Applying Happiness Exercises to Teaching

The "Science of Happiness" podcast, which focuses on research from the Greater Good Science Center of UC Berkely, has a guinea pig complete a different research backed happiness exercise. The guinea pig then comes on the podcast to reflect on the progression of their thoughts and feelings as they completed the exercise.

With the school year approaching, I find myself reflecting on how hard it can be to stay positive during the grind of the year. I decided to take some of the exercises highlighted in the podcast and adapt them for teachers. My question was: How can we build these exercises into our week so we can feel more positive feelings towards our job when the grind gets hard?

Time is valuable during the school year. Consider this time as an investment towards your own well-being. Life, and teaching, are all about longevity. It's important to take time to intentionally work on your own happiness so you can be the best teacher you can be. Consider replacing one episode of a TV show you are watching currently with 20 minutes of work towards your well-being.

I came up with a sample schedule below and then provide instructions for each activity.

All of the instructions and activities are adapted from the exercises found at the greater good in action website. You can find more exercises, read about the research, and find podcast episodes at ggia.berkeley.org


Sample schedule (instructions for each exercise below)

Sunday loving kindness meditation: You probably have the Sunday Scaries. This is a hard time to feel positive about life and work. Thus, a loving kindness meditation right before bed on Sunday night can put you in the right mindset to take on the week.

Monday glass of wine or something: You made it through Monday. Solid work!**

Tuesday savoring walk: Before or after work, take a walk for at least 20 minutes and intentionally notice and appreciate your surroundings.

Wednesday three good things: Mid-week is a good time to reflect on some good things that have happened to you this week so far. At the end of your day, maybe right before bed, write about at least three of those good things in detail.

Thursday gratitude journal: Your week is winding down. Take time to write, in detail, about at least 5 people, things, or events in your life for which you are grateful.

Friday time capsule: I know getting anything extra done on a Friday can be tough, so rearrange the schedule as you need. I like this here, though, because it allows you to reflect on your entire week. Eventually, you will put this time capsule away and reflect on it at a later date.

Saturday/Sunday letter writing: Write a letter to a colleague, student, family member, friend, or even one of your old teachers.

**This one is versatile. Add it to any of your other exercises throughout the week as needed.

Loving Kindness Meditation

SUMMARY:

This exercise is all about taking time to intentionally send loving kindness both inwards and outwards. It reminds you that everyone, including yourself, hopes for well-being and happiness. This exercise allows you to take time to give the love that you and others need in pursuit of that goal. 

CHEESY ALERT. Yes, this is a bit cheesy. Adjust as you see fit. A little cheesy is okay sometimes, though. We don't remind ourselves of the important of loving kindness enough. The instructions are pretty specific and detailed, so I pulled them directly from the greater good in action website and just adjusted it so you are focusing on colleagues and students. 

Receiving Loving-Kindness

Keeping your eyes closed, think of a fellow teacher or student. It could be someone from the past or the present; someone still in life or who has passed; it could be a mentor. Imagine that person standing on your right side, sending you their love. That person is sending you wishes for your safety, for your well-being and happiness. Feel the warm wishes and love coming from that person towards you.

Now bring to mind the same person or another person who cherishes you deeply. Imagine that person standing on your left side, sending you wishes for your wellness, for your health and happiness. Feel the kindness and warmth coming to you from that person.

Now imagine that you are surrounded on all sides by all of the teachers you have ever had or taught with and all of the students you have ever taught. They are standing sending you wishes for your happiness, well-being, and health. Bask in the warm wishes and love coming from all sides. You are filled, and overflowing with warmth and love.

Sending Loving-Kindness to Loved Ones

Now bring your awareness back to the person standing on your right side. Begin to send the love that you feel back to that person. You and this person are similar. Just like you, this person wishes to be happy. Send all your love and warm wishes to that person.

Repeat the following phrases, silently:

May you live with ease, may you be happy, may you be free from pain. 

May you live with ease, may you be happy, may you be free from pain.

May you live with ease, may you be happy, may you be free from pain.

Now focus your awareness on the person standing on your left side. Begin to direct the love within you to that person. Send all your love and warmth to that person. That person and you are alike. Just like you, that person wishes to have a good life. 

Repeat the following phrases, silently:

Just as I wish to, may you be safe, may you be healthy, may you live with ease and happiness.

Just as I wish to, may you be safe, may you be healthy, may you live with ease and happiness.

Just as I wish to, may you be safe, may you be healthy, may you live with ease and happiness.

Now picture another person that you love, perhaps a relative or a friend. This person, like you, wishes to have a happy life. Send warm wishes to that person.

Repeat the following phrases, silently: 

May your life be filled with happiness, health, and well-being.

May your life be filled with happiness, health, and well-being.

May your life be filled with happiness, health, and well-being.

Sending Loving-Kindness to Neutral People

Now think of a student you haven't really connected with or a colleague whom you don't know very well. You and this person are alike in your wish to have a good life.

Send all your wishes for well-being to that person, repeating the following phrases, silently:

Just as I wish to, may you also live with ease and happiness.

Just as I wish to, may you also live with ease and happiness.

Just as I wish to, may you also live with ease and happiness.

Bring forward another colleague or student for which you have more neutral feelings. It can even be a student who has been particularly tough to teach.

Send all your good wishes to that person, repeating the following phrases, silently:

May you be happy, may you be healthy, may you be free from all pain. 

May you be happy, may you be healthy, may you be free from all pain. 

May you be happy, may you be healthy, may you be free from all pain. 

Sending Loving-Kindness outward

Now, picture all of the teachers and students out there. Think of all the teachers out there who are working hard to make education better for our students. Picture all of the students in the world, who all deserve an excellent education.

Send warm wishes to all of them, who, like you, want to be happy:

Just as I wish to, may you live with ease, happiness, and good health. 

Just as I wish to, may you live with ease, happiness, and good health.

Just as I wish to, may you live with ease, happiness, and good health.

Take a deep breath in. And breathe out. And another deep breath in and let it go. Notice the state of your mind and how you feel after this meditation. 

When you’re ready, you may open your eyes.

Savoring Walk

Summary

Set aside 20 minutes to take a walk outside by yourself.

As you walk, notice the positive things around you. Maybe this is a family laughing together, the sun reflecting off of the lake, the beautiful colors around you, or a cool looking tree you have never noticed before.

TIPS

Take time to notice each individual thing before moving on. Pause occasionally, close your eyes, and take a few deep breaths. This walk is your time to notice the things that we normally rush past during the grind of our every day lives.

Try different locations. Walking through the streets of your city will provide a different feeling than completing a hike or walking around the lake at the park nearby. This can be your daily dog walk or just a walk or hike that you build into one day of your week. 

Three good things

Summary:

Each day for at least a week, consider three good things that happened during the school day. Maybe it was a particular lesson that went really well, maybe it was an interaction with a colleague, or maybe you received a nice thank you from a student. Write about the each thing with as much detail as possible, then write about how the good thing made you feel. 

Tips:

1. Give the event a title (e.g., “co-worker complimented my work on a project”)
2. Write down exactly what happened in as much detail as possible, including what you did or said as well as the involvement of others.
3. Include how this event made you feel at the time and how this event made you feel later (including now, as you remember it).
4. Explain what you think caused this event.
5. Use whatever writing style you please, and do not worry about perfect grammar and spelling.
6. If you find yourself focusing on negative feelings, refocus your mind on the good event and the positive feelings that came with it. 

Gratitude Journal

Summary:

Write down up to five things for which you feel grateful related to your school life. This can be a colleagues continued support, a particular student, a whole class period, the delicious lunch you had that day, or anything else that makes your work life more enjoyable. 

TIPS:

1. Be as specific as possible. “I’m grateful that my co-workers brought me soup when I was sick on Tuesday” will be more effective than “I’m grateful for my co-workers.”
2. Elaborating on each item is more important than creating a longer list.
3. Get personal. Focusing on people to whom you are grateful has more of an impact than focusing on things for which you are grateful.
4. Try subtraction, not just addition. Consider what your life would be like without certain people or things. You can also try to be grateful for the negative outcomes you avoided, escaped, prevented, or turned into something positive.
5. Savor surprises. Try to record events that were unexpected or surprising, as these tend to elicit stronger levels of gratitude.
6. Write regularly. Whether you write every other day or once a week, commit to a regular time to journal, then honor that commitment. But…
7. Don’t overdo it. Evidence suggests writing occasionally (1-3 times per week) is more beneficial than daily journaling. This will also allow you to make a more realistic journal schedule if you are busy.

Time Capsule

SUMMARY:

Once a week in a notebook or maybe a google doc, write a quick description of some of the things that have happened to you in the last week. Things you could write about include:

• A description of the last social event you attended.
• A description of a recent conversation with a friend.
• A description of how you met a new friend or acquaintance.  
• The names of three songs you recently listened to.
• An inside joke.
• A recent photo.
• A recent status update you posted on social media. 
• An excerpt from a recent paper or project for school or work.

TIPS:

Complete this exercise a set number of times (I suggest once a week for four weeks), then store the time capsule in a place where you won’t see it. Set a reminder on your calendar to revisit it three months later.  

Once three months has passed, spend several minutes looking over your time capsule. Are you surprised by anything? Does anything strike you as particularly interesting or meaningful, looking back on it now? 

After reviewing, you can put your time capsule away and start the process over again. At the end of the year, you can look back at all of your additions to the capsule. 

Letter Writing

SUMMARY:

Think about stuff that has happened to you this week. Have you had any important realizations and thoughts during that time? If this reflection makes you think of a particular person in your life, write them a letter.

TIPS:
If you are looking for letter structure, you can consider sharing a story or two from the previous week. Then, you can share important thoughts or reflections you have been considering this week and what brought those thoughts forward. Finish by explaining why you are grateful to have this person in your life.

Sending a text is okay, but people enjoy receiving hand written letters. If it's a colleague or a student, you can use their mailbox at school or have a student assistant deliver it. If it's a friend or family member, consider actually mailing it to them.

A couple more exercises from ggia.berkeley.org that you can consider incorporating

Creating and Recalling Positive Events

HOW TO DO IT

This exercise is best completed on a day (or two) when you have a lot of free time, such as on a weekend. Step two may require some advanced planning with others. In the morning when you first wake up, review the following instructions and make a plan for the day.

1. Choose an activity that you enjoy doing alone, such as reading, listening to music, watching a TV show, or meditating. Set aside some time during the day to complete this activity.
2. Choose an activity that you enjoy doing with others, such as going out for coffee, going for a bike ride, or watching a movie. Set aside some time during the day to complete this activity.
3. Choose an activity that you consider personally important and meaningful, such as helping a neighbor, calling to check in on a sick friend who is sick, or volunteering for a local charitable organization.
4. At the end of the day, record what occurred during and after each of your three activities. What did you do, and how did it make you feel? Did different activities make you feel different kinds of happiness? What feelings or associations linger with you now, after you have completed all of the activities?

Expressive Writing

HOW TO DO IT

Over the next four days, write down your deepest emotions and thoughts about an emotional challenge that has been affecting your life. In your writing, really let go and explore the event and how it has affected you. You might tie this experience to your childhood, your relationship with your parents, people you have loved or love now, or even your career. Write continuously for 20 minutes.

Tips for writing:

• Find a time and place where you won’t be disturbed
• Write continuously for at least 20 minutes
• Don’t worry about spelling or grammar
• Write only for yourself
• Write about something extremely personal and important to you
• Deal only with events or situations you can handle now—that is, don’t write about a trauma too soon after it has happened if it feels too overwhelming.
• Optional final step: After the four days of writing, try writing from the perspectives of other people involved in the event or situation.