Deputy Principal - Student Development & Wellbeing

March 20 has been designated as the International Day of Happiness. Given the events of the past couple of months this is a perfect opportunity to consider opting into the action behind Build Back Happier.

The United Nations in 2011 agreed on the resolution that happiness should be a ‘fundamental human goal’ for all people. Indeed, Dr Mark Williamson stated that ‘the world is a better place when we connect with and care about the world around us’ (2015) through happiness. 

At Mount Alvernia College our journey towards appreciating happiness is centred on gratitude. If you have been following our Personal Wellbeing Practices (sent via the App each week) you will have noticed that Gratitude was celebrated this week by asking our young people to consider three things for which they are grateful (see Gratitude flyer here). The mere act of doing this shifts the mind’s focus from ‘what I don’t have…and not being good enough’ to ‘what I have and that I am good enough’. It is about noticing the good and intentionally feeling good about it with the result being a satisfaction that can only strengthen one’s wellbeing. 

Martin Seligman who is responsible for the PERMAH framework which forms the basis of the Personal Wellbeing Practices, suggests that once we have identified three things for which we are grateful we should notice why they are good and the part we play in making it this way. We need to learn to name and accept the good and what went well rather than take these positives for granted. More often than not our young people spend time in the default of complaining and whinging about the negatives. Let’s be real, our young people have a lot for which to be grateful. 

There are many ways in which we can grow happiness in addition to recognising the positives in our lives. The 'Action for Happiness' website offers 10 Keys to Happy Living which are practical strategies we can adopt to grow happiness in our lives.

1. Giving – as the Franciscan Peace Prayer identifies, “it is in giving that we receive”. 
2. Exercise – many of us struggle with getting off the couch after a busy day, but if you have ventured outdoors and gone for a walk you know how good it feels to have made the move.
3. Trying Out – when is the last time you have tried something new? Being open to new experiences whatever our age is a definite fuel for our wellbeing.
4. Relating – why not replace your text messages and social media posts for a real time catch up with friends and family?
5. Awareness – studies show just how important mindfulness is to help reduce stress levels, manage emotions and consider the ways in which we react to things.
6. Direction – Goals are often spoken about as and end result without much consideration to how one is going to get there. What steps are going to be part of your process to achieve your goals? Let’s remember the process is more important than the end result.
7. Resilience – Actively coping by acknowledging the difficulties we may experience and then considering something constructive to try and make the day better is a lot more positive than avoiding our problems.
8. Emotions – In this week where we are focusing on Gratitude, we need to beat the default of our brain to automatically  focus on what’s wrong. Remember the best way to do this is to think about the things in our day that have gone well or that we have enjoyed. Your brain can be trained to default to the positives.
9. Acceptance – “self-acceptance involves acknowledging the ‘unvarnished facts’ of ourselves and our situation without judging ourselves”. This is one of the most difficult things for our young people to do given the impact of ‘fake’ images portrayed though social media.  The best conversation to have with your child is to ask them what they would say to a friend who is doubting themselves or has messed up?  Our young people need to heed their own advice.
10. Meaning – being part of a cause, getting involved, making a difference – these are all ways which help to create meaning in our lives and give us a sense of fulfillment. 

In this week where we are celebrating the International Day of Happiness, we are provided with a great opportunity to give some of the strategies a go.  What a great thing to do with your families. Just think you could try one a week for ten weeks and see which of them become habit forming. Celebrate the good everyone. We have many things for which to be grateful even when it doesn’t seem that way.

This week I had the opportunity to meet with Year 7 students that have taken on the 'Raise the Bar' Leadership program. I invite you to view some photos from our very first leadership meeting.