THEthe father of Positive PsychologyMartin Seligman together with Dr. Christopher Peterson, identified and defined in the late 1990s the 24 human potentials.
They derive from the Virtues and represent the our strengths that characterize us. The Humanistic Coaching it is based on these strengths which are our deepest feelings, those which are significant for our happiness.
Each person has their own unique mix of potential, a mix that can also change over time. Some of these potential they can be latent (not all of them must necessarily belong to us) or repressed it causes life events and training of negative thoughts.
The Advent Calendar
To feel good it is important to be aware of your potential, but equally important is to be able to express them and put them into practice. This Advent Calendar While waiting for Christmas, it will open up a potential every day, explain its meaning from the point of view of Humanistic Coaching and help train them with simple gestures and actions in everyday life.
December 8 Spirituality
It is understood as the ability to give a profound meaning to life and the universal context around us
It is expressed through the elaboration of moral principles
To cultivate spirituality, spend three minutes every day relaxing and meditating. While you focus on your breathing, occupy your mind with spiritual thoughts (religious if you want but also towards mother nature or the universe, or think about what has meaning for you)
Introduce your children to different religions and explore the main points and differences together
Take your children into nature, to the sea, in the mountains, in the countryside, in the woods…, in places where you can only listen to the noise of nature
Every morning notice the nature around you, the rising sun, the blue sky, the wind, the plants, the birds…
December 9th Prudence
It is the ability to learn from the past, to live the present with awareness and to verify both the risks and the consequences of one’s actions and choices
To train prudence, think twice before saying something
Drive carefully and realize that you don’t save much time by going fast
Imagine the consequences of your decision today in one, five and ten years
Train your child to imagine the consequences of his actions before carrying them out
Think as a family about what daily actions you could do to safeguard nature
December 10 Humility
It is the ability to have a vision of oneself, one’s limits and one’s potential
To train humility, try not to talk but rather to listen when you are in a group of friends
Give sincere compliments to those you think are better than you in some field
Admit your mistakes in your relationship, and apologize
Ask your children to tell you what your limitations are, and then tell them what their strengths are
December 11 Leadership
The ability to direct organized subjects towards common goals
If your friends consider you a point of reference, you certainly have leadership skills
To train your ability to manage conflicts, act as a mediator when two people argue
If you are a leader, you give others the opportunity to be one too
To train your child’s ability to make decisions, let him/her decide the next destination for your holidays, or your Sunday trip
Generally involve your children in family management and decisions, also listen to their opinions
December 12 Humor
The ability to smile, to laugh, to make people laugh. It is the ability to lighten heavy situations (without treating them with contempt or superficiality)
To train humor, try to be self-deprecating when you find yourself in difficulty. Find your comedic side and try to lighten up when faced with everyday problems
Laughing is good for your health. When is the last time you laughed with your children? Watch a comedy film together or take turns telling jokes
Be careful, humor means laughing WITH others and never AT others
Remember that teenagers should never be made fun of, neither for their appearance nor for their shortcomings nor for the things they do or say
December 13 Vitality
Love for life, it is joy of living, it is enthusiasm, it is the ability to have energy even in difficult moments, it is bringing light into the darkness
To have more energy, do regular physical exercises, eat well and try to spend at least half an hour a day in the open air
Make sure your child gets enough sleep (adolescents should sleep at least 9 hours at night to regain the energy needed at this age)
Go with your son/daughter to a concert of music that he/she likes
December 14 Self-regulation
The ability to direct one’s attention in order to promote actions in line with one’s values and objectives. It’s thinking before acting
To learn to control your emotions, focus on your positive qualities
If you have to concentrate on a difficult task, eliminate sources of distraction (cell phone, TV) and temptation (comfort food). In the end, congratulate yourself on your ability to resist
Create habits with your children that you can follow systematically, start a routine and stick to it. Record everything in a shared calendar and celebrate milestones achieved. It’s very rewarding to go back at the end of the week/end of the month to leaf through the calendar and realize that you’ve made it
Help your children set defined times for study and leisure and create conditions to maintain them
December 15 Impartiality
The ability to develop rules according to the principles of fairness, have a sense of justice
Encourage your children to treat all people of other ethnicities, religions and cultures in a fair way without falling into stereotypes (to be honest they are often our children who are better than us, perhaps we adults should learn from them!)
Don’t judge your children’s friends, instead get to know them
Don’t speak badly of people, especially around your children.
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