Flourish

A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being

By: Martin Seligman

Narrated by: Jesse Boggs

Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

This book will help you flourish.

With this unprecedented promise, internationally esteemed psychologist Martin Seligman begins Flourish, his first book in 10 years - and the first to present his dynamic new concept of what well-being really is. Traditionally, the goal of psychology has been to relieve human suffering, but the goal of the Positive Psychology movement, which Dr. Seligman has led for 15 years, is different: it’s about actually raising the bar for the human condition.

Flourish builds on Dr. Seligman’s game-changing work on optimism, motivation, and character to show how to get the most out of life, unveiling an electrifying new theory of what makes a good life - for individuals, for communities, and for nations.

In a fascinating evolution of thought and practice, Flourish refines what Positive Psychology is all about. While certainly a part of well-being, happiness alone doesn’t give life meaning. Seligman now asks, What is it that enables you to cultivate your talents, to build deep, lasting relationships with others, to feel pleasure, and to contribute meaningfully to the world? In a word, what is it that allows you to flourish?

“Well-being” takes the stage front and center, and Happiness (or Positive Emotion) becomes one of the five pillars of Positive Psychology, along with Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment—or PERMA, the permanent building blocks for a life of profound fulfillment. Thought-provoking in its implications for education, economics, therapy, medicine, and public policy - the very fabric of society - Flourish tells inspiring stories of Positive Psychology in action, including how the entire U.S. Army is now trained in emotional resilience; how innovative schools can educate for fulfillment in life and not just for workplace success; and how corporations can improve performance at the same time as they raise employee well-being.

With interactive exercises to help readers explore their own attitudes and aims, Flourish is a watershed in the understanding of happiness as well as a tool for getting the most out of life. On the cutting edge of a science that has changed millions of lives, Dr. Seligman now creates the ultimate extension and capstone of his best-selling classics, Authentic Happiness and Learned Optimism.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2011 Martin Seligman, Ph.D. All rights reserved. (P)2011 2011 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Brilliant, beautiful, useful, and true. How many books can you say that about? Well, you can say it for sure about Flourish. Written by a master of research as well as a thoroughly joyful man, Flourish will allow you to flourish if you simply read the book and follow its sane, sage, ground-breaking advice. Skeptics, beware! This book will prove you wrong. You actually can plan your way to a joyful and fulfilling life. Read and rejoice!” (Edward Hallowell, M.D., author of Shine: Using Brain Science to Bring the Best from Your People)

Not a how to

This is a historical work about how he created positive psychology theory and the rationale behind it which is impressive, but bot the day to day how to info I was hoping for.

Game changer in simplistic mental health improveme

Profound insight and information. I will definitely be rereading this and going through the supplied attachments.

Well-Being Worth Your Reading

I came to this book after hearing Seligman's interview on the HBR Ideacast where he talked specifically about his work on behalf of the US Army and developing Post-Traumatic Growth.

This is an enjoyable and stimulating read, with some provocative ideas and surprising data. I did not expect but thoroughly enjoyed the many personal stories, not so much of patient progress, but behind the scenes glimpses of the politics of science, psychology, and higher ed. The author is not shy about expressing his opinion, and calling out professional disagreement. This was appreciated.

There are plenty of stories and material to take back to the workplace and the classroom (one and the same for me) for trial, as well as personal activities worth a shot.

This book is NOT to be dismissed as mere Positivism or promotion of Happiness as a mood, this is rather a look into the state of the art of well-being –the history, the research, and the prognosis.

The narrator is a great stand-in for Seligman with a comforting, paternal voice and no condescension. I'd listen to more.

So much to learn!

I think this is a great place to learn about positive psychology from the pioneer himself. so many implications for and applications to life. Love the Well-being Theory and the constructs of PERMA. A must read for all helping professionals.

Awesome Science!

Flourish explains the science behind well being! This book should be mandatory reading for everyone at any age. I highly recommend this book to all!

Moving the helping field in a dual direction.

Seligman's book does a fantastic job of helping the reader break free from traditional approaches is how and where the helping field should go to be most impactful, outlining current steps, empirical data and opportunities for self development along the way.

Wellbeing not happiness worth pursuing.

This is Martin Seligman, s new improvements and development of his previous authentic happiness theory

Reasons to Increase Well-being

Marty Seligman has brilliantly captured the scientific evidence and theories that will help entire countries flourish. Seligman shares the how and why of his PERMA formula for well-being so all of us can benefit from better health and greater life satisfaction.

ahead of the game.

This author is not only a founder of the concept but also his own skeptic. He is good at tearing apart his own earlier work and showing errors in it and how it should be improved upon while most books on happiness just regurgitate his earlier works.

Interesting discipline, pompous titan

After I'd finished this book I had to wonder who the anticipated audience was? This is not a how-to, with detailed techniques for creating positive psychology in your own life. Mention of specific techniques is pretty much in passing. It's like a biography, but not so much of Seligman, the titan of the field, but of the discipline of positive psychology, with a great deal of "how I done good" in the mix. Seligman narrates how, under his tutelage and that of his disciples, positive psychology has been fast-track adopted by the military, by a grossly expensive private school in Australia, and Penn State's very special Master's degree for very special applicants.

But more interesting, and rather off-putting, is his need to defend the very subject he says is still in its early stages and still needs more than the one randomized controlled trial he describes in the text. Mostly his defensive posture, and his attacks, are directed at Barbara Ehrenreich and her book _Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinks Has Undermined America_. I believe lazy and irresponsible are two of the adjectives he uses for her methods critiquing his work, but don't quote me on that. And while I haven't read her book, he himself says that he is surprised the military wanted to jump right in when more research was needed. As far as I can see, his work simply doesn't meet her standard, while his work does meet his own standard.

But I'm troubled how easily he dismisses over hundred years of social science research and how his work could be used by the far right. Poverty? It's nothing. Trauma and abuse? Don't worry about it. Anything else shown to be a factor of causation for anti-social behavior means nothing to Seligman, because it is all about the individual and their non-positive thought patterns. Used in the wrong hands, those of one hundred years ago and some of those in Congress now, that is a recipe for the "take thee care of number one" mentality that doesn't need to help preschoolers with Head Start programs, or funding state colleges at adequate levels so students don't leave college with more debt than they can pay within the rest of their life.

Like any titan who has virtually created a field, Seligman is certain that his way is the best way to solve personal and global problems, and if only every person on the planet would listen to him, it would work on all people. I've had that feeling too, somedays; I just haven't published enough to feel a can say it with an entire book.

Lastly, to points of minor interest. The main thrust of his work is that it isn't what happens to you that matters as much as how/what you think about what happens to you. Fair enough and findable in many other books. It's an essential part of Buddhist philosophy. But does he mention Buddhism for even a moment? Nope.

And yet, I still give the book 3 stars. While I have these worries and reservations, I think Seligman's field of study has points of great validity. I'd like to take one of the workshops he has arranged around the world. And I was interested in his narrative of it's adoption in various places. And it is surprisingly interesting; I would like to hear in ten years how it all panned out for the disciple.