PERMA-V

World famous and pioneering positive psychologist, Martin Seligman, developed a framework for how to live a good life. It’s as close to a formula as you’ll find, and he calls it: PERMA-V. 

It’s an acronym where each letter represents a different aspect of a life well lived. Let’s dive into each:

Positivity is about seeing the world through a hopeful and appreciative lens, and experiencing emotions that are uplifting, encouraging, and gratifying. It’s an ability to take the events in life and create a more empowering meaning around them that suggests a safe, secure, and enjoyable future. Positivity is a mindset and perspective.

Engagement is about having things that you care about and want to involve yourself in - hobbies, interests, projects. It’s something that you invest your time and skills into because you find joy in thinking about it, working on it, and affiliating with it. Engagement causes us to be immersed and grow.

Relationships are next, and they’re critical. The longest longitudinal study in human history found that nothing predicts personal well-being more than the quality of a person’s relationships. This comes from having supportive friendships, connectedness with family, a romantic partner you share intimately with, and the acceptance that comes from those who love you unconditionally, and offering the same for others.

Meaning is probably my favorite of the group. It’s to have a purpose behind what you do. To live thoughtfully, intentionally, and with an understanding that everything you do impacts everything else. It’s about being a part of something that’s bigger than yourself and lasts beyond your lifetime. Meaning gives you reason to care and try your best.

Achievement or accomplishment is about the personal recognition that you were a part of something that matters. It’s reinforcing feedback that you contributed, applied yourself, and generated some form of result. Sometimes external sources can help validate your internal knowing, with the intention that you’re relating with it in a healthy and unattached way.

Vitality is last and actually, an addition to the original framework. And for good reason - the way you feel energetically is critical to experiencing the goodness in life. You could even count this as a layer on top of the rest because having a healthy body and sharp mind helps you infuse more quality into everything else. Vitality is a multiplier.

This is all probably not that brand new to you. The fundamentals will always be the fundamentals, and for good reason. And while living a good life is a tall task that takes a literal lifetime, hopefully this gives you some insight into which one to start paying more attention to first.