Graham Shue

Professor Calhoun
CNS 120
11 February 2015
In Flourish, Martin Seligman writes about his visionary new
understanding of happiness and well-being. He presents an interesting
concept of what well-being truly is. For years, the goal of psychology
has been to address the individuals issue and mitigate human
suffering. Seligman brings a new understanding and dynamic to
psychology, which is referred to as Positive Psychology. Positive
Psychology emphasizes optimism, strength, and the positive qualities
of individuals as opposed to focusing on the negative. I believe this
connects extremely well with our course because we undergraduates
are on a journey. Through this course we are attempting to better
understanding ourselves as individuals and through Seligmans work
and exercises, we are able to do just that.
Our class is focused on understanding our strengths and values,
which will ultimately lead us in discovering our interests. Seligmans
book, I am able to remain positive about the career exploration process
and focus on my strengths rather than my weaknesses. The most
significant research Seligman completed was about gratitude and how
this can overall increase ones general happiness. He came up with a
task that made you write a letter of gratitude to someone who has had
an extraordinary impact on your life. I wrote this letter to my brother
who is also my best friend and role model. It made me reflect on the

positive things he has done for me, which in turn wants me to return
those favors to him, and also other individuals in my life. This relates
to my career exploration and planning because it makes me want to
pursue a meaningful career where I interact with people and ultimately
help them.
I can definitely use the content of this book in my career
exploration. Despite feeling overwhelmed, I am remaining positive
about the future ahead of me. Seligmans research has allowed me to
focus on my positive strengths and the values I hold dear to me. This
has and will continue to help me throughout my career exploration
process. I will be able to match my strengths to a career that both
interests me and allows me to be successful.

Assignment:
Below are the prompts for the 250 word Flourish reflection (modified since you
were out for medical reasons).
Book Club reflection prompts:
What: your summary of this reading, its central message and connection to our
course
So What: what makes this a valuable discussion given the focus of our class.
Which part of this reading and research are the most significant, given your stage
of career exploration and self-reflection.

Now what: how can you use the content of the book in your career exploration or
understanding of yourself in this process?