engagement
· Relationship
· Meaning
· Accomplishment
Because these are so important to our overall understanding of positive psychology and the coaching process, we will discuss each of these components separately in the course. As a starting point, in this assignment, you will have the opportunity to take an online PERMA survey that will measure your well-being and your level of satisfaction with your current work. In addition to immediate feedback from the survey, the assessment tool will also prompt you to develop an action plan for desired changes you might want to make in your life. You will then use this feedback and action plan in the written portion of this assignment.
You will also apply the learning from the assessment to life coaching and spiritual formation. Understanding how the PERMA components integrate with life coaching and spiritual formation will be a main focus of this assignment. This integration will be especially important as you begin to think ahead to your capstone project, which we will discuss in the next assignment.
Upon successful completion of this assignment, you will be able to:
· Describe the PERMA (Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationship, Meaning and Accomplishment) model and how it applies personally.
Background Information
After completing the assigned reading and watching the PERMA video, you’ll take a free online survey that measures your well-being or level of satisfaction with your current work. You’ll need to create an account (don’t worry, it’s free), after which you’ll receive a password by email that will enable you to take the survey. Remember, you can opt out of future contact from the site.
The instructions for taking the survey are self-explanatory and the results are available immediately after completing the survey. The results are followed by prompts to apply action points in two of the five areas measured in the survey. As you indicate your action points, the inventory will contribute additional practical suggestions on how to implement your plan. You can then print an extensive PDF report, which you can use to develop your paper for this assignment.
Instructions
1. Read Chapter 2, “Why Feeling Good Matters: The Science Behind Positive Emotions,” in your textbook Positive Psychology in Coaching: Applying Science to Executive and Personal Coaching.
2. Read these articles:
a. “ What is the Good Life? (new tab) ”
b. “ Spiritual Formation (new tab) ”
3. Watch the following videos:TEDTalks:Dr. Matin Seligman
1. PERMA: ( Transcript (new tab) )
2. The Good Life From Title:( Transcript (PDF document) )
4. Complete the PERMA Well-Being Survey (new tab) . Complete the PERMA Well-Being Survey. If you don’t have an account, you will need to register with your email address to create an account. Registration is free. A confirmation email will be sent to your email.
5. After completing the PERMA survey on well-being, answer the following questions in a three- to four-page paper.
a. You will have three assignments related to the Good Life throughout this course. In preparation for Workshop Three, you will have the opportunity to share what you are learning about the Good Life with a friend, family member, or coworker. Write about who you would like to engage in a conversation about the Good Life.
b. Schedule a time to meet with your colleague, friend, or family member about the Good Life conversation during Workshop Two so you can complete a write-up of your meeting in Workshop Three.
c. What are the three most important takeaways from your PERMA report? Explain them in detail.
d. What two areas did you choose to develop your plan around? Why did you choose these two areas?
e. Of the several suggestions that were provided for implementing changes in these two areas, which are you most likely to implement in the immediate future? How do you concretely intend to do this for both areas?
f. How do you see the PERMA components being effectively used in life coaching? Name at least two ways.
g. How would you integrate spiritual formation into the well-being goals developed in your action plan? Be specific.
h. Thinking critically about the PERMA model, what seems to be missing or needs more emphasis to fully address the overall physical, mental, social, and emotional health of an individual? Provide detailed comments to explain your points.
i. In light of what you have learned about PERMA and the Good Life so far, what are two key themes or concepts that connect with you or are important to you in pursuit of a good life? You will have an opportunity to create a draft of a Good Life Project in PSY 590 based on what you are learning in this course, so as you consider themes that are important to you in this assignment, also keep in mind how you might live these concepts out in a practical way.
6. Be specific in your responses and use concrete examples from the textbook, supplemental readings, outside sources, and personal experiences to frame your writing.
7. Use the APA 7th Edition.
8. If you use outside resources in the development of your paper, be sure to appropriately cite the material. At the very least, you will have one citation for the survey.
a. Use in-text citations and APA format for direct quotations and references to the readings.
Collepals.com Plagiarism Free Papers
Are you looking for custom essay writing service or even dissertation writing services? Just request for our write my paper service, and we'll match you with the best essay writer in your subject! With an exceptional team of professional academic experts in a wide range of subjects, we can guarantee you an unrivaled quality of custom-written papers.
Get ZERO PLAGIARISM, HUMAN WRITTEN ESSAYS
Why Hire Collepals.com writers to do your paper?
Quality- We are experienced and have access to ample research materials.
We write plagiarism Free Content
Confidential- We never share or sell your personal information to third parties.
Support-Chat with us today! We are always waiting to answer all your questions.
