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 [Link] | Positive Psychology Toolkit

Identifying False Beliefs About Emotions

Coping Many people have implicit beliefs about emotions. These beliefs operate
outside conscious awareness and strongly determine the way people cope with
Exercise their emotions. First, people hold beliefs about the “acceptability” of emotions.
15 min People vary in the degree to which they believe that experiencing and expressing
negative feelings is acceptable. Beliefs about the unacceptability of experiencing
Client or expressing negative thoughts and emotions have been suggested to play a key
No role in the development and maintenance of clinical problems (Surawy, Hackmann,
Hawton, & Sharpe, 1995). They can be associated with worse prognosis and
treatment outcomes (Corstorphine, 2006). In general, people with a range of
different problems, such as depression (Jack, 1991, Cramer, Gallant & Langlois,
2005), eating disorders (Corstorphine, 2006), social phobia (Clark & Wells, 1995),
post-traumatic stress disorder (Ehlers & Clark, 2000), and borderline personality
disorder (Linehan, 1993) tend to believe that showing emotions is unacceptable.
These beliefs may lead to the avoidance of emotions, which prevents the
individual from developing self-awareness, self-understanding, and, hence, the
ability to take care of oneself appropriately (Kennedy-Moore & Watson, 2001).
Growing up in an environment where the expression of difficulties or negative
feelings was met with punishment or a lack of sympathy has been suggested as
a potential cause for the development of beliefs about the unacceptability of
emotions (Linehan, 1993).

People may also hold beliefs about the malleability of emotion. For instance, one
may believe that no matter how hard one tries, one cannot change emotions.
This belief that emotions are outside personal control is likely to result in fewer
efforts to regulating emotion (Dweck, 2000; Dweck & Leggett, 1988). Because
these individuals do not engage in active attempts to regulate emotions and,
therefore, do not experience that emotions can be regulated, their belief will
remain unchallenged. Moreover, research has shown that people who believe
that emotions are less changeable experience fewer positive emotions and more
negative emotions, decreased psychological wellbeing, lower perceived emotion
regulation self-efficacy, and higher levels of depression (Kappes & Schikowski,
2013; Tamir, John, Srivastava, & Gross, 2007). By contrast, a person who believes
that emotions are changeable will display a more assertive and active pattern of
coping (Dweck & Leggett, 1988; Tamir et al., 2007). Over time, this active pattern
of coping with emotions will confirm that emotions are indeed changeable and
thus strengthen the very belief regarding the changeability of emotions. This
exercise addresses clients’ basic and often unconscious assumptions about
their emotions.

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Author

This tool was created by Hugo Alberts, Ph.D. and Lucinda Poole, Psy.D.

Goal

This exercise is designed to help clients uncover dysfunctional or false beliefs

about emotions.

Advice

■ Gently remind clients that they should not blame anyone for the false beliefs
they have about emotions. Advise them that parents, grandparents, siblings,
and teachers were likely exposed to the very same dysfunctional messages.
■ This exercise can be completed numerous times with different emotions,
as people can hold different beliefs about different emotional states. The
client may benefit from completing the exercise with each of his or her main
problematic emotional states to gain an in-depth understanding of the core
beliefs and consequences associated with each emotion. It may also be
interesting to complete the exercise with positive emotion, as the client likely
holds adaptive core beliefs about positive emotional states, which leads to
adaptive outcomes.
■ An example of a completed worksheet is presented in Appendix B. This may
be helpful for clients who have difficulty understanding the exercise.
■ The Core Beliefs About Emotions worksheet should be printed out and
brought to the session so that clients can complete it in themselves. This
helps increase client engagement in the activity as well as autonomy
and empowerment.

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References

1. Clark, D. M. & Wells, A. (1995). A cognitive model of social phobia. In R.

Heimberg, M. Liebowitz, D. A. Hope, & F. R. Schneier (Eds.), Social phobia:
Diagnosis, assessment and treatment (pp. 69-93). Guilford Press.

2. Corstorphine, E. (2006). Cognitive-emotional-behavioural therapy for the

eating disorders: Working with beliefs about emotions. European Eating
Disorders Review: The Professional Journal of the Eating Disorders Association,
14, 448-461.

3. Cramer, K. M., Gallant, M. D., & Langlois, M. W. (2005). Self-silencing and

depression in women and men: Comparative structural equation models.
Personality and Individual Differences, 39, 581-592.

4. Dweck, C. S. (2000). Self theories: Their role in motivation, personality, and

development. Taylor & Francis Group.

5. Dweck, C. S., & Leggett, E. L. (1988). A social-cognitive approach to motivation

and personality. Psychological Review, 95, 256-273.

6. Ehlers, A., & Clark, D. M. (2000). A cognitive model of posttraumatic stress

disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 38, 319-345.

7. Jack, D. C. (1991). Silencing the self: Women and depression. Harvard University
Press.

8. Kappes, A., & Schikowski, A. (2013). Implicit theories of emotion shape the
regulation of negative affect. Cognition & Emotion, 27, 952-960.

9. Kennedy-Moore, E., & Watson, J. C. (2001). Expressing emotion: Myths,

realities, and therapeutic strategies. Guilford Press.

10. Linehan, M. M. (1993). Diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. Cognitive-

behavioral treatment of borderline personality disorder. Guilford Press.

11. Surawy, C., Hackmann, A., Hawton, K., & Sharpe, M. (1995). Chronic fatigue
syndrome: A cognitive approach. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 33,
535-544.

12. Tamir, M., John, O. P., Srivastava, S., & Gross, J. J. (2007). Implicit theories of
emotion: Affective and social outcomes across a major life transition. Journal
of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 731-744.

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Identifying False Beliefs About Emotions

In this exercise, we will examine your basic assumptions about emotions, that is, what emotions
mean to you, what it means to express them, and what would happen if you allowed yourself to
feel particular emotions. The purpose of this is to uncover any false or misleading beliefs that you
have that might have a negative effect on your wellbeing.

Step 1: Choose a difficult emotion

For this exercise, choose one difficult emotion. Perhaps choose an emotional state with which
you are struggling now; for instance, you might be feeling anxious about an upcoming event or
regretful about a recent transgression. Write down the emotion you have chosen in the center of
the figure of a person depicted in the Core Beliefs About Emotions worksheet (Appendix A).

Step 2: Uncover false core beliefs about emotion

Read through the list of common false beliefs about emotions below and see which resonates
most with you. Place a checkmark next to those statements that are true for you. Pay particular
attention to those that sound familiar, as these may be thoughts that exist outside your awareness.
Please add any personal beliefs that are not listed at the end. Then, write down your core beliefs
about emotions in the thought bubbles outlined in the Core Beliefs About Emotions worksheet
(Appendix A).

■ If I lose control of my emotions in front of others, they will think less of me.

■ I should be able to control my emotions.

■ If I let myself feel this emotion, I will become overwhelmed by it.

■ If I tell others how I feel, they will use it against me.

■ If I tell others how I feel, they will think I am weak.

■ Other people don’t feel this way. There must be something wrong with me.

■ Only an immature person would get so emotional.

■ I should be able to cope with difficulties on my own without turning to others

for support.

■ To be acceptable to others, I must keep any difficulties or negative feelings

to myself.

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■ This emotional state is not a normal response; I must get rid of it.

■ A happy person would not feel this way.

■ That person responded differently than I did; therefore, my emotional reaction

is wrong.

■ If I let myself feel this pain, it will kill me.

■ Letting myself feel bad would mean falling to pieces, being a total mess, or
wallowing in self-pity.

■ If I show signs of weakness, then others will reject me.

■ Being an adult means not getting carried away by emotion; I’m supposed to
be rational!

■ Showing my emotions to others makes me look like a “drama queen.”

■ I’m stupid for feeling this way. I should just suck it up!

■ I should not let myself give in to these feelings.

■ Other:

■ Other:

Step 3: Explore the consequences of holding these beliefs

Now let’s look at what happens because of holding these beliefs about emotions. What effect do
these beliefs have on how you feel, behave, and talk to yourself when faced with this emotion?
Write down as many outcomes (positive and negative) as you can think of in the Consequences
section of the Core Beliefs About Emotions worksheet (Appendix A).

Step 4: Evaluation

Discuss the following:

■ What was it like for you to do this exercise?

■ Looking at the consequences part of the exercise, how adaptive is it for you to hold such
beliefs about your emotions?
■ What was easy or difficult about the exercise?
■ What insights have you gained about your beliefs about emotions?

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Appendix A: Core Beliefs About Emotions Worksheet

BELIEF:

BELIEF:

BELIEF:

EMOTION:

CONSEQUENCES:

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Appendix B: An example of a completed Core Beliefs About Emotions Worksheet

BELIEF:

If I tell others how

I feel, they will use it
against me.
BELIEF:

Other people don’t feel

this way. There must be
something wrong with me.
BELIEF:

If I let myself feel this

emotion, I will become
overwhelmed by it.

EMOTION:

anxiety

CONSEQUENCES:

I withdraw and isolate myself so that others don’t find

out how I feel, which prevents me from getting their
emotional support.
I am harsh and self-critical towards myself.

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Getting off the Hedonic Treadmill

Happiness Often, we have a hard time identifying what makes us feel happy. We may think
that something will leave us feeling content, and in the end, we are disappointed
Exercise when it does not. When people remain at a steady level of happiness despite
10 min external changes, such as getting a new car, buying a new phone, or getting
a pay raise, this is called the “hedonic treadmill.” While these items may bring
Client about a short increase in the feeling of happiness, the person will return to his/
No her previous level of happiness very quickly. This exercise can help people who
feel stuck get off the treadmill and realize what can increase their happiness level
long-term.

Goal

The goal of the exercise is to make clients aware of the well-known happiness
inhibiting process: hedonic adaptation. In addition, this exercise requires
participants to think of ways to prevent hedonic adaption in the future by focusing
on changes that are likely to result in long-lasting increases in happiness.

Advice

■ This exercise is for all clients, particularly those who focus on the
accumulation of more items, such as more money, bigger homes, and so on.
One way to introduce the idea of the hedonic treadmill is by identifying those
things that provided only a brief boost and had short-lived effects, although
clients assumed that they would make them happier in the long run. Then,
it is important to identify and encourage activities or items that are likely
to contribute to increased happiness over a longer period. It is essential to
understand that some items, such as more money, can make people happier
if those items are used to do the activities that make people happier. For
example, if an increase in wealth gives people the freedom to spend more
time with loved ones, help or give to others, reduce the number of sources
of stress around them, or support artistic or scientific pursuits, then that
happiness is more likely to last for longer periods.

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■ This exercise also works very well in groups. It can be used to explain the
concept of hedonic adaptation and related constructs, like intentional activity,
circumstance change, and circumstantial change (see Sheldon & Lyubomirsky,
2006). When used in groups, it can be informative to ask participants to share
their most and least beneficial items in terms of sustainable happiness and
look for similarities between these items.

References

1. Gilbert, D. (2006). Stumbling on happiness. Vintage.

2. Sheldon, K. M., & Lyubomirsky, S. (2006). Achieving sustainable gains in

happiness: Change your actions, not your circumstances. Journal of Happiness
Studies, 7, 55-86.

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Getting off the Hedonic Treadmill

Instructions

See the table on the next page.

1. In the first column, list events, circumstances, or possessions that you believe have contributed
to your happiness in the last year.

2. Using the events, circumstances, and possessions that you listed in step one, think about how
long this new situation increased your happiness. Write the amount of time in the column
titled “Duration.”

3. Select items in the “Duration” column that contributed to your happiness for over three
months by putting an “X” in the “>3 months” column.

4. For those items which resulted in an increase in happiness for over three months, in the
column titled “Specifics,” write down what specifically lead to the elevated level of happiness.

See the table below for an example:

Events, circumstances, Duration >3 Specifics

or possessions (months) months

new car 1

joined sports club 12 X Joined a new sports team. Nice people,

looking forward to meeting them
every week.

bought a new book 1

Now take action.

5. Look back at the “Events, circumstances or possessions” and “Duration” columns and notice
which situations increased happiness for one month or less. Using this information, think
about ways in which you can adjust your life to focus more on those items that break you free
of the “Hedonic Treadmill.” Using the space below the table on the next page, list several ways
you will change your life in the next month to focus more on items that provided increased
happiness for longer periods (more than 2 months or the >3 months column). Be sure to keep
your plans simple and “doable.”

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Events, circumstances, Duration >3 Specifics

or possessions (months) months

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I am getting off the “Hedonic Treadmill” by focusing on items that provided longer periods of
increased happiness by doing this:

1.

2.

3.

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The Bull’s-Eye Values Survey

Values The Bull‘s-Eye Values Survey (BEVS; Lundgren et al., 2012) is a tool that can
be used to assess values, values-action discrepancies, and barriers to value-
Assesment based living. Both the subscales and total score of the BEVS have been found
15-30 min to measure an independent dimension of psychological functioning that is
negatively correlated with depression, anxiety, and stress, and positively related
Client to psychological flexibility. Research findings imply that the BEVS is sensitive to
Yes treatment effects and is capable of differentiating between clients who receive
values-based interventions and those who do not. Its stability and internal
consistency are good.

Author

The current tool was developed by Tobias Lundgren. Used with the permission of
the author.

Goal

The goal of the BEVS is to identify and measure personal values, values attainment,
and persistence in the face of barriers.

Advice

■ The present assessment tool can be used to assess the current discrepancy
between values and actual valued living. However, it can also be used to
measure progress in treatment over time. A big advantage of the BEVS over
other value assessment tools is the graphical representation of the discrepancy
between the values and valued living. This can be very useful when using the
tool to track progress over time, as comparing different Bull’s Eye dartboards
can give a clear and immediate indication of the client’s progress.

References

1. Lundgren, T., Luoma, J.B., Dahl, J., Strosahl, K., Melin, L. (2012). The Bull’s-Eye
Values Survey: A psychometric evaluation. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice,
19, 518-526.

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The Bull’s-Eye Values Survey

Instruction

The Bull’s Eye dartboard on page 4 is divided into four areas of living that are important in people’s
lives: work/education, leisure, relationships, and personal growth/health.

1. Work/Education refers to your career aims, your values about improving your education
and knowledge, and generally feeling of use to those close to you or your community (i.e.,
volunteering, overseeing your household, etc.).

2. Leisure refers to how you play in your life, how you enjoy yourself, your hobbies or other
activities that you spend your free time doing (i.e., gardening, sewing, coaching a children’s
soccer team, fishing, playing sports).

3. Relationships refer to intimacy in your life, relationships with your children, your family of
origin, your friends, and social contacts in the community.

4. Personal growth/health refers to your spiritual life, either in organized religion or personal
expressions of spirituality, exercise, nutrition, and health risk factors, like drinking, drug use,
smoking, weight.

In this exercise, you will be asked to look more closely at your values in each of these areas and
write them out. You will then evaluate how close you are to living your life in keeping with your
values. You will also take a closer look at the barriers or obstacles in your life that stand between
you and the kind of life you want to live. Don’t rush through this; just take your time.

Part 1: Identify your values

Start by describing your values within each of the four values areas. Think about each area in
terms of your dreams, if you had an opportunity to get your wishes completely fulfilled. What are
the qualities that you would like to get out of each area, and what are your expectations from
these areas of your life? Your value should not be a specific goal; instead, it should reflect a way
you would like to live your life over time. For example, getting married might be a goal you have in
life, but it just reflects the value of being an affectionate, honest, and loving partner. To accompany
your son to a baseball game might be a goal; to be an involved and interested parent might be
the value. Note! Write your value for each area on the lines provided on the next page. It is your
values that are important in this exercise.

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Work/education:

Relationships:

Leisure:

Personal growth/health:

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Now, look again at the values you have written above. Think of your value as “bull’s eye” (the
middle of the dartboard). “Bull’s eye” is exactly how you want your life to be, a direct hit, where you
are living your life in a way that is consistent with your value. Now, make an X on the dartboard in
each area that best represents where you stand today. An X in the bull’s eye means that you are
living completely in keeping with your value for that area of living. An X far from bull’s eye means
that your life is way off the mark in terms of how you are living your life.

Since there are four areas of valued living, you should mark four Xs on the dartboard. Note! Use
the dartboard on this page before you go to Part 2 of this exercise.

My life is just as
I want it to be
My life is far from how
I want it to be

Work/Education Leisure

Personal Relationships
growth/health

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Part 2: Identify your obstacles

Now, based on what you have written in your areas of value, write down what stands between
you and living your current life the way you want to live it. When you think of the life you want to
live and the values that you would like to put in play, what gets in the way of you living that kind of
life? Describe any obstacle(s) in the space below.

Obstacle 1:

Obstacle 2:

Obstacle 3:

Obstacle 4:

Now estimate the extent to which the obstacle (s) you just described can prevent you from living
your life in a way that is in keeping with your values. Select one number below that best describes
how powerful this obstacle(s) is in your life.

Doesn’t Prevents
prevent me
me at all completely

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Obstacle 1

Obstacle 2

Obstacle 3

Obstacle 4

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Part 3: My valued action plan

Think about actions you can take in your daily life that would tell you that you are zeroing in on
the bull’s-eye in each important area of your life. These actions could be small steps toward a
particular goal, or they could just be actions that reflect what you want to be about as a person.
Usually, taking a valued step includes being willing to encounter the obstacle(s) you identified
earlier and to take action anyway.

Try to identify at least one value-based action you are willing to take in each of the four areas
listed below.

Work/education:

Relationships:

Leisure:

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Personal growth/health:

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The Resilience Plan (The Four S’s)

Resilience How do people overcome challenging life events and experiences, like the
death of a loved one, losing a job, or being diagnosed with a serious illness?
Exercise Most people react to such circumstances with a surge of negative affect and a
20 min sense of uneasiness, yet, over time, they somehow adjust and adapt. People can
“bounce back” from adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or significant sources
Client of stress because of their inherent resilience: “the process of, capacity for, or
No outcome of successful adaptation despite challenging circumstances” (Garmezy
and Masten, 1991, p. 459). According to Abiola and Udofia (2011), resilience is
associated with inner strength, competence, optimism, flexibility, and the ability
to cope effectively when faced with adversity, and minimizing the effect of risk
factors, such as stressful life events, and enhancing the protective factors, such as
optimism, social support, and active coping, increase people’s ability to deal with
life’s challenges.

Resilience is not a trait that people either have or do not have. It involves behaviors,
thoughts, and actions that can be learned and developed in anyone (McDonald et
al., 2012). One way to develop resilience is to draw on one’s learning from similar
challenges in the past and remembering what he or she already knows but may
have forgotten. What was it exactly that enabled a person to get through a period
of illness, or a divorce, or being laid off at work? That is, what supports did he/
she call on, what strategies did he/she use, what sagacity did he/she hold onto,
and what solutions did he/she find? These resources of resilience are also known
as the 4 S’s.

This tool helps people unpack their resources of resilience by giving them a
framework (The 4 S’s) to bring out what specifically works for them.

Author

This tool was created by Lucinda Poole, Psy.D. and Hugo Alberts, Ph.D.

Goal

The goal of this tool is to help clients devise a personal resilience plan based
on their existing resources (that is, what has helped them bounce back from
difficulties in the past).

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Advice

■ The beauty of this tool is that clients trust their resilience plan, given that
many, if not all, of the resources have worked for them in the past. No matter
how ridiculous it may seem to another person to listen to a particular pop
song over and over again or to buy a bar of particularly expensive chocolate
or to re-read a children’s book, the client knows it helps him/her. In this way,
these resilience plans are highly individualized and thus personally meaningful
and useful.
■ Before trying this exercise with clients, test it on yourself by thinking of an
occasion when your resilience was tested and the different ways (using the 4
S’s) that you overcame it.
■ In Part B, practitioners can draw on their expertise to guide clients to come
up with ideas for each of the 4 S’s.

References

1. Abiola, T., & Udofia, O. (2011). Psychometric assessment of the Wagnild and
Young’s resilience scale in Kano, Nigeria. BMC Research Notes, 4, 509.

2. McDonald, G., Jackson, D., Wilkes, L., & Vickers, M. H. (2012). A work-based
educational intervention to support the development of personal resilience in
nurses and midwives. Nurse Education Today, 32, 378-384.

3. Garmezy, N., & Masten, A. S. (1991). The protective role of competence

indicators in children at risk. In E. M. Cummings, A. L. Greene, & K. H. Karraker
(Eds.), Life-span developmental psychology: Perspectives on stress and coping
(pp. 151-174). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

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The Resilience Plan (The Four S’s)

Resilience is the ability to cope with whatever life throws at you and bounce back stronger and
more resolute than before. Resilient people work through life challenges using personal resources,
including social support, coping strategies, sagacity (which is the wisdom and insight that we hold
onto), and solution-seeking. This exercise helps you draw on your resilience resources to build a
personal resilience plan, which you can use to help you combat any future challenges.

„ Part 1: My past sources of resilience

Step 1: Recall a recent example of resilience

Think about a time recently when you overcome a challenge or a setback in your life. Perhaps you
injured yourself, or received some negative feedback at work, or had an argument with a friend or
family member. Briefly describe this difficulty below.

Step 2: Identify supportive people

Which ‘people’ in your life supported you to keep standing when it would have been easier to fall?
For instance, did you call an old friend or ask a teacher for advice? Perhaps a parent or grandparent
gave you a pep talk. Write down who you called on for support in the top right cell of the table in
Appendix A.

Step 3: Identify strategies

What ‘strategies’ did you use to help yourself cope with any negative thoughts and feelings that
showed up in response to the difficulty? For example, did you meditate, write in a gratitude
journal, go for a walk, listen to a particular song or type of music, or have a massage to release
tension? Write down the strategies you used in the bottom left cell of the table in Appendix A.

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Step 4: Identify sagacity

What ‘sagacity’ helped you bounce back from this difficulty? Sagacity is the wisdom and insight
that you hold onto. It can come from song lyrics, novels, poetry, spiritual writings, quotes from
the famous, the sayings of one’s grandparent, or learning from one’s experience. Write down your
sagacity in the bottom right cell of the table in Appendix A.

Step 5: Identify solution-seeking behaviors

What solution-seeking behaviors did you display to help you actively deal with the problem? For
example, did you problem-solve, seek out new information, plan, negotiate, speak up and voice
your opinion, or ask others for help? Write down the solution-seeking behaviors you displayed in
the top left cell of the table in Appendix A.

„ Part 2: My resilience plan

Step 6: Describe a current difficulty

In the space below, describe a current difficulty or challenge that you are facing.

Step 7: Apply the resilience plan to the current difficulty

Given the social supports, strategies, sagacity, and solution-seeking behaviors that helped you last
time, let us look at how you could use the same or similar resources to help you bounce back from
this current difficulty you are facing (identified in the previous step). Read through your completed
plan (Appendix A) and write down the skills, supports, strategies, and sagacity that could work for
you again in the blank resilience plan template in Appendix B. Allow some flexibility here in the
sense that the same type of social support/ strategy/ sagacity/ solution-seeking behavior could
be tweaked according to your current situation, for instance, going to your manager rather than
a parent for support with a work-related problem. An example of a completed resilience plan is
shown in Appendix C.

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Step 8: Carry out your resilience plan

The next step is to put your resilience plan into action. To do this, consider the order in which
you would use your different supports, strategies, sagacity, and solution-seeking behaviors: Which
resource is most feasible to start with? Often the most feasible resource is the smallest step that
you can take, such as calling your partner. In your resilience plan (Appendix B), place number 1
next to the first resource you will use. Then, continue to number your different resources in the
order in which you would feasibly use them.

Then, start using your first resource and continue to work through your resilience plan (in order)
until you have overcome this difficulty.

Once you have come through the other side, please move on to the next step.

„ Part 3: Evaluation

Step 9: Evaluate your resilience plan

Discuss the following:

■ How was it for you to carry out your resilience plan? Did it help you bounce back from this
difficulty?
■ What resources (specific skills/supports/strategies/sagacity) were most helpful to you? Why?
■ What resources (specific skills/supports/strategies/sagacity) were least helpful to you? Why?
■ Did you not use any resources, and if so, why?
■ Is there anything you would like to add to your resilience plan?
■ In what other areas of your life could you use your resilience plan? How might things improve
for you?

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Appendix A: My Past Sources of Resilience

Supports Strategies
that kept you upright that kept you moving

Sagacity Solution-seeking
that gave you comfort and hope behaviors you showed

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Appendix B: My Resilience Plan

Supports Strategies
that keep you upright that keep you moving

Sagacity Solution-seeking
that gives you comfort and hope behaviors you can show

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Appendix C: Example of a completed Resilience Plan

Difficult situation: Stuffed up a job interview and did not get the job

Supports Strategies
that keep you upright that keep you moving
Called my partner Joe - 0432182074 Went for a walk
Called my mom - 0409867222 Smiling Mind meditation app
Booked an apt with my therapist Calming breathing technique
Played with my dog
Did some gardening
Wrote in my gratitude journal
Expressive writing

Sagacity Solution-seeking
that gives you comfort and hope behaviors you can show
Remembered that growth comes Asked for feedback from job interviewers
from mistakes. Applied for 3x new jobs
“This too shall pass” - sticky note on the fridge Sought professional coaching for
Thought about what I could do differently job interviewing
next time
and wrote down on paper

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 [Link] | Positive Psychology Toolkit

Energy Management Audit

Resilience The popularity of time management tools and resources is a crucial indicator
of our keen desire to try and balance the competing demands that face most
Assessment individuals today. Yet, time is a finite resource that cannot be expanded. A recent
10-15 min large-scale Gallup poll demonstrated the effect of balancing the competing
demands on the workforce, with 23% of employees reporting feeling burned out
Client very often; and a further 44% reporting feeling burned out sometimes (Gallup,
No 2018). Employee burnout can trigger a downward spiral of both employee and
organizational performance and also has a key influence on employees’ family life.
A counterpoint perspective that is gaining increasing traction focuses on learning
how to manage energy, which is defined as the strength and vitality that develops
our capacity for doing work. Energy is a renewable resource that can significantly
enhance the efficacy of the time we invest. This is a fundamental paradigm shift
from a focus on efficiency to efficacy.

To continue to operate at our best, it is important to understand where we

gain energy from and what we can do to refuel. Our energy sources are closely
connected to our basic human needs that cover mind, body, emotions, and spirit.
These interact together to influence one another; therefore, no one source is
enough on its own. Physical energy is derived from how well we fuel our body,
including nutrition, exercise, rest, and sleep. When we can manage our emotions,
and thus develop psychological flexibility, we can enhance the quality of our
emotional energy and subsequent performance. Mental energy can be honed by
learning how to develop attentional focus, a key strategy to counteract the growing
influence of distractions so prevalent in today’s work and social environments.
Finally, we can tap into the wellspring of spiritual energy when our activities are
aligned with our values and develop a sense of meaning and purpose.

This audit is designed to provide insights into an individual’s energy strengths

and deficits, building awareness of their effects on their daily functioning. This
can then be leveraged in designing an ongoing program to enhance wellbeing
and performance.

Author

This tool was adapted from Tony Schwartz and Catherine McCarthy’s work
by Rachel Colla.

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Goal

The goal of this tool is to enable clients to assess their current energy levels in
4 domains: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.

Advice

■ This tool may be paired with the Energy Audit tool to track varying energy
levels throughout the day and develop further insights into the key activities
that fuel the client’s energy levels.
■ Please note that although this questionnaire is not directly tested in research,
the fundamentals of the model are based on research.

Scoring

To determine your overall energy rating, add together all checked statements:

Guide to scores:

0-3: Excellent energy management skills

4-6: Reasonable energy management skills
7-10: Significant energy management deficits
11-16: A full-fledged energy management crisis

To determine what you need to work on, add together checkmarks for each
category:

Body:

Emotions:

Mind:

Spirit:

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References

1. Gallup (2018). Employee burnout, Part 1: The five main causes. [Link]
[Link]/workplace/237059/[Link]

2. Hobfoll, S.E. (2002). Social and psychological resources and adaptation.

Review of General Psychology, 6(4), 307-324.

3. Schwartz, T. & McCarthy, C. (2007). Manage your energy, not your time. Harvard
Business Review. [Link]
time

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 [Link] | Positive Psychology Toolkit

Energy Management Audit

Instructions

Checkmark all statements that represent your usual daily actions.

Body

I frequently skip breakfast, or I settle for something that isn’t nutritious.

I often wake up feeling tired and rarely get at least seven to eight hours of sleep.

I don’t take regular breaks during the day to renew and recharge, e.g., I often eat
lunch at my desk, if I eat it at all.

I could work out more often (i.e., I do less than three cardiovascular exercise sessions
per week and strength training at least once a week).

Emotions

I don’t feel like I have enough time with my family and loved ones. When I’m with
them, I often feel like my thoughts are distracted on other things, such as work.

I could express my appreciation to others and/or savor my accomplishments and

blessings more frequently.

I often find myself feeling irritable, impatient, or stressed at work, especially when
work is demanding.

I have too little time for the activities that I genuinely enjoy.

Mind

I regularly work in the evenings or on weekends, and I rarely take an e-mail-free

holiday.

I have difficulty focusing on one thing at a time, and I am easily distracted during the
day, e.g., by e-mail.

I don’t take enough time for strategizing, reflection, and creative thinking.

I spend much of my day reacting to immediate demands and crises, rather than
focusing on activities with longer-term value.

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Spirit

My decisions at work are more often influenced by external demands than by

a strong, clear sense of my purpose.

I don’t invest as much time and energy as I would like to make a positive difference
in other peoples’ lives or the world.

There are significant gaps between what I hold to be most important in my life and
how I allocate my time and energy.

I don’t spend enough time at work doing what I do best and enjoy the most.

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