Positivity

"Positivity" is the word we use at ToonUps for our philosophy of being good, feeling good, and doing good. As Barbara Fredrickson writes in her book, Positivity, "It consists of the whole range of positive emotions—from appreciation to love, from amusement to joy, from hope to gratitude, and then some." At ToonUps, we work to replace negativity with Positivity with our games, apps, and our attitude.

Below are some resources to learn more about Positivity and how it can improve your life.

Books

  • Ban Breathnach, Sarah. Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort of Joy. "The Simple Abundance path, created by New York Times #1 Best Selling author, Sarah Ban Breathnach, is based upon six simple and yet profound principles: Gratitude, Simplicity, Order, Beauty, Harmony and Joy."
  • Covey, Stephen R. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. "Covey presents an approach to being effective in attaining goals by aligning oneself to what he calls "true north" principles of a character ethic that he presents as universal and timeless."
  • Emmons, Robert. Thanks!: How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier. "A scientifically groundbreaking, eloquent look at how we benefit -- psychologically, physically, and interpersonally -- when we practice gratitude."
  • Fredrickson, Barbara. Positivity. "In Positivity, Dr. Fredrickson reveals how the stunning new scientific discoveries about this powerful – though undervalued – state of mind can enhance your relationships, improve your health, relieve depression, and broaden your mind."
  • Gilbert, Daniel. Stumbling on Happiness. "Smart, witty, accessible, and laugh-out-loud funny, Stumbling on Happiness brilliantly describes all that science has to tell us about the uniquely human endeavor to envision the future, and how likely we are to enjoy it when we get there."
  • Lyubomirsky, Sonja. The How of Happiness. "The How of Happiness is a different kind of happiness book, one that offers a comprehensive guide to understanding what happiness is, and isn't, and what can be done to bring us all closer to the happy life we envision for ourselves."
  • McGonigal, Jane. Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World. "Visionary game designer Jane McGonigal reveals how we can harness the power of games to solve real-world problems and boost global happiness."
  • O'Connor, Richard. Happy At Last. "Drawing on the latest scientific and psychological research, and filled with practical advice and exercises, Happy At Last is the definitive guide to understanding: the core skills that we need to feel fulfilled in today's world, strategies for increasing happiness, and techniques for keeping sadness and stress at bay."
  • Rubin, Gretchen. The Happiness Project. "The Happiness Project brilliantly synthesizes the wisdom of the ages with current scientific research, as Rubin brings readers along on her journey to greater happiness."
  • Seligman, Martin. Authentic Happiness. "Drawing on groundbreaking psychological research, Seligman shows how Positive Psychology is shifting the profession's paradigm away from its narrow-minded focus on pathology, victimology, and mental illness to positive emotion, virtue and strength, and positive institutions."
  • Shimoff, Marci. Happy For No Reason. "In Happy for No Reason: 7 Steps to Being Happy from the Inside Out, transformational expert Marci Shimoff offers a breakthrough approach to being happy, one that doesn't depend on achievements, goals, money, relationships, or anything else "out there."

Websites

  • Ban Breathnach, Sarah. Simple Abundance. "Simple Abundance Online is a membership circle of like-minded life travelers seeking to live the journey of comfort and joy." http://www.simpleabundance.com
  • Beliefnet. "Our mission is to help people like you find, and walk, a spiritual path that will bring comfort, hope, clarity, strength, and happiness." http://www.beliefnet.com/
  • Ivone, Melissa Morris. Operation Nice. "Stop by to read some positive, upbeat news stories (yes, they exist) about nice people and stories from real people about how kindness affected them." http://www.operationnice.com/
  • Pick the Brain. "PickTheBrain.com, a website dedicated to self improvement with a focus on personal productivity, motivation, and self education." http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/self-improvement-articles/
  • Pierce, Damarius. I Am Thankful. "I amThankful.com is dedicated to the practice of gratitude. It is our mission to foster peace and happiness through: raising public awareness for thankfulness, providing simple tools for practice, Inspiring joyful expressions of gratitude, and educating about related scientific findings." http://www.iamthankful.com/
  • Taubman, Paul. All About Gratitude. "Using simple techniques, Paul helps people enrich their lives and helps them move past feelings of despair, pity, misery, and gloom and moves them towards joy, love, happiness, and of course, gratitude." http://allaboutgratitude.com/

Videos and Movies