15 December, 2016
Published by Kerry Howells at 15 December, 2016
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Recently I had the privilege of presenting a keynote address and workshop at the Positive Schools Conference in Singapore. There were over 250 educators and school leaders from 14 different countries in attendance. Most of these were from the Asian region. As I am passionate about understanding and uncovering the cross-cultural dimensions of gratitude, including the underlying complexities, this was a great educational opportunity for me. The day before the conference began, I was also fortunate to present a workshop on the role of gratitude in adult education at the Adult Learning Institute of Singapore. Where the participants had thought […]
2 December, 2016
Published by Kerry Howells at 2 December, 2016
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The internet is full of strategies, tips and techniques for bringing more gratitude into our lives. There has been an exponential rise in the number of academic papers, popular and scholarly texts, websites and news items that focus on gratitude. These often promise us greater physical and psychological wellbeing and it’s true that if we bring more gratitude into our lives we can feel calmer and happier. One of the most highly recommended strategies is to write down three things we are grateful for at the end of our day. While this is a powerful strategy, I have concerns that […]
18 November, 2016
Published by Kerry Howells at 18 November, 2016
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I thought I would share with you some of my reflections that have arisen from the great privilege I had recently in facilitating a one-day workshop for a select group of athletes who competed at the recent Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games. The athletes represented a wide range of sports including sailing, diving, beach volleyball, cycling and athletics. The purpose of the workshop was twofold. We explored the concept of gratitude and its potential in elite sport, and how to find meaningful and authentic ways of expressing gratitude. Secondly the athletes were invited to share on film the messages of […]
16 November, 2016
Published by Kerry Howells at 16 November, 2016
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Millie, one of my ex-students, contacted me recently pleading for a blog on how to respond to the outcome of the US election with gratitude. She was finding it hard to find her gratitude in the midst of being paralysed by comments on Facebook slamming the leftist elite for not being inclusive enough. As Millie is a committed activist for the environment and the betterment of society, she felt she was being labelled as part of the left who were now being accused of “getting it all wrong”, and representing elitist middle-class views. Millie felt judged for being a bad […]