“We lean into learning … embracing risk and innovation in our pursuit to learn and grow.”
— Proof Positive —
One of our core values at Proof Positive is Lean Into Learning. We embrace risk and innovation in our pursuit to learn and grow. How does this core value guide our everyday actions? What does it look like to lean into learning in practice?
Every month, one person on our team leads a Lean Into Learning experience on a topic relevant to our work – whether related to wellbeing, positive psychology, autism, education, or any relevant topic to our work. Each person selects the topic or activity when it’s their month to lead (often related to individual preferences) and determines how they want to lead the learning experience. Learning has taken many forms – articles, books, videos, movies, podcasts, webinars, skills practices, and more; we encourage each other to engage in what sparks our interest. The goal is to promote our own understanding and practices of the science and skills of happiness.
We’ve done a Lean Into Learning centered on the science of Gratitude, where we watched this TED talk and engaged in a shared team gratitude practice for a month while another month we focused on “A Thriving People and Planet” and explored the interconnection between human wellbeing and planetary wellbeing. We held a book club discussion about Adam Grant’s book The Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World. Dr. Anjana Bhat hosted a webinar about motor differences and movement interventions for children with autism. We watched and discussed a TED Talk about “Why having fun is the secret to a healthier life.”
Our current Lean Into Learning experience, led by our Chief Wellbeing Officer, centers on the 2023 World Happiness Report released last spring. Each team member is reading a chapter of the report and will share their key takeaways. I’m reading the chapter on “World Happiness, Trust, and Social Connections in Times of Crisis,” which explores how trust, benevolence, and positive social connection can serve as resilience factors for life evaluations and wellbeing during times of crisis (like the COVID-19 pandemic or the war in Ukraine). We will share our learnings from the chapter in whatever manner we prefer, which gives each of us creative agency. It’s fun to learn as a group, and we can push our thinking in more ways than if we were engaging in learning on our own.
At Proof Positive, leaning into learning is essential to our organizational culture. In the words of Maya Angelou, “When you know better, you do better,” and we seek to continue doing better every day by leaning into learning. Our commitment to continuous learning empowers each of us to adapt to new challenges, strive toward excellence, and innovate in a world that needs change. By embracing risk and innovation by leaning into learning, we hope to get one step closer to creating a world where #WellbeingWins for everyone.
