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Week 2 [14-20.03.2016]

Watch the presentation  The happy secret to better work  at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLJsdqxnZb0   and comment on it. Resort to your personal experiences.


Comments

Unknown said…
Before I comment on anything else: I know it's staged, but I absolutely loved the story about Amy the Unicorn. It was a very funny TED Talk, which actually is an interesting point all on its own. In the shots of the audience, we can see a timer counting down the 12 or so minutes each speaker has. It's a very limited time to convey all the information you collected during your research. I don't mean to criticise the speaker because his research is well within my interests, but I wanted to note that because of time restraints Achor couldn't allow the audience a long time to analyse the information. Therefore he had to make his speech appealing in other ways, in this case humorous, in order to hold their attention. It's obvious how very well practiced it was; Achor was speaking fast but made hardly any mistakes. TED Talks are always great to watch and learn about public speaking.

But on to the important stuff. I think Achor is right in concluding that we don’t stop when reaching a goal that’s supposed to make us happy; we just create a new goal. That's ambitious but it might also be unhealthy at times and, in turn, prevent us from achieving anything. ‘Nothing is ever good enough’ can easily turn into ‘everything is pointless’.
I also liked his advice on how to change our mindsets, because it didn’t involve any elaborate plans. Each of the things he proposed might not take longer than 10 minutes of our time. For example, you might not be a fan of exercise but it is proven that it makes people feel better psychologically. I used an app that guided you through a 7-minute workout. Even that little helped on day-to-day basis. Also helping others can make one feel better; Random Acts of Kindness is actually a great system, cause it might not even require any money or time, only our willingness. It can be as little as telling someone they look nice or holding a door for somebody. When our brain sees how small things can make a big difference, ergo a ‘success’, it’s easier to cope with bigger issues.
Unknown said…
From my experience, I know how important it is to be happy in every moment of your life. These days, whether we like it or not, we are all taking part in a big ratrace. We`re constantly trying to reach success, and when we do, we are setting new goals to be better/stronger/richer. I wasted 3 years of my life studying wrong major whitch was making me sad and depressed for faaar to long :). We should attach greater importance to the Achor words, that happiness will give us a success, not the opposite way.
Unknown said…
I think that, at some point of life, everyone could relate to what mr Achor is saying. For me usually it happend after physical exercises, that it does not matter, that I have exams, projects and so on. Only what you are doing at this exact moment, that you study, exercise play an instrument or whatever else you are doing matters. Every task you fulfill, every exercise you make brings you closer to your own desired destination. But we cannot let our objectives cover our current achievements.
What is most interesting in this speech is that we are given exact steps that could bring us happiness. Definitely have to try it out.
I also found interesing the steps to create lasting positive change. Although I think they're some kind of general guidelines that wouldn't work for everyone, I still agree with most of them. I would also add to this formula spending time with people you really like. There's no better break from days/weeks of hard work than creating some crazy memories with your friends.
Unknown said…
I have to admit that I personally am not the biggest fan of motivational "be happy" speeches/lectures that always have just some sort of basic and stock guidelines for leading a happy life. I just don't find it to be so inspirational. Even though I agree that those general rules (like exercise and acts of kindness) are probably good for people and could help them improve how they feel, it's not some groundbreaking new information.

I personally like the system of setting up some smaller goals and then setting new bigger ones when I reach them. I don't think it necessarily has to lead to the idea that nothing is good enough.

I found the first part of the speech (just after the anecdote about his sister ;) ) "Escaping the cult of the Average" to be very interesting. These days people are making everything for those who are average and in my opinion we should strive to be better and not to be underachievers. Every year we make tests in schools or trials for specific jobs easier just to accommodate more people instead of pushing them to achieve higher ratings and meet the standards required in the past. I think that being more inclusive and open, which are obviously good things, have to necessarily mean that we should lower standards.
TED is TED and there are no poor speeches in. Second thing is that that it obvious what he says. I don't know any successful people who are pessimists. What I just can't agree is that whole medical theory behind. Anyway, with such speech skills he can sell anything to anyone. That's why it's interesting even if i don't agree with all mentioned arguments.
Unknown said…
It was a great speech. I love talks from TED because they represent a high level and are spoken in such a way that you can't get bored. I liked that the speaker talked all the time with a sense of humor and it was even more convincing. I agree with him in 100%. When you are in a positive mood then whole world favors you. Nowadays positive thinking is difficult, because we are bombarded with lots of negative information, enough that you watch the news. Once on youtube I came across a movie about the law of attraction (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqgAUVz0Mp8).
The film is a little trashy, but told us that we could using our thoughts shape our reality. When we think about something positive then we attract positive things. In my opinion it's not a magic. As Shawn Achore spoke it's a since, dopimine and the rest of hormones that affect on ours brains and cause that we have more willingness to act. I think that he talk about good pratice, I mean that we should write one postivie e-mail or message per day to someone. When we do good things then we also feel better.
Michał Pycek said…
I am very glad that our task was to watch a TED Talks video, since I find this whole project very inspiring. In my opinion people who take part in this and share their experience with the audience are very strong, open minded and influential, because very often their stories usually change my perspective of perceiving a subject, which enables me to become more open minded and curious as well.

Regarding the video titled ''The happy secret to better work'' the first thing that occured to me was that from my own experience also, the attitude and approach to a certain situation or an issue is already defining my reaction to it and the way I am going to handle it. I agree that if you are mainly receiving negative information, you will probably automatically set your mind in a negative way, expecting only the worst. Instead, we should try to focus on the positives of the situation and use them as a tool to overcome out stress or obstacles. In my opinion the most shocking story was about Harvard, when the speaker pointed out that the people who were excited and proud to study there, changed their perspective of the studies in relation to stress, competition and workload. This shows that people can set goals and achieve them later on, but somehow the moment they finalize them, the new obstacles are standing in way and people begin to feel it is not enough and the job has not ended - it has just started.
This is why I believe we should keep the positive spirit and rely on our optimism, because it depends on us how we perceive things that we experience.
Michał Pycek said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said…
I really liked that presentation. Even though you could feel that there isn't much time to present the topic, Shawn Achor managed to give a very interesting speech. The information he gave might not be groundbreaking, but it was a very nice revision and a reminder to people who seek improvement. The funny bits like the graph at the beginning of the presentation and the story about the unicorn girl made the whole thing entertaining and light-hearted which is good in my opinion.
Unknown said…
Thank you for shared this video. Generally I love TED. There are a lot of interesting videos that can help people in their career and even everyday life. Back to film - I agree that positive thinking inluences the work. Optimists will have it easier. I have to say that I'm positive attitude to work, then the work is enjoyable. Of course you have to like what you are doing. people delect the positive emotions and then they want to work with us or they want to use our services. It is true that parents, teachers warn young people against dishonest. Of course young people take into account failure but it can’t be the limit of happiness, joy.
Unknown said…
I love TED presentations, great portion of positive energy and practical knowledge wrapped in a humorous speech. I believe the problem concerning lack of positive attitude, the speaker elaborates on, often arise from fear of making mistakes and facing consequences. Taking example about the Harvard students who instantly stop appreciating the fact they managed to get to this university because their minds are already occupied by all difficulties they're going to encounter. Its a nature of ambitious people to focus on possible obstacles and minimize the risk of failing. Some of us can cope with incoming problems with suitable distance and the others are being overwhelmed.
I live by the rule 'it always can get worse'. From the first sight it may sound pessimistic but I use it as a tool to set up my mind to a positive way of thinking, appreciating the state I'm currently in and disregarding all the negative things that have happened.
Unknown said…
Shawn is definitely knows his subject. It was interesting to listen to his speech and see his point of view on certain questions. The most interesting part for me was his presentation of Harvard and the problems and challenges students face in the walls of this elite institution. It perfectly depicts all the heavy burden some students are carrying just by being part of the elite society which prepares one of the best specialists in the world. The way our brain sees the situation and comprehends it influences greatly on the way we are able to accept situation around us. As it was seen from the Shawn's speech even those who were lucky to study in Harvard were focused on the challenges and responsibilities instead of opportunities and possibilities. Such attitude brings numerous artificial problems into their lives.

Another speech on the TED I like to hear is the speech of the guy named Sean Stephenson, however, he found himself in the prison of his own body. Being born terribly mutilated, he managed not only survive but also become successful and useful part of the society with the help of hard work and his mindset. And his idea is in numerous way similar to the one that was represented by Achor.

If you are interested you can see his speech by clicking on this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaRO5-V1uK0

And besides you can also see this guy and his views on the life, if people with such desiases are able to live happily, people that are healthy should be able to organize their mindset and their life to reach the result:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36m1o-tM05g
Unknown said…
It was a great presentation, really fun to watch. Usually I'm a bit skeptical about such speeches but in general I have to agree with mr. Achor. I tend to fall victim to the way of thinking that I need to succeed to be happy and it takes me a lot mental work to remind myself once in a while that it should be the other way round. Because when you think about it it's pretty obvious that we work better when we feel good. Realizing that bringing ourselves down won't do us any good helps a lot and those little tips on how to change our way of thinking, shown in the video, are quite accurate in my opinion.
I've also noticed how quickly he speaks. I know that nowadays people's attention span is very short, so it's logical to make short presentations - but I've also had troubles with analysing his words; before I could process one sentence, three more followed.
Usually I'm not a fan of motivational speeches, but I liked this one - it didn't focus on the ways to become more efficent and motivated, but instead showed an interesting phenomenon that's really common in modern world - thinking that success is a key to happiness. I think it's really important to show people that it's actually otherwise - despite of what media imply, you don't have to be a CEO and earn $15000 a month to be a happy person.

I used to think that I need to be successful for a very long time, and it affected my mind in a very negative way - I became obsessed with proving my worth through doing more and more work, and constantly feeling guilty for not being as good as I imagined. I think it's a real shame no one has shown me a presentation like this 5 years earlier. :)
Unknown said…
I agree with that presentation, mr. Achor really knows his stuff, and boy does he talk fast. I really liked "if happiness is on the other side of success your brain never gets there" quote. Quite obvious but you never really think about it that way.
When I started working it was quite stressful to me but when i started to look at stress more like a challenge instead of a threat it really did help a lot, just as it says in that presentation.
Unknown said…
It was an interesting speech, i don't really like motivation spechees but this one was great, and kind of funny too. In easy way he gave us some knowledge, and he bowed us to rethink a few basic tings.

That was the best presentation i ever watch on TED talks and i'm sure that i want to listen some more presentation from Shawn.

I really like that way of presentation, he told us a story in which he gave us a facts and information about brain and his research.
Unknown said…
He was talking so fast that I had to turn on the subtitles. I like the presentation due to his funny stories, but when it comes to the topic I don’t find it very useful. It would be nice if we were thankful and happy to improve our work, but bad stories can be sold much easier.
Unknown said…
I am somehow torn between, how accurate yet rather simple the message behind this speech was, and my internal distaste for stand-up styled speeches. Anyway, I'll keep my opinion on the way it was presented and skip to, which is much more important, what was presented. On that I do not really feel like I need to tell that I agree with it, and therefor enjoyed the speech despite it's style. I got a bit more academic style at the end, with all that statistic and data, but it's TED-ED so it was to be expected.
Unknown said…
I have already seen this presentation, but I have to say that it was a pleasure to watch it once again. I absolutely agree that people are getting to much focus on the "average" and overall negative stuff. Focusing on positives can give us definitely more valuable things than thinking only on what's negative or average.
And yeah, I agree with him, that we can shape our reality, for example with positive thinking. And it is also very true, that we push happiness always a few steps forward, we just can't reach it. As a society we treat success as a happiness, but once we succeed we just can't be happy with it, we are starting to look for another goal to reach, and therefore we don't feel happy anymore.
And that's right, we just need to be happy to be more successful. And we have to find a way to see things being positive :) And look for a positive side of every single situation.
Unknown said…
I loved the way the presentation was done! Very concrete and not boring at any moments. I also loved a little "stand-up attitude" that was incorporated in the semminar! He was talking very fast but not making me feel i couldn't catch up. Actually it wasn't distracting and got my attention. I personally have some experience with that kind of psychological-coaching thing, so the whole subject of the presentation wasn't new to me. I used to attend to several psychologists and so-called career/work coaches. The whole idea of that kind of methods is a thing called affirmation which is self-convincing to some idea. The key to that is to actually believe in thing we want to convince ourselves and positive thinking is advised also :)
I think this kinda trick which was presented may be useful and also many people would really be worked on it but i think we are still too far from finding any golden rule of happiness and productivity if any even exists
Unknown said…
I'm not entirely against motivational speeches and coaching - I think every form of positive motivation like it is good, but I didn't like this specific example, while I may agree with the sense of his presentation, it's form didn't speak to me.
I agree that our society pushes the boundaries of our happiness outside of reach, creating a situation where we always require more than we have to feel happy. I find the mentioned methods of improving one's happiness interesting but as always with those kind of videos, it all feels too easy to the point where I feel I'm being told things I just want to hear.
I have read and heard about multiple books about productivity and ease in work or learning. All of them focuses on no-stress orientation and changing behaviours in your life. There is many ideas how to be productive and how to work better. Some people life 'Pomodoro' technique. Shortly it is a stopper that measures time when you do your task. It is important to divide your's work into small peaces so you can finish some part of in in i.e. 30 minutes. After this period you have a break to relax and then you start another round. There is 10 rounds everyday and many people like this technique. You can write what you will do in every round and after whole day you see how productive you were.

Another idea is to make 'to do' list and try to do as many points from list as possible. After all you may be disappointed that you did not succeed to finished everything and you can be overwhelmed by the number of tasks waiting for you.

The other think is to work when you are the most productive and focused and that is just after you wake up. There is common idea that we have limited amount of productive time everyday and we can't be focused for whole day. It seems reasonable.

And the last idea I want to share is making long and short time goals. It is important to know what exactly you want to achieve in certain amount of time. You have to specify task and time when it have to be finished.
Marcin Konarski said…
Is is obvious that our attitude makes differences and being happy makes our life much better, not only our work life but whole life. If it was just about staying positive and happy, but we might be in better position than people who work in Biedronka. And I don’t think that attitude will change their life. What I recommend is to work on self-development. You can change your life dramatically and have much better life no matter how bad situation is right now.

TED speakers and speeches are amazing and I absolutely recommend to attend them, because it is much powerful than just listening it online. You can check online when they will be in Poland and there is many of them. Sometimes it is hard to get there, because you fill application online and you have to answer one of the worst questions ever “Why we should choose You?”.

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