LocLife™ 8 brings positivity into work and beyond
Having a positive mindset isn’t always easy, but it is possible to find a little bit of good in everything. The panelists on the most recent episode of LocLife™ shared their insights on keeping an optimistic outlook and cultivating healthy positivity through times of change.
At Spark positivity, ignite change: a discussion on the impact of positive leadership, Javi Diaz led a panel of localization experts, featuring:
- Debora Cohen, head of localization at AppsFlyer
- Andrew Lawless, leadership and business coach
- Maike Patty, head of localization at Wish
- Martiño Prada Díaz, lead localization manager at Spotify
- Cristina Triviño, head of localization at Sprinklr
The session covered everything from the impact of change on careers, lifestyle and health to tips and tricks for fostering a positive culture at work.
Missed this one? Want to watch it again? View the LocLife™ 8 on-demand session here!
Notable takeaways
Javi kicked off the session by asking our panelists whether we’re born with an optimistic mindset or if we can develop one over the course of our lives. This also led to some excellent tips on how to stay positive day to day.
“I think optimism is a personality trait you inherit while positive thinking is a choice you make,” said Cristina Triviño.
Andrew Lawless pointed out that perhaps we’re born pessimistic. “The ability to be pessimistic is our mechanism for survival,” he said. “When we were in the wild 10,000 years ago, we knew we were neither the strongest nor fastest species on the planet. Today, we have to mind-wrestle our brain into submission, and some people do that better than others. I need to do more mindset work!”
“I try to surround myself with positive people,” Deborah Cohen said. “I also focus on acknowledging and being grateful for the things I have.”
Maike Patty mentioned a research study that found that a positive outlook creates resilience, and can also help reduce stress and increase immunity. She added, “I think building that positivity muscle is really beneficial.”
On the subject of infusing positivity into a multicultural team, the panelists shared how they seek to motivate their team and invite them to share the company vision.
“Show your team the value they bring to the table,” Martiño Prada Díaz shared. “Tie their happiness to the business objectives, and share the impact each person has on the bigger mission of the organization. Make sure you bring visibility to the actual impact of someone’s work.”
Cristina Triviño said, “As a leader, you need to spend time and effort on knowing your team, understanding how people approach work and relationships, and learning what makes everything tick.”
What about when something bad happens to us personally? How can we stay positive and how do you practice that in front of the team you lead?
“Honesty, transparency and visibility,” Martiño Prada Díaz stated. “Acknowledge when something bad happens and not try to hide it. Show vulnerability to your team.”
Deborah Cohen agreed but added, “I like to separate my personal life from my professional life. I tend to leave it at home and I don’t bring it to the office, but it’s not a matter of hiding something, it’s making sure we’re still productive. I also … think it’s a very healthy thing to take a day off if you need to.”
According to Andrew Lawless, “We need a whole range of human emotions beyond positivity. For example, we know that sadness is directly related to creativity. Any emotion you feel is a call to action.”
In response to the idea of “toxic positivity,” Deborah Cohen shared, “I think anything can be taken to the extreme. The problem with toxic positivity is the fact that people might deny certain realities. If you’re way too positive, you might lose focus and not see the whole picture.”
Cristina Triviño added, “People who might not be feeling positive may get a sense of inadequacy. They think positivity is the aspiration and get frustrated that we’re not leaving space for anything other than feeling great about everything all the time.”
“The labeling of toxic positivity is just judging people unfairly so take the judgment. If you took out the judgment, it would be a better world. Sometimes it’s enough to just be there and listen.”
In closing, Deborah Cohen had some great advice on acquiring a positive mindset.
“I think meditating is a great thing … whether you listen to a podcast or music, just sit and think, or go to the beach and breathe in the fresh air. And I know it sounds like a very typical thing to say, but smile. I do that a lot!”
Stay tuned for details on our next session of LocLife™ and be sure to join us over at the LocLife™ Community to continue the conversation!
