In Flourish, Martin Seligman uses Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill as examples of “severe depressives” who learned to function well even when they were massively depressed. Shouldn’t more people learn how to do this? Yes, says Seligman, former president of the American Psychological Association and founder of the positive psychology movement. He argues that psychologists should move away from the “disease model” approach, which focusses on relieving suffering, and instead, help patients amplify their well-being. So how do you increase your well-being? Seligman identifies five areas that should be developed: positive emotion, engagement, meaning, positive relationships, and accomplishment.
Martin Seligman. Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being. Atria paperback/Simon & Schuster, 2013, p. 53.