Monetize Your Positivity Strength

Positivity ® is one of my wife’s top strengths. Now you know why I married her—she has incredible relationship strengths. People with Positivity are generous with praise and love to smile. They are light-hearted, playful, humorous, and they’ve got bundles of passion, energy, and kindness. But don’t get me wrong—Positive people are not inherently naïve. They realize there are crises and challenges in the world but choose to focus on what is right instead of what is wrong. The strength of Positivity helps them to find the good in all situations.

People with the strength of Positivity make special events come alive. Birthdays, retirement parties, get-togethers of all sorts—Positive individuals enjoy creating events where others laugh, connect, share, and feel good about life. As a result, people are drawn to individuals with Positivity. However, individuals with Positivity should protect themselves from those who see the minefields instead of the flowers in the garden, as negative people tend to drain their energy.

It is important to remember that Positive people are not always in a “good mood.” My wife may not be feeling great for any number of reasons, but she manages to have a Positive demeanor and doesn’t bring others down. If we are dining at a restaurant and my wife isn’t enjoying the food, she will never say it because she doesn’t want to dampen anyone else’s experience. This can be a strength and a hindrance because Positive people may not open up and share their hurts, challenges, or stresses, thus internalizing tough emotions.

People with Positivity are not interested in changing negative people, as they prefer instead other Positive people. Throw a Positive person into a room full of negative people, and the positivity will wilt. Throw them into a room full of Positive people with Positive potential, and the Positive person will find the spark that will light their potential on fire.

If you’re curious how to monetize Positivity, check out my positive psychology friend, Margaret Greenberg, and read her book, Profit from the Positive: Proven Leadership Strategies to Boost Productivity and Transform Your Business. Greenberg highlights research from neuroscience that shows emotions are contagious. Mirror neurons in our brains can catch another person’s mood, just like catching a cold. Dr. Marcial Losada and Dr. Barbara Fredrickson, teach that high functioning teams need a 6:1 positivity to negativity ratio in order to flourish. As leaders, it’s crucial to manage our emotions, like a thermostat, and in doing so, regulate the emotional temperature to create a stronger, smarter, richer work environment. 

Another example of making a great living from Positivity is Barbara Fredrickson. She’s a social psychologist who researches emotions and positive psychology. She is the Kenan Distinguished Professor; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience; the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Director, Positive Emotions and Psychophysiology Laboratory; President, International Positive Psychology Association. Her “broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions” is foundational within Positive Psychology. This theory provides a blueprint for how pleasant emotional states, as fleeting as they are, contribute to resilience, well-being, and health.

Dr. Fredrickson is among the most highly cited scholars in psychology and has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. She has two general audience books, Positivity (2009, www.PositivityRatio.com) and Love 2.0 (2013, www.PositivityResonance.com) have been translated for more than 30 foreign markets.

She was identified in 2014 as the 13th most influential psychologist alive today contributing to counseling psychology. In a partnership with UNC-Chapel Hill and Coursera, Dr. Fredrickson began teaching a free, on-line course in 2015 on Positive Psychology. The first offering enrolled more than 57,000 learners worldwide. Through this and other means, her work influences scholars and practitioners worldwide, within education, business, healthcare, the military, and beyond.

There is power in positivity. In Gallup’s Called to Coach Webcast from October 17, 2018, in the text below the window for the Webcast, it says – “If you have Positivity as a dominant theme when you’re at your best, you are a multiplier of hope.” Hope is amazingly strong. In Hebrews 11:1, the Bible tells us, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Could you make a thriving career like Barbara Fredrickson and be a multiplier of hope to bring positivity into other lives? 

What career could your Positivity strength multiply hope in others? How could you monetize your Positivity strength as an entrepreneur? What products and services could your Positivity help others to live richer ? Let me know in the comments below. Want to talk with me about how you could monetize your strengths or other business-building questions you have? Please schedule you free Ask Brent Anything call, and Let’s Talk Strengths.